2015 Backyard bird and butterfly (and dragonfly too) watching

[applestar]

Cicadas are definitely the herald of hot summer -- I always feel....

I forgot to Post these pictures yesterday -- first Tiger Swallowtail I have seen this season (Black Swallowtails have been around already)

...should be seeing Monarch butterfly visitors soon

[applestar]

We've got lots of bees and birds here. I put up a new feeder in the backyard this year, and we're getting lots of visitors. Unfortunately, a trio of scrub jays seem to be hogging it. Many hummingbirds come by at various times of day, visiting both the huge agapanthas in the front yard and their feeder.

I planted a large patch in my front yard with a "pollinator" mix this spring. It's produced a lot of beautiful flowers, many alyssum and poppy flowers among many others. This patch is very close to the agapanthas. To my chagrin, I don't think I've seen a single pollinator at this patch. The bees prefer the clover that co-mingles with the grass, and the hummers prefer the agapantha. Go figure.

That's really funny But you probably get different kinds of hummers too -- we mostly only get the Ruby-throated with rare lost Roufous making the pages of newspapers even. Do they have preference?

The hummers that come to my garden will check out everything -- runner and pole beans of course, but including tomatoes and asparagus blossoms. I'm starting to see multiple visitors in aerial battles now. And occasional air traffic near-collisions with the languidly gliding Tiger Swallowtails and Monarch butterflies will ensue if past scenarios are to be repeated.

Often the hummers will hover right in front of my face -- I used to think it was my colorful gardening hat (a Bahamas souvenir) or brightly colored shirts, but yesterday, I was wearing white shirt and jeans and no hat and there it was, hovering on the other side of a tomato "hedge" in the Spiral Garden while I was tying up more string support.

[pinksand]

I have baby Carolina Wrens again! My puppy ate last year's clutch (still eggs at that point) when he found them in a flower pot which was devastating after having babies there a few years in a row. This year they've smartened up and have the nest in a railing planter on our deck. I kept seeing her visit the babies with worms and beetles and finally took a peek to see naked jelly beans with wide open mouths and eyes still closed. I love them!

[GardeningCook]

Carolina Wrens are outrageously funny, friendly, opportunistic birds. And they'll nest ANYWHERE. I love them!

My favorite experience with them was not too long after we first moved here & had one of those compact lawn tractors to mow the lawn. Hubby went out to mow & did the back half of our 2-3 acre lawn, then took a break for lunch & before coming in lifted the hood of the tractor mower so the engine could cool. Imagine his shock & surprise to find a nest with four little bare newly-hatched nestlings under the hood!!! We were both shocked that they'd not only survived the hour or so ride around the yard, but that they hadn't cooked or the nest hadn't burst into flames from the engine heat.

Sweety that he is, after the engine had cooled down, hubby carefully put the hood back down & parked the tractor where it had originally been. Then I set up camp a decent distance away to watch. Sure enough - after about an hour, the parents began visiting the tractor & slipping under the hood to take care of their brood. One has to wonder what they were thinking while their youngsters were getting a hot ride around our property - lol!

Needless to say, the rest of the lawn was left to grow until we were sure the youngsters had fledged.

[applestar]

"Naked jelly beans..."
"Rest of the lawn was left to grow..."

I LOVE these stories! Keep them coming

[applestar]

Did you know that Praying Mantis moults/sheds skin between stages of growth? ...Of course they must, when you think about it -- I guess all insects do, but I never really thought about it before, and this is the first moulted praying mantis skin/husk I've ever seen.

It was another "What the heck is THAT?" Moment for sure when I first spotted it

[pinksand]

I had no idea they molted! I have numerous mantises in my garden this year so it will be good to know in case I find a set of skin laying around. I love how you showcased the skin laying on a green (plantain?) leaf so it would stand out. Very clever!

[GardeningCook]

Had signs of both the start & the end of summer here this morning.

For the start - heard the first Cicadas screeching; for the end - had both Barn Swallows & Tree Swallows fledging their broods. Lots of high-tech flying, swooping, sweeping, & landing on our deck rails. I do love my swallows! But once fledging begins - even though some pairs may try to raise another brood - it does signal the end of the season. In just a few weeks they'll all be congregating in large groups on the telephone/power lines in anticipation of migration. The swallows have always been the first to leave around here.

