tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79346428977036643442024-03-05T01:19:59.308-08:00Fraxinus Natural History BlogJohn vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-82236807613093461522018-09-09T15:17:00.002-07:002018-09-09T15:17:48.212-07:00Results are in...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
...and the winner, with a total of 7 votes, is:<br />
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Naming what we love: The tree for which this blog is named (and a story hidden in the logo)<br />
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Thanks for chiming in, everyone! I look forward to posting on this topic soon.</div>
John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-28329579416182664002018-09-07T21:55:00.001-07:002018-09-07T23:12:49.394-07:00Help me out?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Well, y'all, today was my first day of school in the Anake outdoor program, a primary offering of the Wilderness Awareness School (WAS) based in western Washington state. Upon arrival at the WAS campus and land, my 32 classmates and I joined our three core instructors and a team of WAS apprentices in an opening circle around a fire. Richie, one of the instructors, inaugurated the gathering with one of the most deeply affecting invocations I've ever experienced -- a series of simply, care-fully expressed statements of his gratitude for our presence, our safe arrival, the sun, the moon, our ancestors, the sovereign human Nations whose presence here predates our own, the plants and animals around us, the water, and more besides. (Included with each statement was a question to the group: were we thankful for this too?) As my heart leapt and soared and did crazy stunts, I fought back the huge gushy sobs that wanted to emerge into the space (but I let the tears come freely). Thanks to what other people and my own experiences have taught me about such moments, I was able to breathe through it and stay more or less composed. However, as you might imagine, I sure hadn't expected to be totally beside myself (internally, at least) for the first fifteen minutes of the first day of school. So it goes.<br />
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Since that's probably not the first hidden expectation I didn't know I had that will bite the dust in the coming days and weeks, I'm not going to make any forecasts about how things will go for me in Anake from here on out...other than to say that, in a broad sense, I'm very optimistic, and quite excited.<br />
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Along with sharing that experience, I'd also like to ask you, my readers, a favor. A constellation of things, including my move to Washington, has kept me from posting in the past few months. It's certainly not for lack of interesting things to write about! And that is where (I hope) you come in...<br />
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To help make my next post happen, I've put together a list (and a pretty juicy one at that, I daresay) of some of the stories that I've imagined telling on this blog. Would you be willing to <b>visit the poll and vote for the top two or three topics</b> that especially catch your interest? I won't make any promises about how soon I'll be able to compose it, but I expect that having a specific topic in demand will help me get the story out of my own head and heart and into the world. (Note: The poll may ask for your name. Knowing the names of respondents isn't a priority for me, but it's a default setting that I can't figure out how to change...so I hope you will put down any sort of thing in that box that you want...some punctuation mark, the dish you had for dinner, your name, a pseudonym, whatever ;-)<br />
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*Click on the skipper caterpillar (or <a href="https://doodle.com/poll/q44c39fmwfb5snqe" target="_blank">here</a>) to visit the poll*</h3>
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<a href="https://doodle.com/poll/q44c39fmwfb5snqe" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="800" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBffF5KmEYVWFlEelAPwc3o_FFucOGClVKs9u56UwqNUHDO4HBLYm420iOUlUQUhHf1SIvT-_vJdf_stIlcg3_7iqaZkfGqtP2B1l5_Jh2fuJCYiCdrfoRxXWUkqK39fqMsLyZ7KrEsQhZ/s400/skipper.jpg" width="400" /></a><span id="goog_1706135841"></span><span id="goog_1706135842"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div>
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Thanks!<br />
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-30579925249889824642018-06-27T08:16:00.001-07:002018-06-29T06:35:32.323-07:00Falling in spring<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i><br /></i>
<i>See, there is a story,</i></div>
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<i>even life-breath yet,</i></div>
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<i>in fallen things.</i></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhirZd-EEpA9PFh26Ee0DDBbJspB-YW-EJHxWoyaOkw_pQsClMHzrBcsTsX2RJes-HrBM8DuTb-SNRz_BaDw2EFL4S_R4wIeZUJO44pTBlFHoLpipeyFOGEV_QCdbb_mpzGMjbkoaslBRPD/s1600/DSCF0900+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1322" data-original-width="1600" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhirZd-EEpA9PFh26Ee0DDBbJspB-YW-EJHxWoyaOkw_pQsClMHzrBcsTsX2RJes-HrBM8DuTb-SNRz_BaDw2EFL4S_R4wIeZUJO44pTBlFHoLpipeyFOGEV_QCdbb_mpzGMjbkoaslBRPD/s400/DSCF0900+%25282%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wasp gall on baby oak leaf, raided by a bird for the larva inside<br />
Leaf with gall then fell to the ground<br />
Fern Hollow, 14 May 2018</td></tr>
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<div align="center">
<table style="width: 400px;">
<tbody>
<tr><td>I.</td><td>Leaf stalk shenanigans</td></tr>
<tr><td>II.</td><td>Catkins and camouflage</td></tr>
<tr><td>III.</td><td>Correction</td></tr>
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Leaf Stalk Shenanigans</h2>
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Ah, spring and early summer! Wildflowers blooming...birds building their nests...leaves falling...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYYKC3aU2d1SnA2vnyZ9fijdR2qXloll9SdLkfHNqwfFT8TmAQYZEMZFofZlSXWz-MBvYAsEfTk5TqxzqOBRMt7bTlZ5QUcCj59Ex61fFGdVBhkhxhyqFgzc-22DHh4sZbmoByHVNXVX_t/s1600/DSCF1343+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="840" data-original-width="1600" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYYKC3aU2d1SnA2vnyZ9fijdR2qXloll9SdLkfHNqwfFT8TmAQYZEMZFofZlSXWz-MBvYAsEfTk5TqxzqOBRMt7bTlZ5QUcCj59Ex61fFGdVBhkhxhyqFgzc-22DHh4sZbmoByHVNXVX_t/s400/DSCF1343+%25282%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Wait, what?<br />
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On a stroll recently at Winneshiek County's own Chattahoochie Park, I came across young green leaves of a <i>Populus</i> sp. tree scattered on the ground. They hadn't dessicated much yet, which meant they had fallen very recently -- probably within the last 24 hours. Close inspection revealed that their petioles had been mysteriously severed. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijuB7jaTgOPojNgCQ7RPIxBnOMvJakfIWxU0lSKaktnXg_NSxujQ_rxAUpR56-4RE6O9POIApnw_b4ZuSI97RwLxRYJ4eRNTtqNFEaY5lTnghypkZcNzwyWu6ote9zI2xUEvo_j2FN4udh/s1600/DSCF1339+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1064" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijuB7jaTgOPojNgCQ7RPIxBnOMvJakfIWxU0lSKaktnXg_NSxujQ_rxAUpR56-4RE6O9POIApnw_b4ZuSI97RwLxRYJ4eRNTtqNFEaY5lTnghypkZcNzwyWu6ote9zI2xUEvo_j2FN4udh/s640/DSCF1339+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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Examining the trees from which these leaves had dropped, I found petiole "stumps" still attached to the trees' new shoots.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjM_h89mSPjM_ovZ9i5iPcdhpjLRWuOGL8DmjMHg9ewmCwXPkEsHdj5nW6_cvAXl5wV9BOt9v80XqHR0v9uxbL__YeI2datjY1DvllbrXOv3Ch0S_XCmSlY3Yu6GPTiiafysF55jq3cVme/s1600/DSCF1347+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="703" data-original-width="1600" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjM_h89mSPjM_ovZ9i5iPcdhpjLRWuOGL8DmjMHg9ewmCwXPkEsHdj5nW6_cvAXl5wV9BOt9v80XqHR0v9uxbL__YeI2datjY1DvllbrXOv3Ch0S_XCmSlY3Yu6GPTiiafysF55jq3cVme/s640/DSCF1347+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here's a leaf whose petiole had been weakened but not quite broken.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD1GgzUDEegpXjQvYtAl9vXD9nY77_Zg_7z7htsA-D5ayiEpcqbbq0zcbHWNuD4t4CnXFo-qIqivrHir9C52wrkYshghwbi6F-5K7hdjbK-rmdINO8N6NpyB5PF-kPJXTJVH3B6vv-HJaB/s1600/DSCF1324+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1375" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD1GgzUDEegpXjQvYtAl9vXD9nY77_Zg_7z7htsA-D5ayiEpcqbbq0zcbHWNuD4t4CnXFo-qIqivrHir9C52wrkYshghwbi6F-5K7hdjbK-rmdINO8N6NpyB5PF-kPJXTJVH3B6vv-HJaB/s400/DSCF1324+%25283%2529.JPG" width="342" /></a></div>
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Who or what is responsible for this? Plant pathogen, windy weather, insect feeding? <br />
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Well, if you look carefully at the image above, you can see the shed skin of a planthopper adhering to the petiole near the leaf blade. Planthoppers feed on plant juices, puncturing their host's tissue and sucking up the fluids inside. As you might imagine, this can cause local wilting or shriveling similar to the damage these <i>Populus</i> leaves' petioles experienced. In fact, as I looked closely at the tree's branches, I discovered that there were planthopper nymphs hiding cryptically on the twigs and shoots. With their pointy rear ends oriented toward the twig tips, and their small bodies appressed closely to their perches, they could easily be mistaken for buds or leaf scars.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUItjzJ6ORBvTOBsPHSuuAPN2i_BKqN7jA3uTKLk0YUOs8u6id-IrPuNZQRmazZUhOAqBCZ_sEfhmLSNKR8grON2pRi8jOTHzDFCB7ZLo-94gU0mJSP67RRDYYIZOC4N7blaEbhGrAcari/s1600/DSCF1442+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1306" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUItjzJ6ORBvTOBsPHSuuAPN2i_BKqN7jA3uTKLk0YUOs8u6id-IrPuNZQRmazZUhOAqBCZ_sEfhmLSNKR8grON2pRi8jOTHzDFCB7ZLo-94gU0mJSP67RRDYYIZOC4N7blaEbhGrAcari/s320/DSCF1442+%25282%2529.JPG" width="261" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2_V7aITTb9cjuEB_WAvcKj7Y5n-2lRPzbMsz7Ag7W0puqLv2z4yJx4YVacc94DvgmnqIPxJsOhbXl16fp62tTFx-UVmPJBRWBtz_kl_UasBQihtV1pXkIZ1kLOd-bUInsOEOkAdHkOpvg/s1600/DSCF1445+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1328" data-original-width="1152" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2_V7aITTb9cjuEB_WAvcKj7Y5n-2lRPzbMsz7Ag7W0puqLv2z4yJx4YVacc94DvgmnqIPxJsOhbXl16fp62tTFx-UVmPJBRWBtz_kl_UasBQihtV1pXkIZ1kLOd-bUInsOEOkAdHkOpvg/s320/DSCF1445+%25282%2529.JPG" width="277" /></a></div>
