Category: Flies

Solomon’s Plume

Solomon’s Plume (Maianthemum racemosum), an herbaceous perennial in the lily family (Liliaceae). The berries are a brilliant crimson right now at the end of October, and easy to spot along trails in the mountains. Just as easy to spot, in the spring, are the flowers which bloom for about 3 weeks, late April into May.

Solomon’s Plume is native across most of North America north of Mexico in elevations of up to 9,000 feet. It is a plant that prefers partial shade, and deep, moist, soft soil. But it can be found in dry, rocky soils much like where it is growing when I see it in the woods on my mountain.

In the autumn the leaves of Solomon’s Plume die back, disappearing until the spring when the plants sprout up again from rhizomes and secondary fibrous roots. Those sprouts become arching, slightly zigzag stems with alternate ovate leaves.

The tiny flowers that appear on the end of those arching stems are pollinated by beetles, flies and bees. The berries which replace the flowers during the summer each contain a few seeds, are round, and 1/4″ across.

This is what the berries look like mid-July. Gradually they’ll become the bright crimson berries that are on the plants now in October, waiting for birds such as Ruffed Grouse and Veery to dine on them. Helping distribute the seeds, spreading the plants further through the woods.

Red-eyed Vireo

The Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus) is a summer resident here at my Virginia cabin. They are constantly reminding me that they’re around, though I seldom see them. Their normal place to be is high up in the tree tops while hunting for their meals, out of sight. Their summer diet is predominantly insects of all sorts, including mosquitoes, flies, caterpillars, as well as spiders and small snails. They’ll also eat plant materials like small fruits, and an occasional flower or leaf bud.

They remind me that they’re up there in the tree tops by singing to me. I use a mnemonic to remember the males’ song. They sing over and over again, “Here I am! Where are you?” Keeping that mnemonic in mind makes it easy to recognize their song. Both the male and the female will participate in their calls which are a Catbird-like “myaah.”

The Red-eyed Vireo spends its breeding season across forests of southern Canada and throughout the woodlands of the northwestern, central, and eastern US. As they migrate they fly long distances at night in groups of up to thirty, sometimes including other species like warblers, tanagers and flycatchers. Their fall migration destination is northern South America and the Amazon Basin.

Gray-headed Coneflower

July, and the hillsides that are my gardens are brilliant with the happiest of yellow thanks to Gray-headed Coneflower (Ratibida pinnata). Native to central and eastern North America. However in Virginia it is considered an escape from cultivation. A herbaceous perennial plant that can be as tall as four or five feet, and quite narrow. Tall and spindly. But in a mass planting they’re a joy.

Attractive to pollinators, this coneflower is popular with bees, butterflies, wasps, flies, and beetles. AND the occasional Crab Spider.

Come autumn and winter, the seed heads will bring on Goldfinches and other songbirds. A mighty good reason to leave those gardens as they are. A good excuse to let those seed heads be during the winter.

But for now I’m thoroughly enjoying the lift those petals of sunshine yellow bring to my heart.

Yarrow

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium). The temperate areas of the Northern Hemisphere in Asia and Europe and North America claim Yarrow as a native herbaceous perennial flowering plant.

It’s blooming right now in this area, looking a bit like Queen Anne’s Lace because of the large clusters of flowers atop the plant’s stems. But those clusters of flowers on Yarrow are quite an irregular grouping while the clusters of flowers on Queen Anne’s Lace is an impressive near perfect circle of blooms.

Sometimes in the autumn a Yarrow leaf will turn beautiful reds and yellows but all season long it has a lovely feather-like appearance. The plant is called the Spanish word for little feather, Plumajillo, in New Mexico and southern Colorado because of the feathery look of leaves.

The blossoms of the Yarrow are popular with butterflies, wasps, flies, and bees. 

I often see Crab Spiders on Yarrow too, waiting and watching for their next meal to come along.

I don’t usually notice the scent of flowers that only have a subtle fragrance. It takes a knockout aroma like Japanese Honeysuckle (Mmmmm!) for me to notice but I understand Yarrow has a nice, sweet aroma, much like Chrysanthemums. I don’t usually notice their fragrance either!

Common Whitetail Dragonfly

I’m constantly learning things as I dig through my books and page through various sites on the internet. One of today’s new things is the word to describe the color quality of the abdomen of a male Common Whitetail (Plathemis lydia). That word: pruinose, which means frosted in appearance. Makes me think of blueberries which have this same color quality.

But back to this fascinating dragonfly. It can be found across much of North America, including all 48 of the contiguous United States. They eat flies, midges, gnats, termites, mosquitoes, ants, small butterflies and moths, bees and other insects. And they in turn will become a meal for birds, spiders, praying mantises, robber flies and bats.

Remarkable agility, astounding to watch. Four wings that can each move independently, allows the insect to fly up, down, sideways, forward, and backward without changing its orientation. I am so fortunate to be able to see such things.

Elderberry

Lots of Elderberry Bushes (Sambucus canadensis) are in bloom up here in the mountains. On a trip to Florida in early May, I saw many in bloom down there along the roadways, making me feel at home. Now I’ve got Elderberries blooming at the edge of the woods outside my cabin too thanks to Saint Isidore Homestead & Permaculture at the Greene Farmer’s Market.

Many species of bees, flies and beetles collect pollen from the Elderberry blooms and a couple species of bees build nests for their larvae in the bushes. Lots of birds eat the berries including the Eastern Bluebird, Northern Cardinal, Catbird, Mockingbird, Robin, House Finch, Wood Thrush, Red-eyed Vireo, Cedar Waxwing, and White-throated Sparrow.

Keep in mind if you’re interested in eating the berries (drupes) of the Elderberry Bush, they are poisonous unless cooked, then they are safe to eat.

Golden-backed Snipe Fly

Every year, in late May and early June I see Golden-backed Snipe Flies (Chrysopilus thoracicus) mating. These snipe flies are quite attractive with their golden thorax. Very little is known about them, even what they eat. Or whether the adults eat anything at all.

The males have large eyes which meet, while the females have smaller eyes with a space between them. Also the males have a slim abdomen, females are more robust. The Golden-backed Snipe Fly measures in at about one-half inch. Unlike some other flies, these are not pests.

Yellow Garden Spider

Eye catching in its size and coloring, eye catching in its web design. Yellow Garden Spider (Argiope aurantia). A pretty large spider. The body of the female, the larger of the sexes, is about an inch in length, up to three times the size of males. Add those long legs and that is indeed a sizable spider.

Not a worry for us humans though. They are quite docile. Just be gentle and respectful. But they do have venom that they use to paralyze their prey which get caught in their webs. Yellow Garden Spiders dine on aphids, bees, wasps, grasshoppers, flies, moths.

There is no sure answer as to why they have that distinctive zigzag on their webs, but some scientists believe that it is to allow birds to see the web and avoid flying through it.

Seen across North America and Central America.

Orchard Orb-weaver Spider

A jewel toned beauty in a spider. Tiny too. Orchard Orb-weaver Spider (Leucauge). Most males are smaller than females. The males are about an eighth of an inch long. The female about a quarter inch long. Tiny.

I’ve happened upon these spiders on several visits to central Florida. I believe these are females because their bodies are about a quarter inch in length.

They are hard workers, consuming things that often are pests to us humans, such as flies, moths, beetles, wasps and mosquitoes. Some of the pests they eat are a help to farmers, pests that would otherwise damage commercial crops. Good to see them.