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Cedar Waxwing Courtship
It’s now the mating season of Cedar Waxwings (Bombycilla cedrorum), which is from late spring through late summer. These birds perform a beautiful ritual which has the birds dancing-hopping back and forth, and the male presenting his chosen one with a berry, a bit of fruit, a flower petal or an insect. They will take…
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Sharing With The Birds
An picture of a Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum), enjoying the berries that are getting ripe around my cabin. But looking at it makes me wonder why this one doesn’t have the characteristic red waxy wing tips that I see so often. Those red wax tips on the Waxwing’s secondary feathers are red thanks to a…
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Common Whitetail
An interesting insect that perches on vegetation along the edges of ponds, marshes, and slow-moving rivers. Common Whitetail (Plathemis lydia). Perching on vegetation, watching, waiting, to swoop out to capture mosquitos and other small flying insects in mid-air. A good insect to have around _______________________________________________________________________ If you would like to receive my daily blog posts…
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Walkingstick
This afternoon the hummingbird feeders needed to be refilled, so I took a break to wash them out and put new syrup in them. Much to my surprise, I spotted the smallest walkingstick I’ve ever seen, on one of the ant guards. This is a Northern Walkingstick (Diapheromera femorata). Two pictures for you, one for…
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Skipper
A skipper that is mighty easy to recognize thanks to its large bright white spot on the ventral view of its wings. This skipper is found in a large part of the United States into southern Canada. Adults sip the nectar of many different flowers. Skippers are classified together with true butterflies since they fly…
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Purple
What a lovely color. This is Venus’ Looking Glass (Triodanis perfoliata), in the Bellflower family (Campanulaceae). Its leaves clasp the stem, giving it another common name, Clasping Bellflower. Native to North and South America, ranging from Canada to Argentina. Pollinators attracted to Venus’ Looking Glass are small bees, and small butterflies and skippers. This annual…
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Female Hummingbird
A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris). These tiny creatures are so very entertaining. I think about now, all have arrived that will be here for the summer. I love to see them whirling about like crazy, chasing each other, playing “King of the Mountain” by sitting on top of the feeder keeping everyone else away.…
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Black Raspberry Or Blackberry
After talking about Black Raspberries (Rubus occidentalis) with a dear friend just yesterday – what do I come upon today, but ripe Black Raspberries. A look alike, the Blackberry (Rubus allegheniensis) will not be ripe for another month. Before I mention the differences between the berries, I want to mention that the plants themselves look…
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Really Red
This morning I spotted two male Scarlet Tanagers (Piranga olivacea) in my Montmorency cherry tree. A tree that is filled with brilliant red cherries. Seeing one of these gorgeous birds is a real treat but to see two together is amazing. And in that tree with cherries that match their color – way beyond amazing.…