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But I didn't yet feel comfortable indicting these little beasts. Perhaps their feeding had caused some of the leaves' petioles to break; but how could their piercing and sucking mouthparts result in petiole damage like this?<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLNOROD1dkfGrl1JdzF0JeDbOzEJH0alyM0hoMGhVraVFgUUpT2p6so9fCEj48aqwizPXWxozkLiQmjG_xkPLYdBTz1tUbKOhTg4sKDdQrpsmqMO7plu-iQl9UDC5eWzY3s4nhyjONuHxZ/s1600/DSCF1344+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="722" data-original-width="1101" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLNOROD1dkfGrl1JdzF0JeDbOzEJH0alyM0hoMGhVraVFgUUpT2p6so9fCEj48aqwizPXWxozkLiQmjG_xkPLYdBTz1tUbKOhTg4sKDdQrpsmqMO7plu-iQl9UDC5eWzY3s4nhyjONuHxZ/s640/DSCF1344+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Damaged petiole of a prematurely shed <i>Populus</i> leaf, Chattahoochie Park, 20 May 2018</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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This leaf, it seemed, had been chewed to death: someone with opposing mandibles had cut out big chunks of its petiole, weakening the petiole and eventually causing it to break. A caterpillar seemed a likely culprit. However, my brief inspection of the <i>Populus</i> branches revealed no moth or butterfly larvae whose jaws would be sizable enough to do this sort of damage. Though disappointing, this was no surprise; many foliage-feeding caterpillars actually hide on or near the ground during the day, ascending into the canopy at night to feed.<br />
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To test the idea that those little pointy-butt planthoppers had something to do with all this, I confined a few of them in a terrarium with cut branches from their host tree, keeping the branches fresh by immersing the cut ends in water. After maybe a week in there, the hoppers seemed alive and well, and at least one of them had even molted -- but none of the leaves had detached at the petiole.<br />
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---<br />
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Ultimately, I don't know what caused the <i>Populus</i> petioles to break. Tracking any kind of living thing often leads to more questions than answers, and that's part of what makes it so tantalizing. Of course, the other fun part is when you actually discover which creature left a particular sign you've been noticing! That happened to me just the other day, after a while spent trying to pin down the culprit in another fallen-leaf mystery...this one involving leaves of sugar maple.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjREGY1JHoBCFPOrqTpdhiKMvAJ8nD3JAM67CZLMhBA30-2HDlqGTi3uhSd_FD6ZBERZLfJKiMwhreuodmwkennu15nCHp_zrqMOXWu4myAtzbcV6lfrYoqP7vE4PvoNQ52YG5H3fhojBZU/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="599" data-original-width="800" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjREGY1JHoBCFPOrqTpdhiKMvAJ8nD3JAM67CZLMhBA30-2HDlqGTi3uhSd_FD6ZBERZLfJKiMwhreuodmwkennu15nCHp_zrqMOXWu4myAtzbcV6lfrYoqP7vE4PvoNQ52YG5H3fhojBZU/s640/1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The above leaves were all photographed in the past couple of weeks in parks and other public places around Decorah. Can you see how they all have really short petioles? As with the <i>Populus</i> leaves, something had apparently been feeding on the petioles, causing them to break. In this case, the culprit had actually been feeding <i>inside</i> the sugar maple petioles, hollowing them out as a result.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLJTtgdz6Nc0xllcm96pdShpFe8KsbkVYvFkoB6QMHIEjJy-Q1kw8QUO9cgR3zLee_pqXcepAJpneYq-xO5lDp-wVPNX9RwKnLhYU69-1EqB_GtJlIFGB0_rKDXAPaJpWLJReqbr90m768/s1600/2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1497" data-original-width="1600" height="299" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLJTtgdz6Nc0xllcm96pdShpFe8KsbkVYvFkoB6QMHIEjJy-Q1kw8QUO9cgR3zLee_pqXcepAJpneYq-xO5lDp-wVPNX9RwKnLhYU69-1EqB_GtJlIFGB0_rKDXAPaJpWLJReqbr90m768/s320/2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Cutting into one such petiole piece, I found frass (insect poop) inside.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUKTt5XkkB1rGbkz-RRbiy4bPAI5lnPN1_-ifmTi0Bw0yvcXJZ29ewILiFqZinaCBmCnVy-qPSEhEi3m2AhZfo17LdbUUAv4npUWqy3_QWEd1VrX5RiiwPT30FIsfD_1ojce1FskM5U7ik/s1600/4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1186" data-original-width="1600" height="474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUKTt5XkkB1rGbkz-RRbiy4bPAI5lnPN1_-ifmTi0Bw0yvcXJZ29ewILiFqZinaCBmCnVy-qPSEhEi3m2AhZfo17LdbUUAv4npUWqy3_QWEd1VrX5RiiwPT30FIsfD_1ojce1FskM5U7ik/s640/4.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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About a year ago, while doing some research in connection with a similar leaf drop my parents noticed among some of the Norway maples in town, I came across the following passage in an entomology book. Reading it again now, I'm amazed at how precisely it describes the sign on sugar maple I've been seeing this spring.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Maple petiole borer (<i>Caulocampus acericaulis)</i> is a common insect associated with sugar maple in much of the eastern U.S. Larvae burrow into leaf <b>petioles</b>, which subsequently break <b>near the blade</b>. This produces a noticeable <b>shedding of leaves in late May and early June</b>. Larvae pupate in the soil and have one generation per year, with adults laying eggs in late April and May. [Emphasis added]<br />
-- <u>Garden Insects of North America</u> by Whitney Cranshaw, p. 446 (1)</blockquote>
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This had to be it! Now to actually find a larva.<br />
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Which seemed like the hard part...if they pupate in the soil, then they probably drop out of the petiole when it breaks, right? And even if they don't...how was I supposed to access the other end of the petiole, which was presumably still attached to the tree, way high up there in the canopy?<br />
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Whitney includes a photograph of a maple petiole borer larva in his text, though, which made me think...if the person who took that photograph could find a larva, then I can too. So, on a walk in sugar maple land the other day, I grabbed a low-hanging branch and started scanning it for still-attached petiole bases that were missing their leaf blades. And hey, whaddya know!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIrSgPEu5vpLGCvsEREiYkL2WhbrXog3amrcHL_gJDHd00uCx2TMvxhFJAzqJtu-3Dk-qBb-dlHZs5SZEebAbTDsm1VL8LwmcFJL1UJLJELEd6cQcdea8-sI29DopXL4f9xBP2oQBKLT00/s1600/5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIrSgPEu5vpLGCvsEREiYkL2WhbrXog3amrcHL_gJDHd00uCx2TMvxhFJAzqJtu-3Dk-qBb-dlHZs5SZEebAbTDsm1VL8LwmcFJL1UJLJELEd6cQcdea8-sI29DopXL4f9xBP2oQBKLT00/s640/5.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0oOjuDpyJ77BwRJNvHxC3O-slfgj7MjH3IMmvMQs9EnOQ36sYiebG6vYMkCCjhNx0MGaXlj30n7CugZD6tbsxm3GpPevrEd8JtyHJ1KVBmhTd16ov-Oz1C_XCGPPU1mNhMhIXgfeI1Jf8/s1600/6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1554" data-original-width="1420" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0oOjuDpyJ77BwRJNvHxC3O-slfgj7MjH3IMmvMQs9EnOQ36sYiebG6vYMkCCjhNx0MGaXlj30n7CugZD6tbsxm3GpPevrEd8JtyHJ1KVBmhTd16ov-Oz1C_XCGPPU1mNhMhIXgfeI1Jf8/s400/6.JPG" width="365" /></a></div>
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Hollowed out and everything!<br />
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I figured the larva had already dropped to the ground, but just in case, I decided to cut into this petiole stump...and, much to my excitement, the larva was still in there!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha9GHC8ikKMR23UNfPUMJ3rZpof0pJIm3a1GvHSY2461Tj0yn5vSCTy4jOzqrfPPa-xvAXrJM50aDUAe4i_g5gx_T200f95LNNj9zn8VisQAmp0r8stf8OTIVXjZpycS4sc0uxkyO0Maqy/s1600/7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="487" data-original-width="607" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha9GHC8ikKMR23UNfPUMJ3rZpof0pJIm3a1GvHSY2461Tj0yn5vSCTy4jOzqrfPPa-xvAXrJM50aDUAe4i_g5gx_T200f95LNNj9zn8VisQAmp0r8stf8OTIVXjZpycS4sc0uxkyO0Maqy/s400/7.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Examining the larva carefully, I found that it had six legs, opposing mandibles, and no prolegs...just what you'd expect for a sawfly larva. Some beetle larvae can have these characteristics too, but I'd seen enough to be satisfied with calling this a <i>Caulocampus </i>sawfly<i> </i>for now and leaving it at that (I've never had much luck rearing sawflies).<br />
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Speaking of creatures that like to mess with leaf stalks...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVxFK6Cx7mD2h7vas8yZ-ReTyIyynH5Iw94DR0kIDxMARxswUM5osBE1vLQ9enwCEC8eB_jziL0zjEgtWkVG-4X8zzkeABR7wUEh4VP7i9B4tL3Kl_7RaIeukWlCLRD2aOdUTnw-VfAdh4/s1600/bg00.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVxFK6Cx7mD2h7vas8yZ-ReTyIyynH5Iw94DR0kIDxMARxswUM5osBE1vLQ9enwCEC8eB_jziL0zjEgtWkVG-4X8zzkeABR7wUEh4VP7i9B4tL3Kl_7RaIeukWlCLRD2aOdUTnw-VfAdh4/s1600/bg00.JPG" /></a></div>
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Can you see the dead leaflets still attached to their petioles on this <i>Parthenocissus </i>vine? I came across this puzzling sign last June, in a woods across the river in Wisconsin. The petioles had been nipped right where they joined the leaf blades, causing the blades to shrivel and turn brown but leaving the petioles green and succulent.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8tRbl61q9zN-3N2Zw1DR8QI9Ilk_cTSLKA2PNAVR9UJYlQaOgdhEQEGgrYEPJDmWtwUzoAVKEjOPZhAPiFOwxYJQHxwnpiQII7RthY4ob5c5X1mykDCYDIFcqwoYRdQebsBtNgspdDk-L/s1600/bg01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="478" data-original-width="900" height="338" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8tRbl61q9zN-3N2Zw1DR8QI9Ilk_cTSLKA2PNAVR9UJYlQaOgdhEQEGgrYEPJDmWtwUzoAVKEjOPZhAPiFOwxYJQHxwnpiQII7RthY4ob5c5X1mykDCYDIFcqwoYRdQebsBtNgspdDk-L/s640/bg01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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As it turned out, each little packet of shriveled leaflets had a caterpillar inside.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTvoPUr4zsyB8zAsXUl70rHySfa0ennE21zP-u_nHhpdu9q7Gtpke8VDWTY-AudMIHGlVwbC2ICotUNbVG-3gVJKm_6-sR31qmtejeuaT5eV78MU7UXD3jzfyfHLWKMHo2hjhpuORGCyoA/s1600/bg04.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="525" data-original-width="560" height="375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTvoPUr4zsyB8zAsXUl70rHySfa0ennE21zP-u_nHhpdu9q7Gtpke8VDWTY-AudMIHGlVwbC2ICotUNbVG-3gVJKm_6-sR31qmtejeuaT5eV78MU7UXD3jzfyfHLWKMHo2hjhpuORGCyoA/s400/bg04.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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I kept the affected leaves in rearing jars, and eventually, the caterpillars finished feeding, pupated, and emerged as adults. Here's one of the resulting moths.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl_oLw6vWefPjs01z0XE2FiYkIos6iXjCoY5veC1C7AUyA9N_4mf4XsKHN43iJclezfTXpSPpKKzcANkwxgg3mheu5098TWPAv1xbrPj54ByP1E4KdNh_zpxJir335w9Y2M_RKYVypvPgK/s1600/bg1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="302" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl_oLw6vWefPjs01z0XE2FiYkIos6iXjCoY5veC1C7AUyA9N_4mf4XsKHN43iJclezfTXpSPpKKzcANkwxgg3mheu5098TWPAv1xbrPj54ByP1E4KdNh_zpxJir335w9Y2M_RKYVypvPgK/s400/bg1.JPG" width="215" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheUvgzVneVH6arCueIe0tXoNbxPAReuas3WJiKpMnC9UdNB44WNzji2Sln5YUAy84Exdtz866nKs7asbHCdwGGYrVBcsqBFsGwVbOD0lbmV4iD15wUDx2-k7g0RCyv_uVDMwB97WNyewME/s1600/bg4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="308" data-original-width="560" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheUvgzVneVH6arCueIe0tXoNbxPAReuas3WJiKpMnC9UdNB44WNzji2Sln5YUAy84Exdtz866nKs7asbHCdwGGYrVBcsqBFsGwVbOD0lbmV4iD15wUDx2-k7g0RCyv_uVDMwB97WNyewME/s400/bg4.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXNZZWYoNswzHrTst7W7rOzUhEo2Xyf9EAfoLg2esakiE7OWbVYdMZwo6neb2iJtjx5Qta5P30BNfsrP60TJ0n944ZG09WDvXDF6ouMLvk6m5cQJJ7HaUhFhc2sZoOcazH3EaqILg64awP/s1600/bg5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="420" data-original-width="560" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXNZZWYoNswzHrTst7W7rOzUhEo2Xyf9EAfoLg2esakiE7OWbVYdMZwo6neb2iJtjx5Qta5P30BNfsrP60TJ0n944ZG09WDvXDF6ouMLvk6m5cQJJ7HaUhFhc2sZoOcazH3EaqILg64awP/s640/bg5.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My, what big green eyes you've got!</td></tr>
