Camouflage – Tendrils

Walkingstick

This afternoon the hummingbird feeders needed to be refilled, so I took a break to wash them out and put new syrup in them. Much to my surprise, I spotted the smallest walkingstick I’ve ever seen, on one of the ant guards. This is a Northern Walkingstick (Diapheromera femorata). Two pictures for you, one for scale with the postage stamp, the other enlarged a bit so you might be able to get a better look.

Here an adult Northern Walkingstick in the same stance as the nymph, folding their front legs up against their antennae, basically saying, “You are not seeing me. You are seeing a stick.”

A Northern Walkingstick hatches from its egg, as a nymph, and indeed they are very small. As they grow, they shed their outer skin, allowing more growth. This happens several times as they grow into an adult. As an adult, a male reaches about 3 inches in length, and a female will grow to about 3.75 inches. They become adults at 3 months to a year, with a lifespan of about 2 years.

In North America, 30 species of walkingsticks have been identified. All of these 30 species are clever masters of camouflage. Indeed, they do look like the stick that is included in the Northern Walkingstick’s name.

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Yellow-lined Owlet

The Yellow-lined Owlet moth (Colobochyla interpuncta) does an incredible job of using camouflage to become nearly invisible.

Here’s another look. Same photo, just closer. Ah, there it is. See those two little legs sticking out?

The larvae of Yellow-lined Owlets feed on the leaves of persimmon trees and willows. Their adults are active during the months of April through September. They can be found in North America from Wisconsin to Nova Scotia south to Florida and Texas. Wonder how many of these moths I’ve walked past without even noticing them. Amazing camouflage job, Mother Nature.

Katydids

An August night. Open windows. Insects making lovely sounds in the inky darkness. A precious friend of mine told me that when her children were young they believed the night sounds of summer were the stars singing.

Those sounds in the night in reality are Katydids (Tettigoniidae). Cool green insects. In North America there are about 255 species of Katydids.

Most Katydids are noctunal and those sounds you hear in the night are their mating calls. This sound is made by rubbing a hind leg on one wing. They have flat patches on their legs that act as ears which allow them to hear the sounds that are made during the night.

Like moths, leave on your porch light and Katydids will be attracted to the bright light.

Katydids have the perfect camouflage for leaf-eaters, looking just like the leaves they are eating. They’ll also eat flowers, dead insects, insect eggs, or aphids that are slow enough to be caught by the Katydids. But I will always remember the thought of those beautiful stars on a warm summer night singing like a chorus of Katydids!

Northern Walkingstick

It wasn’t too long ago that I became aware there was an insect called a “walkingstick.” A creature that I would have marveled at as a child. During my growing up years I spent loads of time in the woods, but never did I see such a thing. I’m delighted now that I know about these critters.

This Northern Walkingstick (Diapheromera fermorata) is native to North America. Its range in the US extends from the Atlantic coast, Maine to Florida, west to New Mexico and north to North Dakota. In Canada it is found in Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and Québec. Northern Walkingsticks have built-in eye protection that acts to shield them from excessive sunlight.

They have an incredible camouflage, looking like a twig, and will keep their legs close to their body and remain perfectly still when they sense predators, such as American Robins or Crows are nearby. Sometimes a predator only gets away with a leg. These clever insects often are able to regenerate that lost leg. Northern Walkingsticks are found in deciduous woods and forests. They seek out oaks and hazelnuts, skeletonizing their leaves.

Curve-toothed Geometer

Another nod to moths in celebrating National Moth Week (July 17-25, 2021). This moth photo was in my immense file of moth images, unidentified. Many of you might know, I love a mystery and last night I looked upon this critter as one of those mysteries. Luck was with me and I was able to figure out that this is a Curve-toothed Geometer (Eutrapela clemataria). A master of camouflage in both adult and larval form. Here, as a moth the camouflage isn’t that effective against the cedar siding, but imagine this moth in a bunch of leaves and you can appreciate how clever the coloring and shading is. The caterpillar is just as ingenious, an inch-worm disguised as a stick. A stick that loves to eat the leaves of many trees. Just a few of those trees: ash, basswood, birch, elm, fir, maple, poplar, and willow.

Giant Swallowtail

Having a wingspan up to seven inches, this butterfly certainly earns the name Giant Swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes). It also holds the title of largest butterfly in North America.

The larval host plants of Giant Swallowtails consist of many trees in the citrus family including, here in Virginia, the Common Hop Tree (Ptelea trifoliata). These caterpillars have a clever camouflage, mimicking bird droppings. They live as caterpillars three to four weeks.

Giant Swallowtails will take part in an activity known as puddling, taking salts and minerals from moist soil or sand, and manure. They only live as adult butterflies six to fourteen days. During that time they seek nectar from flowers such as Azalea, Bougainvillea, Japanese Honeysuckle, Goldenrod, Dame’s Rocket, Bouncing Bet, and Red Clover.

Song Sparrow

Some might think this an LBJ. A little brown job. But certainly deserving of more distinction than that.

This, a Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) and a master of camouflage.

A bird that is known for its rich collection of songs. Quite the crooners, males use their songs to identify their territory and to attract females.

Song Sparrows are year round residents in much of their range. In the northern most parts they will migrate south for the winter.

The diet of the Song Sparrow includes a large variety of insects and invertebrates, and many different berries. If you put out a platform feeder close to good cover with sunflower seeds or peanut hearts you’ll probably find Song Sparrows coming to your buffet.

Of the native sparrows in North America the Song Sparrow species is one of the most abundant. But NOT just LBJs.

And, as you can see from my photos, if you’ve got a bird bath that you can put out summer and winter (with a water warmer) they’ll love it.