A Toad Waiting For Something Yummy

A little American Toad (Anaxyrus americanus) in the garden waiting for something yummy to come by. Most toads are aggressive in seeking and hunting for their meals. The American Toad sits and waits for a meal to come within striking distance and will jump on it, or will shoot out its very quick, sticky, long tongue to capture the prey. That meal could be any number of insects or other invertebrates including snails, beetles, slugs, and earthworms, eating as many as 10,000 during a summer.

Highly variable in their length, ranging from 2 to 4.5 inches. It is a bit daunting when it comes to identification since this toad can be tan, brown, reddish-brown, or olive green. And then, there is a pattern, or maybe there isn’t a pattern. Daunting.

But I’m confident that is what this little guy is, eating pests in the garden. I’m hoping it will eat the Spotted Lantern Flies. I saw another one today.

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Why The Black Beak?

A juvenile Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) that doesn’t have its adult feathers yet. And look at that beak, it’s black instead of the usual red-orange beak. Given time those feathers will come in, and the beak will become the red-orange of an adult. All grown up!

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A Butterfly Special To Maryland

A Baltimore Checkerspot (Euphydryas phaeton) seen at Brookside Gardens in Montgomery County, Maryland. It’s the Maryland state insect. I grew up in Maryland and this, the first time I’ve ever seen this beautiful butterfly.

Just a short while after seeing that butterfly I happened upon this caterpillar at Buck Hollow, in Shenandoah National Park, where I was working at invasives removal as a Master Naturalist. It is the caterpillar of the Baltimore Checkerspot.

Since then I’ve added White turtlehead (Chelone glabra) to my garden. That’s a larval host plant of Baltimore Checkerspot. So far I haven’t seen any but I’m still hopeful.

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One Of The Larger Skippers

The Silver Spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus) is a large skipper with a wing span of 1.75 to 2.5 inches. It can be found across southern parts of Canada, south through most of the United States, into northern Mexico. They’re also found in southern England.

I see them very frequently here on my mountain eating the nectar of flowers. Mostly blue, pink, purple, and red flowers which they seem to prefer. They seldom eat the nectar of yellow flowers.

Above is an older instar of the Silver Spotted Skipper. Measuring in at about 2 inches in length. The orange dots that you see are not actually eyes, though they do look like eyes. They may be there to scare off would be predators.

Larval host plants of this skipper include both herbaceous and woody species in the Pea family (Fabaceae), including Black Locust, Honey Locust, False Indigo Bush, and Patridge Pea.

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Squash’em!

Spotted Lantern Fly (Lycorma delicatula). First arrived in North America (in Berks County, Pennsylvania) in 2014, probably on a shipment of stone from China. This alien invasive eats the sap of at least 70 tree species, including fruit trees, and shrubs, ornamentals, and soybeans. Its favorite plants are Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima), grapevines, walnuts and most hardwood trees. Along with being in Pennsylvania it has already been found in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.

The image above is a Spotted Lantern Fly in the only condition that I like to see one in. It has been smashed.

Be on the lookout for an insect that looks like a moth or butterfly. They’re actually in the planthopper family, related to Cicadas, Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs, Aphids, and Leafhoppers. It for sure does look like a moth or butterfly -dressed in an outfit that is brilliant and otherworldly.

The picture above is a 4th stage nymph. Earlier stages are black with bright white spots. All nymph stages are wingless.

Keep your eyes open for these creatures and be ready to stomp on any that you find. Keep in mind that they are EXTREMELY QUICK!

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Copper Colored Cap

Chipping Sparrow (Spizella passerina) with its copper colored cap, just a tiny bit smaller than a Song Sparrow, and just a tiny bit larger than a Chickadee.

Male and female look alike. A delightful summer resident.

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An Impressive Range

The Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) has an impressive range including Europe, northern Africa, Eurasia, in North America northern Canada to Central America, Hawaii, New Zealand, and a few of the Caribbean Islands.

The Red Admiral has a wingspan of 1 3/4 to 3 inches. Their larval host plants are all members of the Nettle family (Urticaceae).

As adults, Red Admirals feed on nectar, they also seek moisture from mud, dung and even carrion.

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Skippers Here And There

A Sachem (Atalopedes campestris), dining on the nectar of Goldenrod.

And another Sachem getting nectar from Apple Mint.

There are more than 3500 species of Skippers recognized around the world, about 275 in North America.

Skipper is the common name for the Butterflies in the family Hesperiidae. Each Skipper in this family has clubbed antennae which has a hook on each, a chunky body, and a quick darting flight. In other words, Skippers are Butterflies, just a little different from the rest.

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A Checkerspot

A Silvery Checkerspot (Chlosyne nycteis). A medium sized butterfly with a wingspan of 1.5 inches to 2 inches. This one (both pictures are of the same Checkerspot) is on a Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus).

The host plants for these Checkerspots are all composites including Black-eyed Susans, Sunflowers, and Wingstems. As adults they dine on nectar, moist ground, and scat.

Odd things to dine on, but then I’m only a human, butterflies are quite different.

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How Colorful!

Looking as if it’s dressed to go out to a festive event with those striking colors, this is a caterpillar of the Brown-hooded Owlet (Cucullia convexipennis).

At this stag in its life it eats Asters and Goldenrods, and I’ve captured this one eating away on a Goldenrod.

As an adult it will become a very drab brown moth which eats nectar, fruits, sap, and whatever other sweet fluids it can find.

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