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Bugguide users recognized this moth as belonging to the Tortricidae clan, a large family known informally as the "leafroller moths." Some tortricids specialize in particular plant hosts; others are generalists, feeding on many different plant species. <br />
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This May and June, I've been learning that the "petiole nipping" habit (as I like to call it) exhibited by the <i>Parthenocissus</i> caterpillar is actually quite widespread among certain moth larvae in our area. In each case, when a larva nips a petiole of its host plant, the affected leaf wilts or shrivels up, creating a cozy little home for the larva, who can be found hiding inside it. (Sometimes the larva nips the green plant stem rather than a leaf petiole, causing the whole shoot tip to wilt.) I believe the larvae shown here are all tortricids, though they may not all be different species. To photograph the larvae, I collected each shriveled-leaf shelter, brought it home, and carefully opened it enough to reveal the caterpillar inside.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNm-l0c7959xcbM6q8SfHvbz2s_F5Qrwx02OIYtXiODGK_TJrVzmfiEPDgu2T57MgnfNXkY-UinpiJZYSKHRZuNH3pywHC88cRAZba-p56bT2Pgqr5M_c8BHOWuN7WLW14Ft_lsjr1Ng-3/s1600/nipper-geranium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="444" data-original-width="911" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNm-l0c7959xcbM6q8SfHvbz2s_F5Qrwx02OIYtXiODGK_TJrVzmfiEPDgu2T57MgnfNXkY-UinpiJZYSKHRZuNH3pywHC88cRAZba-p56bT2Pgqr5M_c8BHOWuN7WLW14Ft_lsjr1Ng-3/s640/nipper-geranium.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wild geranium, <i>Geranium maculatum</i></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9fADynrzXT6nfF8h5ntTPW8uwKShN2ZkKrGzvHZ4-u8TffFRbdS6nKz9aCSepp7E_VX7ztZF6Hd8-JpcEWqmX2bmQDcQf1qH_NyoG_WZ_B-vvLVMnLAfzKUVw8JbWM1CN2BxsOsDfYhk5/s1600/nipper-Hydro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="921" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9fADynrzXT6nfF8h5ntTPW8uwKShN2ZkKrGzvHZ4-u8TffFRbdS6nKz9aCSepp7E_VX7ztZF6Hd8-JpcEWqmX2bmQDcQf1qH_NyoG_WZ_B-vvLVMnLAfzKUVw8JbWM1CN2BxsOsDfYhk5/s640/nipper-Hydro.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Virginia waterleaf, <i>Hydrophyllum virginianum</i></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZMhRp5w_GT776ivwAX2F_L4roDgsG2v8meCsIimPTc1eZIkUG-ci2nOl2oJi8P_QIcfPzxDvjRwyV0fMfQZ7V4OYKcuSjE3uqFntTHwXfRodSVaQij3FkFIZiqwFrZjjMC5fGe8BBh7Ta/s1600/nipper-Rudbeckia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="501" data-original-width="843" height="380" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZMhRp5w_GT776ivwAX2F_L4roDgsG2v8meCsIimPTc1eZIkUG-ci2nOl2oJi8P_QIcfPzxDvjRwyV0fMfQZ7V4OYKcuSjE3uqFntTHwXfRodSVaQij3FkFIZiqwFrZjjMC5fGe8BBh7Ta/s640/nipper-Rudbeckia.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cutleaf coneflower, <i>Rudbeckia laciniata</i></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho0ugVvw67rkCrODEdVUTQ8fppUlzpY7Emew2RiHqD33tw3LrM-fCS2LgCn0DFjFGo2HKh9tHMP1ZUuhXftO8Kjo0GqecaMb6uqlvVnpM-JqoR3vtMyMXOplUnTS0fqrW2YjT_720LhmAn/s1600/nipper-honeysuckle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="454" data-original-width="900" height="322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho0ugVvw67rkCrODEdVUTQ8fppUlzpY7Emew2RiHqD33tw3LrM-fCS2LgCn0DFjFGo2HKh9tHMP1ZUuhXftO8Kjo0GqecaMb6uqlvVnpM-JqoR3vtMyMXOplUnTS0fqrW2YjT_720LhmAn/s640/nipper-honeysuckle.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Native honeysuckle, <i>Lonicera</i> sp.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwGlKM7FbIKh_0LAR_HADn0nBLA_fry-ZScqJc1MWqesGBImt7UYMhKbp29oWzfqyCo4BO9ak4lj8ZYp2WFbMBdi6MiFh1SIBmLjZXLm4KEaQzWKD5ZHjTyYBJ6Uz96EdOPE3UUTSG1ELZ/s1600/nipper-basswood1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="939" height="408" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwGlKM7FbIKh_0LAR_HADn0nBLA_fry-ZScqJc1MWqesGBImt7UYMhKbp29oWzfqyCo4BO9ak4lj8ZYp2WFbMBdi6MiFh1SIBmLjZXLm4KEaQzWKD5ZHjTyYBJ6Uz96EdOPE3UUTSG1ELZ/s640/nipper-basswood1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basswood, <i>Tilia americana</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqb_SXDHB5TeO93CJN8Ch3Tx6zaFVR2oxBUFI7m5gGryhTiD6FxUU47u4FqPYdJMpIy1xlBWkO-vFPuXOWtb84YrGjoK1BxJQEzOHgGaUIjMhov_8O0NFXSrDI2ct5pJvpdZv_oEqhuwnt/s1600/nipper-dogwood1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="593" data-original-width="847" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqb_SXDHB5TeO93CJN8Ch3Tx6zaFVR2oxBUFI7m5gGryhTiD6FxUU47u4FqPYdJMpIy1xlBWkO-vFPuXOWtb84YrGjoK1BxJQEzOHgGaUIjMhov_8O0NFXSrDI2ct5pJvpdZv_oEqhuwnt/s640/nipper-dogwood1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pagoda dogwood, <i>Cornus alternifolia</i></td></tr>
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And my personal favorite...on one of the so-called "false" Solomon's seals, <i>Maianthemum</i> sp.:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVp4DhN9ItkBL57BLnDCWR89ce-YW0h9zYHBQ6AdM2RiNq3qaE0OEu9Disd0Pq2NQ9UMuGWBHWUY1OVik779_xqJxDtwg4gb8C4IaViZqia4qr99rkF083gfVsoEXtlnPY7NXB2xfn2Hve/s1600/nipper-f-sol-seal1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="489" data-original-width="800" height="390" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVp4DhN9ItkBL57BLnDCWR89ce-YW0h9zYHBQ6AdM2RiNq3qaE0OEu9Disd0Pq2NQ9UMuGWBHWUY1OVik779_xqJxDtwg4gb8C4IaViZqia4qr99rkF083gfVsoEXtlnPY7NXB2xfn2Hve/s640/nipper-f-sol-seal1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hah! I bet you were expecting to see more than just a caterpillar butt there! Well, when you try to coax a tortricid larva out of its shelter, you've got a 50/50 chance that the end that comes out first will be the head end...and this time, it wasn't. I had to open the shelter up a bit more in order to get the mug shot...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjENyTdkwtTEssYENtCveS_qs3b7QzaTaOeLWpHkuah-jwqWwRlV83YWr-Aac8m961YBXApZB8rPNRx3CNOfXYUq98fVQXHNanl6rfb3y2JfeFO_SQMiENIEc9pwBEC_CF6TgkM1ZfuqFJy/s1600/nipper-f-sol-seal2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="980" data-original-width="1600" height="392" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjENyTdkwtTEssYENtCveS_qs3b7QzaTaOeLWpHkuah-jwqWwRlV83YWr-Aac8m961YBXApZB8rPNRx3CNOfXYUq98fVQXHNanl6rfb3y2JfeFO_SQMiENIEc9pwBEC_CF6TgkM1ZfuqFJy/s640/nipper-f-sol-seal2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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:-)<br />
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Interestingly, in the basswood and dogwood examples, the petiole/stem has been gouged or hollowed out rather than nipped.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPE6gNfemwUMrNG77fPLrQEU_kM9D_IGWXfsvvtku7TtW2NoTb_akhqqmgjhKk6jX6USiILtzeNoeDVc23GGzfE97b1niqi3wajUBoCH82wgVZ92LhZQs2eeT3vtYYKTO8ASsDA48ez9rV/s1600/nipper-basswood2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="908" data-original-width="1600" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPE6gNfemwUMrNG77fPLrQEU_kM9D_IGWXfsvvtku7TtW2NoTb_akhqqmgjhKk6jX6USiILtzeNoeDVc23GGzfE97b1niqi3wajUBoCH82wgVZ92LhZQs2eeT3vtYYKTO8ASsDA48ez9rV/s640/nipper-basswood2.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Petiole at base of leaf blade, basswood, <i>Tilia americana</i> (same leaf as the one shown above). A caterpillar gouged a hole in the petiole, causing the leaf blade to wilt.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlgD8wX9JjJ4iaWMoeGy1QNFWwB3Gw5EZKMFWWbJKdyPo5aDWr5_3YvP2miopmEpjxLUyVhP0QhH3Iw5_Ol1eOKgWL3V5ZZQXkrMR6mmpx5Bo5OF6JSI11QjYE5mRi4Uy6bFrqHp8P0_8I/s1600/nipper-dogwood2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1145" data-original-width="1600" height="458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlgD8wX9JjJ4iaWMoeGy1QNFWwB3Gw5EZKMFWWbJKdyPo5aDWr5_3YvP2miopmEpjxLUyVhP0QhH3Iw5_Ol1eOKgWL3V5ZZQXkrMR6mmpx5Bo5OF6JSI11QjYE5mRi4Uy6bFrqHp8P0_8I/s640/nipper-dogwood2.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shoot of pagoda dogwood, <i>Cornus alternifolia,</i> gouged out by a tortricid moth larva, causing the leaves to wilt (same group of leaves as the one shown above)</td></tr>
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The technique used to wound the plant is a bit different, but the result (wilted leaves) is the same -- as is the larval behavior that follows (hiding in the wilted leaves and feeding on them).<br />
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Another interesting variation on the nipping technique happens when a larva cuts all the way through the leaf petiole, causing the leaf blade (and hungry larva perched on it!) to fall to the ground. The leaf blade still dies, and the caterpillar still constructs a feeding shelter out of it -- but as the caterpillar feeds and grows, its limp and wilty leaf-home is resting on the ground rather than dangling from the host plant.<br />