[rainbowgardener]

I recently saw a sort of mid-sized praying mantis, so it must have molted a couple times. But I've never seen the left over shell. Lots of ladybugs around.

Yesterday I saw this guy


https://www.dpughphoto.com/images/green% ... 11%202.JPG

Green june beetle.

It was on one of my carrots that is flowering. I don't know if it likes nectar or just happened to be there. The grubs are in lawns, but apparently don't do too much damage unless you have a big infestation of them. But what I read said the adults are mainly pests of fruit trees. No fruit trees very close to me!

[GardeningCook]

We have those large Green June Beetles here as well, but have never seen them on or near our fruit trees. They basically just fly around the yard & barn, most likely looking for likely spots to deposit their eggs/grubs. But we're not Lawn Nazis, so really don't care. Find them pretty.

[LIcenter]

For the past 7-8 years we have had katydid hunters setting up house in our driveway basin. Given the size of them they can bee quite intimidating to say the least. But that is just not the case, as I've found over the years what a mild manner creature they really are. The only time they become violent is if you get too close to their mud nest, and mainly the male is the one that will zap you. This year I have not heard one katydid, and with that, have not seen a single katydid hunter. Here's a couple of pics from last year showing the female bringing back her catch for the day. Awesome creatures!

[applestar]

That is so cool! I have not noticed any, but I do have katydids in my garden. I'll have to keep an eye out. May be it could be some of the thin waisted black wasps I see ....

[GardeningCook]

I've never seen any Katydid-killer wasps around here, but we do have the ground-burrowing spider-killing wasps, which are also fascinating to watch (even if most spiders are the "good guys").

[LIcenter]

That is so cool! I have not noticed any, but I do have katydids in my garden. I'll have to keep an eye out. May be it could be some of the thin waisted black wasps I see ....

If they don't come back this year I'm gonna drop a ladder in the basin, and take some pics of their tubes. there has got to be a ton of them given the amount of time they have spent here. I also have a few different mud daubers that live in one of my sheds, and tiny ones that build their nests in the corners of anything cement.

[LIcenter]

I've never seen any Katydid-killer wasps around here, but we do have the ground-burrowing spider-killing wasps, which are also fascinating to watch (even if most spiders are the "good guys").

Now see ya learn something everyday! I did not know about the spider killers. I've seen a couple of cicada killers recently, (huge!) but nothing in their grasps.

[applestar]

I was working in the White Sauce Garden this morning and getting frustrated from beating off mosquitoes when this Garden Patrol came zooming in to handle the situation

[LIcenter]

And boy do they love themselves some skeeters!
Nice catch applestar.

[LIcenter]

Here's a garden spider packing up a yellow jacket lunch for later in the day.

[applestar]

Fabulous photos @licenter!

...Mine is not as well photographed, but I believe this one was dining on a bumble bee or a carpenter bee. The web spanned the full width of the area pictured to the left.

I also photographed this amazing looking caterpillar on a orchid on a bench under a mulberry tree.

But looking it up, I believe it's a Spiny Oak Slug
https://bugguide.net/node/view/424/bgimage

A Willow Oak tree towers over the mulberry tree.... Hopefully it's not a mature caterpillar ready to pupate and looking for a place to hide in my orchid which will be coming back inside when it gets too cold.....

[Rairdog]

The queen Carpenter. She has golden fur and is beautiful. I feel bad for killing her kin and keeping the population in check. I can only allow so much structural damage. One swipe wipes out all her kin but she has a purpose.

[LIcenter]

Interesting Rairdog, can't say as I've ever seen the queen before.

[Rairdog]

Interesting Rairdog, can't say as I've ever seen the queen before.

You will know when you see her by her longer golden furry abdomen compared to a male. She comes out often but I only see them a couple times a year. She is also much more graceful in her pollen collecting technique. The males are jumpy and fast and she is smooth.

Here is another interesting bee. The leaf cutter. They are the only ones that collect pollen on their belly instead of hind legs as far as I know.

[applestar]

When I'm out in the garden, I wear my jeans with suspenders. I have bunch of stuff in my pockets weighing them down, and over the course of the season, I lose weight, so I need something to let me garden without stopping to pull my pants up and tuck my shirt in every 5 minutes.

