An egg case or Ootheca of a Chinese Praying Mantis (Tenodera sinensis). A Praying Mantis that is native to Asia and its adjacent islands. I do see a native species of Praying Mantis, Carolina Mantis (Stagmomantis carolina) on rare occasions. A cause for celebration.
What a kick to discover a Wilson’s Snipe (Gallinago delicata) here!
This one showed up for a bit of a rest on November 4th on its migration south. Wilson’s Snipes spend their breeding season in northern North America and winter through the southern US, south through Central America and on to Venezuela.
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Look closely. In a near perfect camouflage, an Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe), is sitting in a Flowering Dogwood Tree (Cornus florida). Though it would seem the perfect spot for a little bird to stock up on some berries, this Phoebe feeds on insects and arthropods. They’ll also dive into water to catch minnows and other small fish from the surface of ponds. They don’t seem at all interested in these berries though.
Oh, the things one can see, as one walks along a barely used dirt/gravel road!
Keep your eyes open for the little things. Or in this case the big things. This is an Imperial Moth Caterpillar (Eacles imperialis), which can reach a length of 4 inches. As it grows it eats the leaves (or needles) of a variety of trees, including pines.
As with some caterpillars, the Imperial Moth Caterpillar is one that has irritating hairs, that cause an itching stinging rash.
The adult of this species, the Imperial Moth, is an elegant yellow, and brownish purple, with an incredible wingspan of 7 inches.
As an adult the moth’s only purpose is to reproduce, and lives a very short life of just one week, eating nothing during that week.
Keep in mind, if you don’t really know what caterpillar it is that you have encountered, it could be one that will irritate your skin. Leave it be. Don’t pick it up.
Wreath Goldenrod (Solidago caesia). More than 50 species of Goldenrods are native to Virginia. So many, looking similar, it is quite daunting for a person that needs to know the exact name of each one.
However this one has a tiny bit of a unique look. Enough for me to feel confident to identify it as I pass by plants along trails up here. Only seldom reaching a height of 3 feet, mostly unbranched stems lean over with small clusters of flowers along the stems growing with the alternating leaves.
On their way to their winter home in Mexico, Monarch Butterflies enjoy stopping along the way to dine on the nectar of all the Goldenrods. All sorts of bees nectar at the Goldenrods too. Bumble Bees, Digger Bees, and Sweat Bees are among those that are found there with the Monarchs. A treasure to have in the woods.
Many of you might know that I love a mystery. Some native, something. A plant, an insect, something without a name. Figure out what it is. THIS was my mystery today. If I had not thumbed through a plethora of nature books since childhood, I would not have even known that this is a caterpillar. But that hint carried me to books with photographs of caterpillars. One of many in my library.
This is the only photograph I have of this critter. I took it in October 2013. And now I know what this is!
This is the larval stage, or caterpillar, of a Crowned Slug Moth Caterpillar (Isa texula). It’s a venomous caterpillar. Look but don’t touch. Caterpillars in this family, Limacodidae, rather than having peg-like legs, mid-body, as most caterpillars have, have suckers, which creates a floating appearance, slug-like, which gives them their common name. They enjoy eating leaves of oak trees but they have a taste for most any hardwood tree. As adults the moth does not eat, but focuses only on reproduction.
The Aromatic Asters (Aster oblongifolius) in my garden are just beginning to show off their soft lavender blooms. Those few flowers have gotten the attention of an Eastern Calligrapher (Toxomerus geminatus). It’s a tiny creature, measuring just 1/4 inch long.
Though it looks like a bee or a wasp, it is a fly. It doesn’t sting. Count those wings. Just two. Bees and wasps have four wings. Flies have just two wings. And a mighty good fly to have around. It’s a pollinator. As an adult it eats pollen and nectar. While in its larval stage the Eastern Calligrapher eats aphids and other small garden pests. Indeed, a mighty good fly to have around.
Three Black Vultures, part of Mother Nature’s clean up crew, were here yesterday just checking things out and making a lot of noise. Look closely. There are three there. They were on the roof making thumping noises and on the front steps making sounds like car doors slamming. But they decided it was a false alarm and soon took off to look for other places where cleaning was required.
There are two different species of Vultures that live in this area. One is the Black Vulture Coragyps atratus), as you see in the picture above, and the Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) that has a red head.
Not only do these cool creatures clean up the environment by eating dead carcasses, but their stomachs contain acids so strong that nasty diseases that might be contained in the dead carcasses (think anthrax, botulism, cholera, rabies) are totally destroyed.
Thank you Vultures. You may be creepy, but you are also appreciated.
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A Great Spangled Fritillary (Speyeria cybele) on a cluster of White Swan Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea ‘White Swan’).
As days get shorter some leaves take that as a signal and stop making chlorophyl. That chlorophyll is what gives the leaves their green color, and what is left in those leaves will break down. The green fades and disappears. Yellow, orange, and red colors left in the leaves and now uncovered, become visible.
This is a leaf of Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) with its five leaflets, which seem to be showing their independence, doing their own thing, and creating a fun look of red and green.
Even now, autumn is creeping up on us.