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The following example is from wild bergamot, <i>Monarda fistulosa</i>. I happened to see the leaf fall from the plant while I was sitting nearby.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmJ2KKO1jhYR98W1hm36JPKjdFmTBWARQgx_vBzBSB8n5Qulu7kebQxpeJQ4nVJk98MaW2pyaTQLO7iBtmdOKNClq9N4UfSVW9rAnj8moQLYLtR7-_1n1ML9AF_rbzK8U1dqc4tSWovENK/s1600/nipper-monarda1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="590" data-original-width="561" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmJ2KKO1jhYR98W1hm36JPKjdFmTBWARQgx_vBzBSB8n5Qulu7kebQxpeJQ4nVJk98MaW2pyaTQLO7iBtmdOKNClq9N4UfSVW9rAnj8moQLYLtR7-_1n1ML9AF_rbzK8U1dqc4tSWovENK/s400/nipper-monarda1.JPG" width="380" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Petiole base of wild bergamot leaf, freshly cut by a caterpillar</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLGg_XIndFXKqcC7TA-gmKyU7u-NZMNQoLaW_LtFgHw95f7pJ4_2GJ-MZSzLRI6wQIpwZaxplETWj8UnSNh5YntJr5fxHWyjV2SFNrX9_-ty2UHyNK-FDm3P2y56fVKcbCYbok39xOLQpy/s1600/nipper-monarda2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="930" data-original-width="1600" height="372" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLGg_XIndFXKqcC7TA-gmKyU7u-NZMNQoLaW_LtFgHw95f7pJ4_2GJ-MZSzLRI6wQIpwZaxplETWj8UnSNh5YntJr5fxHWyjV2SFNrX9_-ty2UHyNK-FDm3P2y56fVKcbCYbok39xOLQpy/s640/nipper-monarda2.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The rest of the leaf, and the larva perched on it -- photographed only a few seconds after the leaf dropped from the plant.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGmp998WU2lbbzk9n2yDuRhVlfcwCsMiG_55TepXy95RQblsJRrEj3lb-XqecWO2QxisIIpdmiiw8o6soUWickOF23GKbZLj1LbBWZmH1E-1IsUPrETiV7XcWpu2D8tcvfTP8iTgTVCViS/s1600/nipper-monarda3.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="467" data-original-width="872" height="342" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGmp998WU2lbbzk9n2yDuRhVlfcwCsMiG_55TepXy95RQblsJRrEj3lb-XqecWO2QxisIIpdmiiw8o6soUWickOF23GKbZLj1LbBWZmH1E-1IsUPrETiV7XcWpu2D8tcvfTP8iTgTVCViS/s640/nipper-monarda3.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I stashed this leaf in a container I had handy at the moment, and by the time I got home the larva had already drawn together the leaf margins with silk, creating a tubelike feeding shelter.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDukj0Ba8MZPGXlG1K_kaOBwLccYCaVrHcHA-jwzjeazZ_8vt-rMKx8xV3KJEwWDu_Q1iZ8hSVG22iToHGVpx1_vPuVfWmwXuu_K1_V7tL8mrTfJ4mIg8qsemuSCUpXXC_ubJrQ3iY_57B/s1600/nipper-monarda4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="653" data-original-width="1600" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDukj0Ba8MZPGXlG1K_kaOBwLccYCaVrHcHA-jwzjeazZ_8vt-rMKx8xV3KJEwWDu_Q1iZ8hSVG22iToHGVpx1_vPuVfWmwXuu_K1_V7tL8mrTfJ4mIg8qsemuSCUpXXC_ubJrQ3iY_57B/s640/nipper-monarda4.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYgVeDGI7g9xukKHIzCqIx06iCtuHVyKd48vqu3a_-NCh_YmETSyy3jpXvCIHUWxCgBpM3O95uAHyPqWBWXaBAP3US6i7giPO2amQ78ZKD1X5Weltl-jE9ASu9pPLuQucvnO4MefnYvssK/s1600/nipper-monarda5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="852" data-original-width="1600" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYgVeDGI7g9xukKHIzCqIx06iCtuHVyKd48vqu3a_-NCh_YmETSyy3jpXvCIHUWxCgBpM3O95uAHyPqWBWXaBAP3US6i7giPO2amQ78ZKD1X5Weltl-jE9ASu9pPLuQucvnO4MefnYvssK/s400/nipper-monarda5.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Larva, removed from leaf wrap temporarily for photo shoot</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2xayv-DnDmTtzskS5eFZ-5cZuXLouUhl-noLUYtj-i7lOFFZQ7scMzf8wVwX6TEZiV-ZRhvbthXo77sToAyp3IKIviiTxjyyfty9fvP5rUZDBcTUOf7U7m_Fwz1bK7nAxaUrZoi6CPAmI/s1600/nipper-monarda6.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2xayv-DnDmTtzskS5eFZ-5cZuXLouUhl-noLUYtj-i7lOFFZQ7scMzf8wVwX6TEZiV-ZRhvbthXo77sToAyp3IKIviiTxjyyfty9fvP5rUZDBcTUOf7U7m_Fwz1bK7nAxaUrZoi6CPAmI/s400/nipper-monarda6.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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On June 13 -- after having grown to maturity on <i>Monarda</i> leaves I'd fed it, and then undergoing a very brief pupal stage -- this critter completed its transformation into an adult moth.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiioAUJsP5xL5TYHAUOabfc3LJU24QrgUDgMZQNGQ7w8WtG8mI8HMK_QJpBnpoYVoWCe8mouTVgZOFzgq2cluTSIG8GrM1e4aRnIvF7btcmK9CQwMdz82cJ0GGgz-hRhEz4WdOxFYj6gv8T/s1600/nipper-monarda8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1147" data-original-width="1600" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiioAUJsP5xL5TYHAUOabfc3LJU24QrgUDgMZQNGQ7w8WtG8mI8HMK_QJpBnpoYVoWCe8mouTVgZOFzgq2cluTSIG8GrM1e4aRnIvF7btcmK9CQwMdz82cJ0GGgz-hRhEz4WdOxFYj6gv8T/s400/nipper-monarda8.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adult of petiole-cutting caterpillar from wild bergamot, <i>Monarda fistulosa</i><br />
(It got a bit roughed up in the rearing container, hence the darker patch with scales worn off.)</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhajg9t5DcBt1GF1NmGl7bo5UPxMJMJFrrEQy_Qj7er3JU6CaCgN7mdZCUVCi5SSdhHRbDkkDY7IjMKxVgYx3QlBWWxGzKK9E98cieyTos4p9206YzCwagQsPGBRQjYqO9TIW8u18Dx-fpy/s1600/nipper-monarda9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="819" data-original-width="1600" height="323" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhajg9t5DcBt1GF1NmGl7bo5UPxMJMJFrrEQy_Qj7er3JU6CaCgN7mdZCUVCi5SSdhHRbDkkDY7IjMKxVgYx3QlBWWxGzKK9E98cieyTos4p9206YzCwagQsPGBRQjYqO9TIW8u18Dx-fpy/s640/nipper-monarda9.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adult, <i>Monarda </i>petiole-cutter</td></tr>
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And here's an adult of the <i>Hydrophyllum </i>petiole-nipper:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPj2kZx87O6vifPLpiY1EAjYRu2QcaD55l4awcCcj3OcFB1sna3LosUwMXZP5ALKtsx5Ki-igAN8ZlwR0ta-ccjnNuITJ3BIYLkBoyCFf6C8hce-BY7TVwB8YMIEEKP02SgPSs3u374bcT/s1600/nipper-Hydro2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="829" data-original-width="1600" height="329" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPj2kZx87O6vifPLpiY1EAjYRu2QcaD55l4awcCcj3OcFB1sna3LosUwMXZP5ALKtsx5Ki-igAN8ZlwR0ta-ccjnNuITJ3BIYLkBoyCFf6C8hce-BY7TVwB8YMIEEKP02SgPSs3u374bcT/s640/nipper-Hydro2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbZF66BNkevW3a4XadXiHQQCS8wvIVT7e5EcoRsIrd0ZwMwa6dx9y4lJEiJkoiGwivNlrhE0YIb2iTZP6aE-Alx0NOk4ajfISeP7LirZokZNU9x8NF_8-QuPwtegbjjJL6WQSxYPL16yGx/s1600/nipper-Hydro4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1326" data-original-width="1600" height="331" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbZF66BNkevW3a4XadXiHQQCS8wvIVT7e5EcoRsIrd0ZwMwa6dx9y4lJEiJkoiGwivNlrhE0YIb2iTZP6aE-Alx0NOk4ajfISeP7LirZokZNU9x8NF_8-QuPwtegbjjJL6WQSxYPL16yGx/s400/nipper-Hydro4.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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The shoot-gouging caterpillars from dogwood haven't turned into pupae or adults yet, but when I checked in on them the other day, they seemed to have matured nicely in their wilted-leaf shelters. In fact, more than one of them had taken on a lovely pinkish-red color, as certain caterpillars often do shortly before they pupate.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8us2-cWmUZTECERXMGKYmtLg0MEAxuXBzySi_3h5C8_PHWnFtoD8npw4OuDK0ydnh_8D-os0bt0Bis8FqlrLf8yS621LRNaDMySg7N8ks5L0v2rbn071r1krsBT9GutcBpi8t-xSKIlfJ/s1600/nipper-dogwood3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1600" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8us2-cWmUZTECERXMGKYmtLg0MEAxuXBzySi_3h5C8_PHWnFtoD8npw4OuDK0ydnh_8D-os0bt0Bis8FqlrLf8yS621LRNaDMySg7N8ks5L0v2rbn071r1krsBT9GutcBpi8t-xSKIlfJ/s640/nipper-dogwood3.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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It looks to me like at least four species of tortricids are represented in the preceding images. Why would so many different types of moths share this leaf-wilting habit? Why does it make sense to do this?<br />
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The "shelter hypothesis" I mentioned earlier is one possible reason: a wilted or shriveled leaf would seem an ideal hideaway, relatively safe from predators and parasitoids. Nipping the petiole could have chemical advantages for the caterpillar, too: a leaf damaged in this way is presumably unable to receive or manufacture defensive chemicals that could otherwise protect it from herbivory. Indeed, monarch caterpillars are known to nibble midveins or petioles of milkweed leaves in order to cut off the flow of unpalatable latex (2).</div>
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Reflecting on his latest sightings of clever behaviors in the animal world, a fellow naturalist recently told me he felt overwhelmed by the animals' sheer...<i>competence</i>. And isn't it so? The fittingness and precision of certain behaviors can be hard to believe. We are surrounded by beings who <i>really</i> know their stuff.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1TAD1jxq1yAphwK_JKpJgOtCXqldlu-cWszS5UKgnzbm7hhZc_Bb7lJi_JQUdX8D9YeUkxvk2VTvPf9jKPR0dmuKAJTZ3lLIvAqwhCeA05zhbKiK3WP3y4yGRGENQZP_6gX_I1PWhP8yy/s1600/fss-torty2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="465" data-original-width="800" height="372" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1TAD1jxq1yAphwK_JKpJgOtCXqldlu-cWszS5UKgnzbm7hhZc_Bb7lJi_JQUdX8D9YeUkxvk2VTvPf9jKPR0dmuKAJTZ3lLIvAqwhCeA05zhbKiK3WP3y4yGRGENQZP_6gX_I1PWhP8yy/s640/fss-torty2.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adult, <i>Maianthemum</i> leaf wilter<br />
Photographed on June 26, 2018</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgevohMpNf71eum5GRogW1i5Rk6tpGqWurrpW4wmA6OvLb1_XzRf56NLHvhbPvl4EbmlqI87aZrZkAjVgXZ3gHJRgsGws8gdbLL2v_zaK04bkXiLu1Q4t-v9wcM5a0mLki94BYcCSq43gx4/s1600/fss-torty3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="542" data-original-width="800" height="432" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgevohMpNf71eum5GRogW1i5Rk6tpGqWurrpW4wmA6OvLb1_XzRf56NLHvhbPvl4EbmlqI87aZrZkAjVgXZ3gHJRgsGws8gdbLL2v_zaK04bkXiLu1Q4t-v9wcM5a0mLki94BYcCSq43gx4/s640/fss-torty3.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tortricids' eyes are pretty cool.</td></tr>
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Catkins and Camouflage</h2>
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In spring, oaks, poplars, and certain other trees present their flowers to the world in long, delicate, dangling structures known as catkins. Some of these catkins bear only male flowers, while others bear only female flowers. When the male catkins have done their job (shedding pollen), they fall from the tree <i>en masse</i>. This can create a mess for homeowners! Such was the case late this May in the front yard of a house on Broadway Street in Decorah.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDSMK0fhq3IeuJXqsnoMFa11d4U9NEglgcPydJhhKLOg7wj3BoV9aYcEigMZSR04UMJlJpW4Fil73o4HkSBPXOcwP7XI1JGKgPcrVSc3LWZy77xUW-py5RcyzxUwqdJQbS6ndUffK2go7K/s1600/oak1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDSMK0fhq3IeuJXqsnoMFa11d4U9NEglgcPydJhhKLOg7wj3BoV9aYcEigMZSR04UMJlJpW4Fil73o4HkSBPXOcwP7XI1JGKgPcrVSc3LWZy77xUW-py5RcyzxUwqdJQbS6ndUffK2go7K/s640/oak1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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These male catkins, dropped by a sturdy red oak tree, littered lawn, porch, roof, and gutter of the house. On the sidewalk, large bunches of the catkins had gathered themselves together like some feral breed of dust bunny.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh66a-1z1xX4YUkO-ysCWnghiEORZsjq_OVNMhGG2i2_utQ6PYW4xCWTR5wigN1h3vUxF5MS88jiw24EYPlGcg78tA9RpQHeboeab-SCVmgW5NkJD15bXPg5rdJqAVYPeKjx35T_H4CL0DN/s1600/oak3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh66a-1z1xX4YUkO-ysCWnghiEORZsjq_OVNMhGG2i2_utQ6PYW4xCWTR5wigN1h3vUxF5MS88jiw24EYPlGcg78tA9RpQHeboeab-SCVmgW5NkJD15bXPg5rdJqAVYPeKjx35T_H4CL0DN/s640/oak3.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Large indeed!</td></tr>
