Vocal Red-eyed Vireo

June 7, 2026

A Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus) is a bird that has a lot to say, in very few words. In mnemonic terms it simply says, “Here I am. Where are you.” Very quickly. Over and over. I’m hearing them quite often, and seeing them when I’m lucky.

And this is the nest of a Red-eyed Vireo, just a bit more than 2 inches across, in a cup shape, suspended from the horizontal fork of a Flowering Dogwood tree (Cornus florida). It’s woven strips of bark, grasses, and pine needles, along with bits of wasp or hornet nests. All this is held together with spiderwebs and caterpillar silk. This tiny spot is lined with fine grasses, bits of roots, and sometimes animal hair.

Pure magic.

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Spotted Horsemint

June 6, 2026

Spotted Horsemint (Monarda punctata) a member of the mint, Lamiaceae, family, which explains its sqaure stem and wonderfully fragrant leaves. They are native to a good part of the eastern, southern, and midwestern US, including Texas and New Mexico. Their native range extends into eastern Canada and northeastern Mexico.

They’re just beginning to bloom alongside trails in the mountains of central Virginia now, in early June, and will continue blooming for many weeks. The flowers attract a good number of pollinators such as native bees, honeybees, butterflies, wasps and hummingbirds.

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Brilliant Orange Chicken Of The Woods

June 5, 2026

Oh my! After all these years roaming about in the woods, I still can’t get over the colors I find in mushrooms! Purple, turquoise, orange, you name it and I don’t doubt that it exists.

This is one of the orange ones. A Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus sulphureus). What a delight to find. It’s a species of bracket fungus that is found in Europe, North America east of the Rockies, and parts of Asia, growing on dead or mature hardwood trees. When the host tree contains toxins, as is sometimes the case, those toxins will be absorbed into that fungus, making that fungus also toxic. I have no concern about that since my camera and I only take pictures.

Yes, I’m out in the woods simply for the photos, and for all the wondrous colors. So many fun things yet to be discovered.

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Gray Beardtongue

June 4, 2026

Gray Beardtongue (Penstemon canescens), is in bloom right now along trails up here in the mountains. It gets is common name, including the confusing “gray”, because its stems and leaves have a thick covering of tiny hairs which create a subtle gray look.

It often grows to a height of about 30 inches tall, topped with a cluster of flowers located at the top of the main stem. It’s flowers are pinkish-purple, pale purple, or violet, which attract native bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.

Its native range is the eastern US as far north as Pennsylvania and as far south as Alabama. Its range extends west to Illinois.

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A Couple Drops Of Rain Yesterday Morning

June 3, 2026

The couple raindrops yesterday morning were a surprise, and enough to add some texture to my photo of a bright yellow bloom of Narrow Leaf Sundrops (Oenothera fruticosa). A couple were blooming just a few days ago and today they are opening up all over. Their blooms open in the morning and slowly fade by evening. This is a plant that grows to 1.5 to 3 feet tall. Pollinators that are attracted to these daytime blooms are native bees, butterflies, skippers, and hummingbirds.

A similar flower, Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis) blooms beginning in the evening and continues their bloom through the night into the morning. Growing from 1 foot to a towering 6 feet, attracting sphinx moths, hawkmoths, and bats.

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A Scarab Beetle On Gray Dogwood Blooms

June 1, 2026

This is a species of scarab beetle, the Hairy Flower Scarab (Trichiotinus affinis). They enjoy eating the pollen and nectar of broad, flat flowers such as this Gray Dogwood (Cornus racemosa) bloom.

As larvae they eat rotting dead trees such as oak, elm and aspen. They’re native to eastern North America.

And before I forget, happy first day of meteorological summer!

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A Juvenile Phoebe

May 31, 2026

There has been an Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe) nest on top of the light at my back door for a bit now. The residents have been extremely cautious and I would not even know that it’s there except for the nest itself sitting there in plain view, high above.

This afternoon my *always on the alert for all things nature oriented* husband noticed a bird sitting on the hook in the vegetable garden, and called my attention to it. It was sitting there looking just like a Phoebe, and flicked its tail like they always do but something was wrong. The bird had an incredibly subtle wrong color look about it. Head and wings with a slight cinnamon tint rather than the expected total gray look. Chest speckled rather than a more solid gray.

Turns out this is a juvenile from that nest. First time my camera has ever captured one!

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Cedar Waxwings Hunting For Ripe Berries

May 30, 2026

Two Cedar Waxwings (Bombycilla cedrorum) this morning, hunting with great determination in my many Blueberry bushes (Vaccinium). Going from branch to branch looking for a gorgeous deep blue gem with a frosted look.

A few minutes pass and I can almost hear one of the birds shout with excitement, “Oh! I got one!”

Now, please dear Cedar Waxwings, don’t eat too many. Be kind to me, like you have in years past. Leave enough for me to make muffins and pies throughout the year.

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