Yesterday, I was busy trying to take a picture of something and heard something chittering right behind me. I turned around, and there was a hummingbird hovering in mid-air just at my head-height.

We stared at each other, me completely forgetting about the iPad I had been aiming at the squash. As the hummer angled from side to side, I realized that it's throat that looked completely white -- female I had thought -- had a tiny patch of iridescent red gorget ...it was a juvenile male just starting to grow adult feathers.

-- the reason
I explained about my suspenders at the beginning is I finally realized he had been attracted to my RED SUSPENDERS.

[applestar]

There was heavy fog this morning, which meant spider webs were spectacular

Also, I think there must have been some kind of hatching event going on in my front yard, though I wasn't able to find out what -- Around noon, there were SEVEN huge dragonflies flying sweeps all over the airspace above the front yard and the house, occasionally venturing above the side yards, and rarely above the back yard. Normally, there might be two flying at a time in a given area.

[pinksand]

This saddleback caterpillar stung me multiple times before I finally found him hiding under an azalea leaf. He's a pretty cool looking guy but it looks like he turns into a pretty boring looking moth


I'm also seeing tons of the bumblebee moth caterpillars on my honeysuckle now that I've had them IDed on the forum

Oh and also so many hummingbirds!!! They love the cardinal climber around my mailbox and have just been zipping around busily visiting this flower and that flower. They also seem interested in my dog... who's gray. Fortunately he just watches them and doesn't try to eat or chase them. I love them so much!

[applestar]

Oh, Those saddleback caterpillars are SO sneaky At first it just feels like a scratch or a pinch, then it starts to hurt and intensify like a burning pain. Did you use plantain leaf juice on it?

The bumblebee moth caterpillar is really cool. They turn from pale green to pinkish color as they mature. And the adult moths are cute.

[applestar]

These are peppers I harvested today. Yeah the huge Chocolate Cake sweet pepper is impressive, but that's not what I want to show you.... See the orange pepper? Notice the tiny little teeth marks?

I spotted that pepper on the mulch maybe several inches behind the plant. I hurried to it thinking some critter got to it, but these tiny marks were the only damage.

...and no wonder! This is my (not quite right for) Scotch Bonnet. Yeah, the shape might be wrong but it's got the heat, and it has juicy thicker walks. So you can just imagine what might have happened.

[LIcenter]

As of this past Saturday I had never seen, nor heard of a Saddleback cat til I spotted this one zipping along at the speed of .00001 mph on my spa cover.
Notice the Braconidae on it's back? My guess is this guys life will be ending rather shortly.

[pinksand]

Oh, Those saddleback caterpillars are SO sneaky At first it just feels like a scratch or a pinch, then it starts to hurt and intensify like a burning pain. Did you use plantain leaf juice on it?

The bumblebee moth caterpillar is really cool. They turn from pale green to pinkish color as they mature. And the adult moths are cute.

Ah, that's exactly what it felt like! I also read it can cause nausea, but I didn't experience that. I didn't put plantain on it... I always use plantain for bee stings so I feel silly for not thinking of it for a cat sting. I even keep a little plantain patch just for that purpose lol. Oh well!

I'd never heard of saddlebacks before but they were super easy to search for online having such a distinct appearance. Although we had a painful encounter, I thought he was a pretty cool looking little alien creature.

[applestar]

I think I posted about one of these before -- there was some kind of insect hatching event in my garden again. A little after 11 AM, I noticed there were a huge number of swallows zooming and swooping over my house and garden. They were flying overhead near roof level and just a little above all over the back yard and front yard.

I pointed my iPad at the sky and took videos and as I was doing that, realized there were not only swallows but dragonflies too.

Since I was looking up and recording, it became more and more obvious that they were *really* only flying over my garden -- making sharp turns to come back and swoop through over and over again. I walked to the front yard/sidewalk to one end of the property, turned and recorded over my house, to the front, then turned around slowly recording the neighborhood, then to the other end, there was no doubt.

As I walked, I looked everywhere, on the ground, in the air, and including the house siding just in case it was something nasty, but I couldn't see what they were so excitedly feeding on.