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Though likely bothersome from the homeowner's perspective, this windfall of catkins was also an opportunity to observe a certain creature that relies on the oak flowers for room and board. I first encountered this animal a few years ago at Phelps Park in Decorah. There, I learned to recognize the shelter it builds for itself: a small number of catkins drawn and woven together.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh48FEMSxaCEw8v2l4v0jG55L7-P3p7Oy7d9kF_uKbJCGGByPnHbfrbia53v2b5tSCc9Wa7dV-F6Gw0LtFPNSYbcFuqV0EUlE6mhjX5n4hyphenhypheneH03lqIksHZ5YeVEI_zxXTKIRc7cvBJvyBXf/s1600/oak4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="888" data-original-width="1600" height="354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh48FEMSxaCEw8v2l4v0jG55L7-P3p7Oy7d9kF_uKbJCGGByPnHbfrbia53v2b5tSCc9Wa7dV-F6Gw0LtFPNSYbcFuqV0EUlE6mhjX5n4hyphenhypheneH03lqIksHZ5YeVEI_zxXTKIRc7cvBJvyBXf/s640/oak4.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Catkin-shelter constructed by a <i>Chionodes</i> caterpillar<br />
Photographed in spring 2018 on the gravel driveway of local friends Liz and Daniel</td></tr>
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If you look closely at one of these catkin-shelters, you can see the silk used to hold it together...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiANU5XXUWyGXewOMSwTZleKvOh5Fu-yKaLFF8dqkpEmnYMkDN-JHnkRIcAyC7-gSsamWGbBHcYI89XeG865usFqXzQiuLml1XApYQWworvniCmGNArxmhB08M8s6tOD2rCUNwtOnX8Xff/s1600/oak5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="504" data-original-width="864" height="371" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiANU5XXUWyGXewOMSwTZleKvOh5Fu-yKaLFF8dqkpEmnYMkDN-JHnkRIcAyC7-gSsamWGbBHcYI89XeG865usFqXzQiuLml1XApYQWworvniCmGNArxmhB08M8s6tOD2rCUNwtOnX8Xff/s640/oak5.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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…and if you begin to gently pull apart the catkins -- ideally over a piece of paper or other smooth surface -- a little tan-colored caterpillar may come tumbling out.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ93lGHSt6MJdgNhBVd7HJDS31jM3C9AvbBnupKV5BWzCQcW520Q1L-w47nerJKdmvtj-jbHFiaP0hAsNmllWvHrAJ9aaOUFcbWHN8zKqOWeochgDXOs_zNBxyyWoiqZyNgYRA0sAr8ew3/s1600/oak6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ93lGHSt6MJdgNhBVd7HJDS31jM3C9AvbBnupKV5BWzCQcW520Q1L-w47nerJKdmvtj-jbHFiaP0hAsNmllWvHrAJ9aaOUFcbWHN8zKqOWeochgDXOs_zNBxyyWoiqZyNgYRA0sAr8ew3/s640/oak6.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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It's impressively well-camouflaged for its life among the oak flowers.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCGc7sW0PGpEjhDt39Sw_wG6CfntN9LTj0G2gdQE6NVlUZZqfSCbZapipsM9eBNATmlBMAXTkmf9iBzQsGHZu7GfgNVAz5zzERj8mQu2ND0nL5ghRwxtzSBPjP2keEJbczt80PucNZxlbe/s1600/oak9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="818" data-original-width="1600" height="326" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCGc7sW0PGpEjhDt39Sw_wG6CfntN9LTj0G2gdQE6NVlUZZqfSCbZapipsM9eBNATmlBMAXTkmf9iBzQsGHZu7GfgNVAz5zzERj8mQu2ND0nL5ghRwxtzSBPjP2keEJbczt80PucNZxlbe/s640/oak9.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Sometimes, when you evict such a caterpillar from its shelter, it enters "crawl-away mode" and cannot easily be reintroduced to its former home. With a little effort, though, I convinced this individual to reenter its shelter, which I had left mostly intact.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLtapxlDcPhiidrTzUkSeJIMU_6b_ymfuUXUOPGCQLG9BDzouHOHiJ3-XB8GeQUQvLG_EtOxpwxd_u98m5GlaYQJYYaMNSkVJYw63quqTBVcffRkJiA56QxE6RCToGORyGTYCvH7z95zwa/s1600/oak-last.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="838" height="451" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLtapxlDcPhiidrTzUkSeJIMU_6b_ymfuUXUOPGCQLG9BDzouHOHiJ3-XB8GeQUQvLG_EtOxpwxd_u98m5GlaYQJYYaMNSkVJYw63quqTBVcffRkJiA56QxE6RCToGORyGTYCvH7z95zwa/s640/oak-last.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Home again, home again, jiggity-rig</td></tr>
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Apparently these caterpillars -- belonging to a species in the genus <i>Chionodes</i> -- begin their lives feeding and sheltering in red oak catkins that are still attached to the tree. When the catkins drop, the caterpillars ride them to the ground, safely tucked inside. They continue feeding in their catkin-shelters, and eventually pupate there.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1cIHLaobLVXf6ckAvqZBn1JHfbx4Pc8chpAdgxpDASqoAA3fYN0r14Cx1Ql4yIL1DreRdsvWDfYCijNIi3jVZbP5ds3GtFl7Ygl6H596vrkz23pJG81CC07PUmRE48T7GehdkHqZJynRw/s1600/oak10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1132" data-original-width="1600" height="451" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1cIHLaobLVXf6ckAvqZBn1JHfbx4Pc8chpAdgxpDASqoAA3fYN0r14Cx1Ql4yIL1DreRdsvWDfYCijNIi3jVZbP5ds3GtFl7Ygl6H596vrkz23pJG81CC07PUmRE48T7GehdkHqZJynRw/s640/oak10.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pupa of Chionodes caterpillar in its catkin-shelter, Phelps Park, 16 June 2016</td></tr>
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The adult is a subtly shaded moth with shimmery golden highlights.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkadlHDFmOjQqQpy1O4OLWVkJ4cxmnWo6U6DHhQPqAHPL2_Dyc6c98BNxrVxvzDoNJ8DHalV9X3loVAV3KBhZRj3C4YXGoYXDJ49zbGQudpCLqsu1OTMQes_H8d9JUxJrqhJEE4W8NT0vu/s1600/oak11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="461" data-original-width="800" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkadlHDFmOjQqQpy1O4OLWVkJ4cxmnWo6U6DHhQPqAHPL2_Dyc6c98BNxrVxvzDoNJ8DHalV9X3loVAV3KBhZRj3C4YXGoYXDJ49zbGQudpCLqsu1OTMQes_H8d9JUxJrqhJEE4W8NT0vu/s640/oak11.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adult Chionodes moth, reared from red oak catkins, 14 June 2016</td></tr>
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Of course, it's not just oak flowers that harbor interesting critters. Do you recognize these catkins?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBVl0XAs_IgGJ9GCBnVBZaOTQsE6IbdIAPjmeX1cjYKnZPDxkbH3cWPrTDUSQ3Dfm_NVPxMUqk_TNdKdyI75QqsJhs0_YqvMvGSaVogltap8lTqsqIkxiKdQgBqUsVahlJikz9VACN6sC4/s1600/pop-cats.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1075" data-original-width="1600" height="430" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBVl0XAs_IgGJ9GCBnVBZaOTQsE6IbdIAPjmeX1cjYKnZPDxkbH3cWPrTDUSQ3Dfm_NVPxMUqk_TNdKdyI75QqsJhs0_YqvMvGSaVogltap8lTqsqIkxiKdQgBqUsVahlJikz9VACN6sC4/s640/pop-cats.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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They belong to a tree in the genus <i>Populus</i> -- that is to say, a cottonwood, aspen, or poplar (depending on the species). Way back in late April, for two days in a row I watched black-capped chickadees picking around in catkins of this type at Chattahoochie Park. At least once I saw one chickadee dart out in pursuit of a flying insect; but the rest of the time the birds seemed focused on some creature that was staying put (hiding from them!) in the catkins.</div>
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Searching beneath the chickadee tree I found a few catkins the tree had already dropped. I picked through two or three of them myself, not seeing anything. Then, with one of these apparently unoccupied catkins in my hand, I happened to look away for a moment -- and when I looked back, I'll be darned if a cryptically-patterned larva hadn't just crawled out of the catkin and onto my hand! The power of its camouflage stunned me. Here's one such larva, photographed in a clump of fallen catkins I collected.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxdAS7zV0xVpk6GyI03x36p2rWcIqByEAV1lOXSeQVe92FeN54N7RIk1lwdK65Vs85OAW3InUbMRMcbxGznm2P8UagTM97WoejIQy8__dcQDUq_-b_2VLHWN9gxY5pN-ihJoaqI0keKYgE/s1600/cat-02.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="910" data-original-width="1371" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxdAS7zV0xVpk6GyI03x36p2rWcIqByEAV1lOXSeQVe92FeN54N7RIk1lwdK65Vs85OAW3InUbMRMcbxGznm2P8UagTM97WoejIQy8__dcQDUq_-b_2VLHWN9gxY5pN-ihJoaqI0keKYgE/s640/cat-02.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizN0DYP47kIraWNCESCxAbslRMmYtCPzoLqnyLSQViLcS5Wd8MpEM4haZs67t4Mmid6YH4Oetwb2IDVKQw7my5IYc7u14TsZeHVLkQoMGVzq0uPE13mH_SkLiHAvAX0ugIgWpQkZMqEpMP/s1600/cat-01.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1227" data-original-width="1600" height="490" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizN0DYP47kIraWNCESCxAbslRMmYtCPzoLqnyLSQViLcS5Wd8MpEM4haZs67t4Mmid6YH4Oetwb2IDVKQw7my5IYc7u14TsZeHVLkQoMGVzq0uPE13mH_SkLiHAvAX0ugIgWpQkZMqEpMP/s640/cat-01.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Now that I knew what I was looking for, I redoubled my search and found a number of these larvae in the tree's discarded catkins. At home in my bug studio, close examination revealed that the larvae had distinct, darkened head capsules but no obvious true legs or prologs -- just six little bumps where the true legs would be. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU4-8bbH6o9bf3TkVhtj4utUP_M11O5JHUOwp_Umvmfz90X-vLWqyCVQYGQDt0TuCEKjDfD9tqDxZO6-O1-6d-t2nINwi2CoUo_P-HHeWMCDR4Jfd72sJZtpMgCfVtx9NbsaAo3qNjCJAl/s1600/cat-04.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1366" data-original-width="1600" height="341" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU4-8bbH6o9bf3TkVhtj4utUP_M11O5JHUOwp_Umvmfz90X-vLWqyCVQYGQDt0TuCEKjDfD9tqDxZO6-O1-6d-t2nINwi2CoUo_P-HHeWMCDR4Jfd72sJZtpMgCfVtx9NbsaAo3qNjCJAl/s400/cat-04.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTArG-4irDzMwsxhMUfUvKiboeVvvCBgvU6tGnj7KRcmjm7OWs28dyM7PPUIgRVQctEw2Be4NfXjAuqoldUwAQgZpOH0WL7bTj-V3rVye7oZbS-GVZ8FZ3kSAXfTt0lSrABeEiOr3HdMsU/s1600/cat-05.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1232" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTArG-4irDzMwsxhMUfUvKiboeVvvCBgvU6tGnj7KRcmjm7OWs28dyM7PPUIgRVQctEw2Be4NfXjAuqoldUwAQgZpOH0WL7bTj-V3rVye7oZbS-GVZ8FZ3kSAXfTt0lSrABeEiOr3HdMsU/s400/cat-05.JPG" width="307" /></a></div>
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This suggested the creature wasn't a moth larva (order Lepidoptera). Indeed, when I posted photos to Bugguide, entomologist Terry Harrison ruled out Lepidoptera and wondered if my mystery larva might be some kind of beetle (Coleoptera) -- specifically, a weevil.</div>
