Tendrils

Category: Caterpillars

  • A Busy House

    A Busy House

    The female Chickadee (Paridae) has built her nest. I expect by now the eggs have hatched and both the male and the female are out searching for caterpillars, spiders and insects for their young. A bit of a timeline: One to two days after the female builds the nest, her eggs are laid. She incubates…

  • Woolly Dutchman’s Pipe

    Woolly Dutchman’s Pipe

    Woolly Dutchman’s Pipe (Aristolochia tomentosa). A vine that grows vigorously with a mind of its own. A vine with a funny looking flower. It’s native to southeastern Canada and the eastern United States. This is a plant in the genus Aristolochia. Plants in this genus are larval host plants of the Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly. I…

  • Another Brown Thrasher

    Another Brown Thrasher

    Last night I posted about Brown Thrashers and mentioned how much they remind me of Road Runners. Here’s one in a, “I’m NOT a Road Runner” pose. No doubt about it, definitely NOT a Road Runner!

  • Canadian Owlet Caterpillar

    Canadian Owlet Caterpillar

    Canadian Owlet Caterpillar (Calyptra canadensis) I can count on caterpillars impressing me in a big way. So often they come in brilliant colors and occasionally one will look like a cartoon character. And this one certainly fills the bill with its colors. The mature Canadian Owlet Moth is what some think of when it comes…

  • Swamp Milkweed Leaf Beetle

    Swamp Milkweed Leaf Beetle

    Swamp Milkweed Leaf Beetle (Labidomera clivicollis), quite a large name for a beetle that is just half an inch in length. These beetles with the long name have a defense tactic for warning potential predators to stay away, Aposematism. It’s unusually bright coloration is used as a way to avoid being attacked or eaten. This…

  • Northern Red Oak in Spring

    Northern Red Oak in Spring

    Stirring after a long winter slumber. Northern Red Oak (Quercus rubra).

  • Blackhaw in Bloom

    Blackhaw in Bloom

    Blackhaw (Viburnum prunifolium) in bloom in the woods now. Its nectar and pollen attracting both bees and flies. Caterpillars of the Spring/Summer Azure Butterfly feed on buds and flowers of Blackhaw while later instars of Baltimore Checkerspot will occasionally nibble on the leaves. Lovely to see this small tree/or shrub blooming in its native eastern…

  • Dwarf Crested Iris

    In bloom right now. Dwarf Crested Iris (Iris cristata) is a striking beauty in miniature form, growing to just 4 to 6 inches tall. It’s native to the eastern United States. The flowers attract hummingbirds, butterflies and bees.

  • Watching The Blueberry Crop

    Watching The Blueberry Crop

    Eastern Towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus) Eastern Towhees are here in the mountains of central Virginia year round. Their diet is primarily insects, seeds and berries and during the summer they tend, of course, to eat more insects. True bugs, beetles, ants, caterpillars, moths, millipedes, spiders and snails are all on the menu. But there’s something special…

  • Falcate Orangetip

    Falcate Orangetip

    This afternoon the butterfly gods, or maybe it was the butterfly fairies, were taking care of me. I was out refiling the bird feeders when I spotted a small white butterfly nectaring at a Confederate Violet (Viola sororia priceana). Normally this butterfly, a Falcate Orangetip (Anthocharis midea), flutters by occasionally but rarely do I see…