I see this kind of localized swarming over my garden at least a couple of times during the summer. I remember seeing all the little black ant queens and drones taking off at once from their ant colony hills one time (they seem to do this together -- out of all of the anthills in the garden), and another time, something else that I couldn't identify. So maybe one of those? But I guess I missed the initial takeoff at ground level today, and they were all already a-wing by the time the birds and dragonflies were feeding.

It's really kind off odd to see the aerial activity from all different directions around the property and at the surrounding neighborhood, and realize it's just going on here. (But it also makes me happy to feel like this is an affirmation that my efforts to create a biodiverse wildlife habitat in my relatively tiny postage stamp of a garden are effective.) And I'm glad I took the videos because in a matter of 1/2 hr or so that I was looking up at the sky, both the birds and dragonflies started to disperse, and in an hour they were gone.

The videos I took today were pretty low quality, but, someday, if I ever learn to edit and splice these videos together into something presentable and learn how to post it in a way that can be shared, I will.

Here are a couple of stills extracted from the videos (tap/click to enlarge):

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[Beverly]

Hum...swallows and dragonflies...do you suppose they could be eating mosquitoes? as well as the ants? I sure would appreciate if you would send them over to my house after they have finished with your garden Beautiful blue sky with puffy white clouds...looks just like my sky today

[applestar]

If they were eating mosquitoes, too that would be a bonus! Do you suppose if there was an expanding cloud of flying insects (I'm assuming there was judging by the way the swallows' and drangonflies' flying pattern altered over time, even though I couldn't see any) they might have caused other flying insects in the area to fly up along with them?

I forgot to mention that shortly before I saw this, while I was washing some apples on the patio, a large shadow blocked the sun, and I looked up to realize there was a Monarch butterfly flying erratically in the air. I followed it and noted that it was a freshly eclosed male butterfly with a slashed wing. I suspect it had flown up there only to be nearly caught by one of the swallows....

[rainbowgardener]

Went out on the deck this AM and there was this guy, just sitting on a cap of a deck post. It was still a bit chilly for him I think, so he just sat there and posed for me.

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He is 4" long from head to rear end and about 6" from head to the end of extended front legs.

It is interesting to me that we have hummingbirds here, a number of butterflies, a ton of squash bugs ( ), and now this guy. There are no gardens around. I don't know why, but no one on my little street that I can tell, has hardly anything planted except grass and some trees. We put up a feeder for the hummingbirds after we started seeing them, and are still having lots of activity.

Glad to see the preying mantis, since it is one of the things that will eat the squash bugs.

[tomf]

This weeks spotting include, Piebald deer, normal deer, grouse, Pleated Woodpeckers, and an assortment of birds and critters.

[applestar]

This robin's nest has been empty for a while and I think it won't be long before the last of them will migrate south. In the meantime, the Arrowwood Viburnum leaves are changing color, and the berries will be available for the winter birds:

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[HoneyBerry]

You are lucky to have robins. I used to have them but they don't come around anymore. My yard is all natural and full of worms.

[applestar]

Do they specifically not come to *your* garden or have they stopped migrating to your area entirely?

Migrating robins passing through go crazy over birdbaths and water features. When I had a little waterfall and a tiny stream going a couple of years ago (had to be abandoned due to defective design on my part), robins occupied every level of the waterfall and all along the stream. I'm definitely going to try setting one up again when I manage to finish my pond project.

...

Here are a few more pictures I took today (well, yesterday)

[HoneyBerry]

I don't know. Too much development probably. Things have changed alot over the years. I'm sure it's some sort of environmental thing. I saw a tree full of robins not too far away - about 6 miles away - so they are around. It's more woodsy there so they probably like that better. The tree had orange berries. It was January so they were robins that stuck it out through the winter, didn't migrate. The tree was packed full of robins. Seeing so many robins at once like that was a once in a lifetime experience.

[applestar]

Snowbirds (Junco) are here, mingling with remaining/migrating through robins at the various birdbath stations in the garden -- changing of the guard as it were.

More fall leaf photos (actually from the front yard )

[digitS']

I have not seen a robin in several weeks.

However, the juncos arrived only a few days ago . At first, the residence song sparrows seemed all aflutter, trying to keep up with the juncos.

Now, they are going their separate ways.

Steve