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To find out, I stuffed some occupied catkins into a small rearing container with a bit of moistened peat at the bottom. Eventually the larvae left the catkins and worked their way into the peat. The catkins got all gross and moldy around this time, so I removed them, wiped the excess moisture from the inside of the rearing container, and started drumming my fingers.</div>
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A few weeks later, guess who emerged from the peat?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9-EHLqk3ZFgjlxlSSWtnq0b1C6lxXETND7nuouuo2aUobqkjBXT2fBwSO5Ahe3_SvyoOLIEhviviUyZchzepHU46h1JHLU9qMS-ccW_h-2MAZP3QGz1ysowjzxivGWAB0PXRHUBkNMWsJ/s1600/DSCF2406+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1124" data-original-width="1600" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9-EHLqk3ZFgjlxlSSWtnq0b1C6lxXETND7nuouuo2aUobqkjBXT2fBwSO5Ahe3_SvyoOLIEhviviUyZchzepHU46h1JHLU9qMS-ccW_h-2MAZP3QGz1ysowjzxivGWAB0PXRHUBkNMWsJ/s640/DSCF2406+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3_gZc866o_5Wu1KshbymvApvgBxhgKeT7N0IxuRR0Y3VR0xmh_q04KtDzAkeZoD4p0myeGtChZUQ89meX_y5ejIt4MlDlgbZ1IBknIFDijrmrksZAiCyEaXsWckXMv4ls4Jzy4J_ER9Rr/s1600/DSCF2399+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1430" data-original-width="1600" height="572" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3_gZc866o_5Wu1KshbymvApvgBxhgKeT7N0IxuRR0Y3VR0xmh_q04KtDzAkeZoD4p0myeGtChZUQ89meX_y5ejIt4MlDlgbZ1IBknIFDijrmrksZAiCyEaXsWckXMv4ls4Jzy4J_ER9Rr/s640/DSCF2399+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adult weevil reared from fallen <i>Populus</i> catkins collected at Chattahoochie Park, Decorah. Photographed on 12 June 2018</td></tr>
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Terry was right!</div>
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As it turns out, I'm not the first naturalist to notice birds foraging in <i>Populus</i> catkins and then identify the birds' quarry as a weevil. Dave Leatherman, author of a regular "Hungry Birds" feature in <u>Colorado Birds</u>, made similar observations in Colorado, describing the sought-after catkin dweller as "a whitish beetle larva...[resembling] a small grain of cooked rice" and determining this animal to be a weevil in the genus <i>Dorytomus </i>(3). After noticing "warblers, vireos, kinglets, orioles, Red-winged Blackbirds, House Finches, grosbeaks, and tanagers all vigorously seeking" the larvae in cottonwood catkins, Dave wrote, "I propose that the catkin-infesting larvae of <i>Dorytomus</i> weevils are an underappreciated source of food for many bird species in spring migration." (3)</div>
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Rearing this animal from larva to adult in early spring made me wonder about the rest of its life cycle. Once the adult beetles emerge, what happens next? Do they mate right away and lay eggs? Because if they do, then the eggs -- presumably deposited somewhere high up in the host trees -- would have to make it all through the spring, summer, and fall, and then tough out our long Midwestern winter, before finally hatching next April. Another possibility is that the adults survive until fall (or even next spring?), waiting until then to lay their eggs. In the end, I don't know -- but it sure would be interesting to find out.</div>
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Correction</h2>
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In my April 15 post (<a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/04/sun-and-water-part-1.html" target="_blank">Sun and water, part 1</a>), I wrote about certain flies in the family Heleomyzidae, which I'd been seeing in woods around Decorah. Here's a photo of one to jog your memory.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguYxqUPur1bLqNs7nkjaa-jixRkgZszOqXQ4g-V2xRdFfjAeC5JdP5dU7cYnEah_H1m34wen4TXSXxSHnMkuaT-nBMnZnwv6VmrWx8wRjKkpDkhdVgbUHnfQjUDF6hpF4_65tBS63fXLlu/s1600/tree-fly1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="453" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguYxqUPur1bLqNs7nkjaa-jixRkgZszOqXQ4g-V2xRdFfjAeC5JdP5dU7cYnEah_H1m34wen4TXSXxSHnMkuaT-nBMnZnwv6VmrWx8wRjKkpDkhdVgbUHnfQjUDF6hpF4_65tBS63fXLlu/s400/tree-fly1.jpg" width="258" /></a></div>
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This one sure seemed to be basking in the sun. Given that Bugguide lists "sun flies" as a common name for the Heleomyzidae -- and that the "heleo" in there seemed clearly to refer to "sun" -- I waxed philosophical about my tree trunk fly:</div>
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Worshipping the sun god, eh?</div>
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<i>Helios</i> was, for Greeks, that god.</div>
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Clearly, then, it's fitting that</div>
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this family of flies bears his name--</div>
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Heleomyzidae!</div>
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(Hee-lee-oh-MY-zih-dee.)</div>
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The flies of Helios.</div>
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The sun flies!</div>
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But, as it turns out, I was mistaken...</div>
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Frequent Bugguide contributor John Carr, who helped identify some of my early spring flies as heleomyzids, pointed out a glaring (but, I dare say, understandable) error in my etymology. Being much better versed in Greek than I, John wrote, "Greek <i>heleos</i> refers to marsh, <i>helios</i> refers to sun." One letter makes all the difference!<br />
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Embarrassed at my gaffe, I started reading up more on my Greek, and discovered something that helped me feel better: this isn't the first time confusion has arisen about <i>heleos</i> and <i>helios</i> in the context of a scientific name. Check out this 1979 note (4) in regard to a genus of pitcher plants.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyBQep9x7jnqOPq97wgfXCDoKg1uzHR8fkyYrxAc-7rWBMgLgio3GoaL5tCjxYSnuldQzxOoGHEddTuynSKbir0ZK_E5q_hyphenhyphenb0U2Q_Cu4avSPZrp120dZvSEltfEmhojCUvbaTL-anRywu/s1600/heliamphora.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="491" data-original-width="505" height="620" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyBQep9x7jnqOPq97wgfXCDoKg1uzHR8fkyYrxAc-7rWBMgLgio3GoaL5tCjxYSnuldQzxOoGHEddTuynSKbir0ZK_E5q_hyphenhyphenb0U2Q_Cu4avSPZrp120dZvSEltfEmhojCUvbaTL-anRywu/s640/heliamphora.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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Interesting stuff (at least if you're into etymology like me!).<br />
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But getting back to heleomyzids... After receiving John's correction, I reflected a bit more on the research I'd done for "Sun and water, part 1." In retrospect, I realized the science I'd come across seemed to say little or nothing concrete about a special relationship between heleomyzids and sunlight. And here's the kicker: it didn't really mention any strong tie between heleomyzids and marshland, either! <br />
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So what do we actually know about the Heleomyzidae? Let's consult entomologist P. Skidmore, who writes about a subgroup of these flies.</div>
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Heleomyzines are primarily necrophagous ["death-eating" --JV], some breeding only in carrion. More often however they appear to breed in excrement of omnivorous or carnivorous birds and mammals. Most have a marked preference for breeding in shaded, or entirely dark, situations, so that many breed only in caves or mammal burrows. (...) Whilst <i>Heleomyza</i> species sometimes breed in sunlit places such as guano heaps below bird-cliffs, or chicken manure dumps outside battery-farms, they more often inhabit sheded cess-pits, cave entrances and old buildings (...). Some heleomyzines are very tolerant of low temperatures. Thus, <i>Heleomyza borealis</i> is one of the very few acalypterate flies which breed commonly in the High Arctic. (5)</div>
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Here are some more tidbits from the literature about a few particular species in the family.<br />
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"The larva [of <i>Scoliocentra brachypterna</i>] develops in <b>birds' nests</b> and with all probability in <b>bat guano</b> (imagines are known from several European caves) and in <b>cat carrion</b>." (6) [emphasis added]<br />
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"[<i>Gymnomus caucasicus</i> is] an alpine species, probably endemic for Caucasus Mts. Larvae possibly develop in <b>carcasses of small mammals</b> (rodents), where imagines have been collected (April to May)." (7) [emphasis added]<br />
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"Adults of <i>Pseudoleria crassata</i> Garrett were found around <b>burrows of woodchucks</b>, <i>Marmota monax</i> (L.), and <b>eastern chipmunk</b>, <i>Tamias striatus</i> (L.), and in the <b>nesting cavities of the bank swallow</b>, <i>Riparia riparia</i> (L.)." (8) [emphasis added]<br />
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Incidentally, Polish researcher Andrzej Woźnica -- who wrote the first and second quotes given above -- also volunteers at Bugguide, the website I use to share my own insect studies. When I posted the following picture of a fly on skunk cabbage, which also appeared in "Sun and water, part 1," Andrzej identified the critter as...guess what?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Azf0x9b56HHMcnnsiQNT6BlHgzdifIdHsL6tCM8es7P1LttAYYukK_MONeiP3hOdtUYM70Tl64p-sNkSGrLQQi1MuqKduT9zNxQeGU3o0JIp_zq2y3mKqlYL-d3hmhJEtMLi47M2ghTE/s1600/DSCF6919+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1174" data-original-width="1600" height="468" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Azf0x9b56HHMcnnsiQNT6BlHgzdifIdHsL6tCM8es7P1LttAYYukK_MONeiP3hOdtUYM70Tl64p-sNkSGrLQQi1MuqKduT9zNxQeGU3o0JIp_zq2y3mKqlYL-d3hmhJEtMLi47M2ghTE/s640/DSCF6919+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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A heleomyzid!<br />
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Andrzej also recently tracked down a couple papers by C. Fallen, the Swedish entomologist who gave these flies their family name way back in 1820. In an email to me, Andrzej wrote:<br />
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I've received a copy of Fallen, 1810...It is only a short description concerning the generic name of <i>Heleomyza</i>, placed in Micromyzides (small flies), so to interpret the family name Heleomyzidae or Helomyzidae we must use Fallen, 1820. </blockquote>
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There at p. 3 Fallen cited the name <i>Helomyza</i> and wrote: Nomen igitur genericura ab thos palus eligimus, Svethice Sumpflugor. </blockquote>
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[The last phrase] means: ... in Swedish: <b>Marshflies...</b></blockquote>
