Category: Nectar

Starry Campion

Starry Campion (Silene stellata) is a native plant found in the eastern and central United States. It is here on my mountain, greeting me as I roam the trails. Pollinators are mostly moths and an occasional bumblebee that slurp the nectar.

A herbaceous perennial plant, loosely branching, 12 to 30 inches tall. The flower has 5 snow white fringed petals which create a 3/4 inch bloom, held by a pale green bell-shaped calyx. Its leaves are lance-shaped, in whorls surrounding the stems. Blooming July through September.

Mountain trails without fail provide fascination.

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Apple Blossom Time

Apple trees at the moment are a huge puff of snow white and soft pink. A delight for pollinators gathering to make the trees buzz with excitement. This pollinator, above, is a Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus).

Two Spicebush Swallowtails (Papilio troilus).

A Silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus).

A Nessus Sphinx Moth (Amphion floridensis).

And looking quite similar to the Nessus Sphinx Moth, this is a Hummingbird Clearwing Moth (Hemaris thysbe).

This, representing the oodles of species of bees and wasps that visit the apple blossoms, is a Virginia Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa virginica).

It is astounding to stand next to one of these apple trees in bloom and see and think about the number of insects that are feeding on the nectar of these charming flowers. Absolutely astounding.

First Tiger Swallowtail

I saw it fluttering about today, this afternoon. Checking out the blossoms. Wondering if they were open, but no, not quite. A few more days and the nectar will be there for the taking. It’s the first Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) of the year.

Image from 2016

White Wood Asters

Like many things early in April, White Wood Aster (Eurybia divaricata) is emerging from the soil to greet spring.

I’m thrilled to see it in many places in the woods up here. An herbaceous perennial found in the eastern US and southeastern Canada but most often found in the Appalachian Mountains.

One of the first asters to bloom in autumn densely covering the plant with small, white, daisy-like flowers with bright yellow centers that fade to dull purply red. These charming blossoms top dark purple stems.

The nectar of the White Wood Aster is attractive to butterflies and the American Lady (Vanessa virginiensis) seems particularly drawn to the flowers. A butterfly, much to my delight, that seems to enjoy being a model for my photos.

Lavender and Cabbage Whites

Skipping months ahead, June, and Lavender will be blooming. Ah that scent! I love it. Most people enjoy it too but many insects, including fleas, ticks, flies, and moths are repelled by the scent. As you can see, apparently not Cabbage White butterflies (Pieris rapae). Along with other butterflies, bees are attracted to Lavender, who feed on the pollen and nectar.

Honey Bee

Honey Bee (Apis), surrounded by autumnal color in the center of a Gaillardia, collecting both nectar and pollen. Honey Bees need nectar and pollen for their colony. As they collect the pollen it is unwittingly distributed among other flowers, providing a helping hand, pollinating those flowers. The pollen provides nutrients including protein, which is used mostly for their larvae. The nectar provides the bees energy. Honey Bees are not a single species. Historically 7 to 11 species are acknowledged. A small number, compared to the 20,000 known bee species of the world.

Obedient Plant

Obedient Plant (Physostegia virginiana). A lovely native to have in the garden. It’s native to North American in all states east of the Rockies but Florida, Massachusetts, and Connecticut.

Obedient Plant can be found in the wild on river banks, wet ditches, prairies, swamps, and marshy areas. In moist sites it sometimes spreads aggressively. Sometimes that is a good thing.

Pollinators seek the blooms out for its nectar.

A joy to find blooming this time of year.

Common Buckeye Revisited

I’m looking forward to my Asters blooming. They are a big draw for an incredibly beautiful butterfly. The Common Buckeye (Junonia coenia). It’s when those Asters are blooming that I get to see the Common Buckeye.

As an adult and butterfly they have a life of just six to twenty days. During those few days they sip the nectar of not just Asters, but also Tickseed Sunflower, Gumweed, Knapweed, and Chickory.

The Common Buckeye shows up in a different coloring as well. Yes, this is the same species, but is a rosa morph. The coloring of Common Buckeye butterflies are changed by the day length and temperature in which the eggs and then the caterpillars develop. Whatever the coloring, I’m looking forward to spotting some of these beauties.

Juniper Hairstreak Revisited

Juniper Hairstreak (Callophrys gryneus) is native to most of North America. Once thought to be two separate species, residents of eastern North America and western North America are now considered to be just one species.

As butterflies, adult Juniper Hairstreaks seek the nectar of many flowers such as Queen Anne’s Lace, Winter Cress, Common Milkweed, Butterfly Weed, White Sweetclover and many more. Here in the Blue Ridge Mountains, males looking for females hang out on Eastern Red Cedars, their host plant in this area. Want to find some Juniper Hairstreaks? Try shaking some branches of ERCs. You might just shake some free. Eggs are laid on the tips of the leaves the Eastern Red Cedar. After emerging from their eggs, the caterpillars will eat the leaves.

Juniper Hairstreaks are little butterflies, generally measuring in with a wingspan of 1 to 1.25 inches. The above photo might help you visualize the size with a Carpenter Bee in the image. Yes, a good bit of brown, and tiny but not to be confused with a moth!