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I know that Sciomyzidae are commonly called marsh flies (in English). Anyway Heleomyzidae are known better as: <b>Sun Flies, Wombat Flies or Cave Flies.</b> [emphasis added]</blockquote>
And that's pretty much all there is to it. Unfortunately, Fallen never told us<i> why</i> the genus <i>Heleomyza</i> (and thus the family Heleomyzidae) deserved to be named after marshes. I'd like to think there was a good reason, and he just neglected to mention it...but who knows?<br />
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NOTES</div>
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Thanks to Terry Harrison, Andrzej Woźnica, John Carr, and other Bugguide users for their help identifying some of the animals included in this post.</div>
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1. Cranshaw, W. 2004. Garden insects of North America. Princeton University Press: Princeton and Oxford.</div>
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2. Helmus, M.R. & D.E. Dussourd. 2005. Glues or poisons: which triggers vein cutting by monarch caterpillars? Chemoecology 15 (1): 45-49. <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00049-005-0291-y" target="_blank">Link</a></div>
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3. Leatherman, D. 2011. <i>Dorytomus</i> weevil larvae in cottonwood catkins. Colorado Birds 45(2): April 2011. <a href="https://cobirds.org/cfo/ColoradoBirds/HungryBird/8.pdf" target="_blank">Link</a></div>
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4. Mellichamp, L. 1979. The correct common name for <i>Heliamphora</i>. Carnivorous Plants Newsletter 8(3): 89.<br />
5. Skidmore, P. A dipterological perspective on the Holocene history of the North Atlantic area. PhD thesis, University of Sheffield: 1996. <a href="http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/14628/1/364330_VOL1.pdf" target="_blank">Link</a><br />
6. Woźnica, A.J. 2004. Redescription of Scoliocentra (Leriola) brachypterna (Loew, 1873) (Diptera: Heleomyzidae) with description of a new species from Europe. Polish Journal of Entomology 73: 327-338.<br />
7. Woźnica, A.J. 2006. <i>Gymnomus caucasicus</i>, a new species of heleomyzid flies from Caucasus Mountains (Diptera: Heleomyzidae). Genus Vol. 17(3): 399-408.</div>
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8. Garnett, W.B. and B.A. Foote. 1967. Biology and immature stages of <i>Pseudoleria crassata</i> (Diptera: Heleomyzidae). Annals of the Entomological Society of America 60(1):126–134</div>
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-89785995990530934132018-05-04T12:30:00.002-07:002018-05-04T13:23:39.797-07:00Sun and water, part 3<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
We're blessed, here in northeastern Iowa -- blessed to have places where clear cold water comes out of the ground, in quantities large enough to attract and delight us.<br />
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In Decorah, if you turn from College Drive onto Ice Cave Road, and head toward one of our most popular local waterways -- Dunning's Spring -- you'll first come upon a much more modest spring, burbling out of the forested hillside on the north side of the road. Here it is on March 29:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR-T4MGhR-Yo4b4cThNmKQUOcX3GKpVpB_4dIhfDjA0ePr1oSM7_zv5W55TDpcZIkFjvPum77sefMdQzV0ZKXLWL_4cqk-80xtHILUzZeAYW-ASEbdQVbr3-MbOOOCgyrtAiVCR4VHy_id/s1600/DSCF7160+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1119" data-original-width="1600" height="444" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR-T4MGhR-Yo4b4cThNmKQUOcX3GKpVpB_4dIhfDjA0ePr1oSM7_zv5W55TDpcZIkFjvPum77sefMdQzV0ZKXLWL_4cqk-80xtHILUzZeAYW-ASEbdQVbr3-MbOOOCgyrtAiVCR4VHy_id/s640/DSCF7160+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spring on wooded slope along Ice Cave Rd, Decorah, 29 March 2018 </td></tr>
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I might have missed it, driving toward Dunning's Spring that day, if not for all its greenery, which seemed so out of place compared to the tans, browns, and grays surrounding it. Curious what all that green was, I stopped to take a look.<br />
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The new growth, I found, consisted mostly of watercress, reed canary grass, and jewelweed. Watercress is a recent introduction to North America (1), as are many populations of reed canary grass (2); I was less than thrilled to discover these plants in the mix (I guess I was hoping for a pristine wetland full of rare and conservative native species). But hey, jewelweed is native, and it sure was neat to see hundreds of its seedlings poking up bravely out of the muck, baring their cotyledons to the world.<br />
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Why now, jewelweed? Nowhere else was I encountering jewelweed sprouts so early. It seemed the answer lay in the site's unique abundance of both sunlight and flowing water. The slope here was steep enough that even the spring's relatively paltry flow moved too quickly for ice to encrust it; and the slope's southerly aspect meant it was pummeled daily with lots of direct sunlight.<br />
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Imagining that there might be some interesting arthropods here -- but not wanting to scrape up the slope by scrambling over it -- I hatched a plan to return tomorrow with a special tool in hand. The idea for a "slope stool" had been kicking around in my head for a few years, and now seemed like as good a time as any to actually <i>make </i>one. So, back at home the next morning, I scrounged up some scrap wood and threw something together.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIABAGRZcYJGPgM7mDsIx7fLwhRq4DFdFMelnLjKGVeTHyIH4pHOY7Vq9rMjgxbmX8ynhYFUQ3ji-G0hoNVGlHf2gYIcXF7vI_ORKe-VfK5520TkflFMbs084_lEqP-uJ527MQN-HnLlp-/s1600/DSCF7279.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIABAGRZcYJGPgM7mDsIx7fLwhRq4DFdFMelnLjKGVeTHyIH4pHOY7Vq9rMjgxbmX8ynhYFUQ3ji-G0hoNVGlHf2gYIcXF7vI_ORKe-VfK5520TkflFMbs084_lEqP-uJ527MQN-HnLlp-/s640/DSCF7279.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here it is that afternoon, set up on site:<br />
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Armed with my camera and "bug lens," I took a seat! It felt good to be sitting comfortably at the same level as the trickling water, wet ground, and pint-sized jewelweed forest I wanted to investigate. I leaned to my right and let the microcosm draw me in.<br />
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An initial surprise was the texture and quality of the substrate. Earlier I described it as "muck", and there was plenty of that -- but among and atop the muck was a profusion of little rocky bits. If you were to run your hand gently along the ground, under the thin film of water dribbling down the slope, these rocky bits are primarily what you would feel -- coarse, gritty, even sharp. It seemed likely they were <i>calcareous</i>, consisting of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) that had precipitated out of the flowing water over time. (A similar process results in subterranean features such as stalactites and stalagmites.) Lynch and Weckwerth (2017) use the term "limestone cobbles" to refer to the calcareous stuff they encountered in forested seeps in Winneshiek County (3) -- and I think that term is a fitting description in this case too.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5r5o_qRGo05sFOasjfuMDSRiKSYUIuUyt06C1Dz5vGjwV3jjY96v5fYV2_W_A55DaNrrodZS_CDECC3SncMB5fYkU8GTvCpdCXZM-ciRWhxsNkxhke8DVy_9RBitbMC3bEaFxPd1CPGf7/s1600/DSCF7341.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5r5o_qRGo05sFOasjfuMDSRiKSYUIuUyt06C1Dz5vGjwV3jjY96v5fYV2_W_A55DaNrrodZS_CDECC3SncMB5fYkU8GTvCpdCXZM-ciRWhxsNkxhke8DVy_9RBitbMC3bEaFxPd1CPGf7/s640/DSCF7341.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cobbles formed by mineral deposition on a slope along Ice Cave Rd, Decorah, 30 March 2018</td></tr>
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Interestingly, some of these cobbles took the form of little tubes. Rather than being the products of slow deposition, these were actually the cases of caddisfly larvae, who had fashioned them from tiny pebbles, rock fragments, and other debris. Most of the cases appeared to be abandoned; these former larval shelters had simply accumulated on the slope over time, the surprisingly durable leftovers from caddisfly generations past.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhMT13L6Or8J6NRiD7PviJD5w4OInIwTSqNiscjvKTeGPtnYTHAq-OkqTT7zw1nVsj44-t6bHK_lolMscyDnmpaGToJzTHIrLxAUK_dEgls1UueRi5EerHWmNx-PAwcjlAXD5cx-oDvDLg/s1600/DSCF7361.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhMT13L6Or8J6NRiD7PviJD5w4OInIwTSqNiscjvKTeGPtnYTHAq-OkqTT7zw1nVsj44-t6bHK_lolMscyDnmpaGToJzTHIrLxAUK_dEgls1UueRi5EerHWmNx-PAwcjlAXD5cx-oDvDLg/s640/DSCF7361.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tube-shelters built by caddisfly larvae</td></tr>
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When I looked into the slope's clear water, at a place where the water gathered and swirled for a moment before tumbling further downhill -- a shallow pool no larger than a soup bowl -- I spotted a few live caddisfly larvae in their cases, alternately resting, feeding, and moving about.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLd7t4EJ3RAI4LvgrsfwiYSJ-jMKtjX-5xAUMfj0rcbUqKCsBZqHtjEIMKuGn9MSNhFzaLdmyIrrYIv27n3AQDFSgLUSyXwFGBWCxgPfsM0h0nZhTYyqwNzN4k7Y6ii_MV6waf7r2RcXXb/s1600/inhabited-caddis-case.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="677" data-original-width="914" height="474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLd7t4EJ3RAI4LvgrsfwiYSJ-jMKtjX-5xAUMfj0rcbUqKCsBZqHtjEIMKuGn9MSNhFzaLdmyIrrYIv27n3AQDFSgLUSyXwFGBWCxgPfsM0h0nZhTYyqwNzN4k7Y6ii_MV6waf7r2RcXXb/s640/inhabited-caddis-case.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inhabited case of a caddisfly larva, with the larva (not visible) resting inside</td></tr>
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(<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6g0ljnsoR4" target="_blank">Here's a video</a> showing one of the caddisfly larvae making its way across the limey substrate.)<br />
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And the longer I watched the rippling puddles and miniature waterfalls on this sun-soaked slope, the more life I saw.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGavG7ggKQEs3M2TdcLyLPt99uPy4n0eRTLETe0XolP36b4twaHD-3-ybHfrM0ghmZjACwx-wrM25U3BwuvG0PL-ORWhzClvT5yGRX1YjmgsORYEl8aFFkfgKbcI3dSm7tzyhmzFDZ8KQP/s1600/DSCF7317-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1245" data-original-width="1600" height="498" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGavG7ggKQEs3M2TdcLyLPt99uPy4n0eRTLETe0XolP36b4twaHD-3-ybHfrM0ghmZjACwx-wrM25U3BwuvG0PL-ORWhzClvT5yGRX1YjmgsORYEl8aFFkfgKbcI3dSm7tzyhmzFDZ8KQP/s640/DSCF7317-2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dance fly (subfamily Clinocerinae) </td></tr>
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This small dark fly with a white face seemed to prefer walking rather than flying. For a long time it played hide-and-seek with my camera and me, dodging behind bits of vegetation or scurrying into shadowy cobble-craters just as the shutter was about to click. It most likely spent its youth as an aquatic larva here on this slope or in a similar place nearby, hunting and catching other arthropods for food. Croatian researcher Marija Ivković and her colleagues write, "Larvae and adults of Clinocerinae and Hemerodromiinae (Diptera: Empididae) are predators and therefore important as secondary consumers in stream food webs. Likely, they mainly feed on Simuliidae [black fly] larvae....and on Chironomidae [midge] larvae and adults...Some dance fly larvae have also been found in cases of caddis larvae, feeding on the pupae..." (4)<br />
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Certainly there was no shortage of caddisfly larvae in this hillside spring. I didn't run into any Chironomidae larvae in the spring that day, but I did find larvae from another group of flies commonly referred to as "midges" -- the meniscus midges, family Dixidae (dik-sid-ee).<br />
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It was fun to watch these beasts squirm their way across the wet substrate, using a peculiar twisting and writhing motion. <a href="https://youtu.be/3in6DkBuBn0" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Check out this video</span></a> to see what I saw. The individual above didn't move much for some reason, which enabled me to capture a picture or two of the intricate, feathery appendages (gills?) on its rear end, held right at the water's surface.<br />
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I also came across a few tiny black bugs scampering this way and that. One of them I captured and placed in a bowl of water at home, where it skated around quite capably on the water's surface. This was a "smaller" water strider (family Veliidae), cousin to the much larger animals of the same name that are so familiar to many of us.<br />
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It was a very cooperative subject.<br />
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And what an interesting pattern on its back!<br />
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If you notice a passing resemblance to, say, the boxelder bugs so abundant in our homes over the winter, it's because they're related. Water striders and boxelder bugs alike belong to the broad group of insects known as the "true bugs." If you were to flip a boxelder bug onto its back (try it with a dead one) and examine its underside, you'd see a long straight rod running from its head down along the middle of its "belly." The bug extends this tubelike appendage away from its body in order to feed. Such feeding tubes, modified for various piercing and sucking habits, are common to many (all?) of the true bugs, and smaller water striders are no exception. Enjoying a few moments of calm amid its adventure in the bowl of water, my strider took time to groom its lancelike mouthparts.<br />
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Back at the spring -- as if all the previous critters weren't enough -- I was fortunate to encounter yet another charismatic arthropod: a species of soldier fly (family Stratiomyidae), in larval form.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinup0BLCa2HWBe0kDlx1bqi-uYH5xGknkKUmCLqmnPZ3meCNPDqeHb5fC-ysrxjBykQj-9Z_ZlCiFzYcoI1Oy7WnWpQsuhIS_TrXxaeOqB7ArhrX9QHeQkfTHX9x455x10Sjq5IpRLkAlg/s1600/strat-still+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="469" data-original-width="701" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinup0BLCa2HWBe0kDlx1bqi-uYH5xGknkKUmCLqmnPZ3meCNPDqeHb5fC-ysrxjBykQj-9Z_ZlCiFzYcoI1Oy7WnWpQsuhIS_TrXxaeOqB7ArhrX9QHeQkfTHX9x455x10Sjq5IpRLkAlg/s640/strat-still+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Larva of a soldier fly, family Stratiomyidae. See also:<br />
<a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/238210" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Adult stratiomyid</span></a> and <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/747304" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">larva</span></a> collected from a "tiny creeklet<br />
fed by seeps" in Story County, Iowa by MJ Hatfield, 2007</td></tr>
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As I sat by the spring, it took me a while to see these critters, since they were rather cryptic and slow-moving; but once I saw them, I realized they were <i>everywhere </i>-- quietly scooting over the watery muck and cobbles, absorbed in the task at hand, which apparently involved feeding on minutiae too small for me to see. I posed this one on white paper and on an eyeglass lens in my home "bug studio."</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuDw5Jnk4upFycOBUoDfhd3tKWl4elgL1703tNSVjYpD3m8gWCN28Mm16XLS1_mQ90tcBrBAH15TUO69Y8Cubl0Kjz4Kjl071eptRncXyBDl7MvskXfXJejnzVL_DfzGQzd0vU8eNtrxYj/s1600/DSCF8347+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="752" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuDw5Jnk4upFycOBUoDfhd3tKWl4elgL1703tNSVjYpD3m8gWCN28Mm16XLS1_mQ90tcBrBAH15TUO69Y8Cubl0Kjz4Kjl071eptRncXyBDl7MvskXfXJejnzVL_DfzGQzd0vU8eNtrxYj/s640/DSCF8347+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLCBkQ-0e15kWTLldYEkvW0bPPx2udiYg2JRkgdWr7zU8bdvMlUsz-2nWVXRzEB_X_rKAgHRVOXSHcMBl_ru5ULyJ9FSdd18DnDUfyyBbpC0tMgcAF3fu4v8eT2S3T3Q07mjFtYlvnirFL/s1600/DSCF8321+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="787" data-original-width="1600" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLCBkQ-0e15kWTLldYEkvW0bPPx2udiYg2JRkgdWr7zU8bdvMlUsz-2nWVXRzEB_X_rKAgHRVOXSHcMBl_ru5ULyJ9FSdd18DnDUfyyBbpC0tMgcAF3fu4v8eT2S3T3Q07mjFtYlvnirFL/s640/DSCF8321+%25284%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi0G_0JsY4GfJDUkkpgk5jDDRgWWf2kZoXiETdLaQmbuJZCfcR7YOl9081AIxCu5btWtgT6WfnCiW37UMULji-BxkgRUx1sTa9_paG8lNDy-gMHQZyYzeXybOx6QQkWI3GrlepESaX9Oe0/s1600/DSCF8313+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1275" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi0G_0JsY4GfJDUkkpgk5jDDRgWWf2kZoXiETdLaQmbuJZCfcR7YOl9081AIxCu5btWtgT6WfnCiW37UMULji-BxkgRUx1sTa9_paG8lNDy-gMHQZyYzeXybOx6QQkWI3GrlepESaX9Oe0/s640/DSCF8313+%25283%2529.jpg" width="510" /></a></div>
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Since I think these guys are way cool, I'm going all out with the photos. Here are my best attempts at a head shot of a live and active larva.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkYKghUkXCqtRgZ7sWyQa1lR5cI15Spn6WR0l1IjGaNp2KsDsdu6Z7is2YPxnGe9zHf1kPdM1tace1TV7yCYoI7CKj6i9iGH2UrZSj8X87iYqJmRsGh1hx-yA5QWH5gFcpnZOhzjENEuto/s1600/DSCF8331+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1198" data-original-width="1600" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkYKghUkXCqtRgZ7sWyQa1lR5cI15Spn6WR0l1IjGaNp2KsDsdu6Z7is2YPxnGe9zHf1kPdM1tace1TV7yCYoI7CKj6i9iGH2UrZSj8X87iYqJmRsGh1hx-yA5QWH5gFcpnZOhzjENEuto/s400/DSCF8331+%25283%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif85_dl2ocb7jBlKgtoXcBqyRQaLbAZ4dZeKK9WLJZtxmMDplcflDLKM5cruuPnnDY-SXXDdmuwYtUiIv7eVsYUHbKcgdXsZCPi-bekHoCQb1SIDEUsJl57vDzwwxV7uRALMewDtjhBNnV/s1600/DSCF8330+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1323" data-original-width="1600" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif85_dl2ocb7jBlKgtoXcBqyRQaLbAZ4dZeKK9WLJZtxmMDplcflDLKM5cruuPnnDY-SXXDdmuwYtUiIv7eVsYUHbKcgdXsZCPi-bekHoCQb1SIDEUsJl57vDzwwxV7uRALMewDtjhBNnV/s400/DSCF8330+%25283%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnm5XtUS-U70UypeLv4-QWZLnV5tsAPovExQOVDSA8UuLMweXndj8FP5FEE6SaT0uql9LRdR_9BD777yZNRGkYdR2qYMmsQO62gpFiKdfgI5QwWK8r2B4dw_aERXBIkiarpfOLwZ42NMIW/s1600/DSCF8338+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1332" data-original-width="1227" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnm5XtUS-U70UypeLv4-QWZLnV5tsAPovExQOVDSA8UuLMweXndj8FP5FEE6SaT0uql9LRdR_9BD777yZNRGkYdR2qYMmsQO62gpFiKdfgI5QwWK8r2B4dw_aERXBIkiarpfOLwZ42NMIW/s400/DSCF8338+%25283%2529.jpg" width="367" /></a></div>
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If you look closely, you can see the animal's eyes and antennae (yes, larval insects have antennae too!).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFocCko4aZNxoNt-GoXPtEK5ikR0EknYHGw3ShxIqa0c8Inxbj3K_Imx947VzCHPsWZbSzxnwNevjArGZLngmOjkzgdjs2NOu_cjQFVX9vLOJbxAVK8LuD_NqqB7mee5sqAEs8CfbI9XbR/s1600/strat-comp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="572" data-original-width="1082" height="338" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFocCko4aZNxoNt-GoXPtEK5ikR0EknYHGw3ShxIqa0c8Inxbj3K_Imx947VzCHPsWZbSzxnwNevjArGZLngmOjkzgdjs2NOu_cjQFVX9vLOJbxAVK8LuD_NqqB7mee5sqAEs8CfbI9XbR/s640/strat-comp.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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To be honest, observing them firsthand, I found these creatures to be a bit dopey -- but in a totally charming sort of way. And their feeding apparatus! It takes up much of the front of the head and quivers or palpitates rapidly as the larva moves about in search of food. Rudolf Rozkošný (1983) writes, "the mandibular-maxillary complexes [of stratiomyid larvae] are complicated structures with many setae, brushes, teeth or rows of projections in the molar area" (5). More easily than reading about them, though, you can get a sense for these larvae's crazy chompers by watching them in action -- <a href="https://youtu.be/kgA2AYAqNLI" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">here</span></a> or <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I62VscksXxM" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">here</span></a>, for instance. (My bug videos aren't exactly studio quality, but I do hope you give them an chance when you can! Bugs are so much more interesting in motion!)<br />
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What exactly these larvae are collecting with all that fancy mouthwork, I'm not sure. However, algae are known to be the food of choice for soldier fly larvae that live on rocks covered in a thin film of water (6). Does the hillside spring along Ice Cave Rd qualify as that sort of <i>hygropetric</i> habitat? Another question I'm afraid I can't answer today.<br />
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But that's okay. Uncertainties and mysteries surround us in the study of life, and as collaborator MJ Hatfield likes to remind me, it's the mystery of it all that keeps us coming back. For example: How is it possible that the Universe could create an animal as delightfully ferocious as the one I'm about to show you?<br />
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This will be the final invertebrate from the hillside spring that I'll share with you on this post, and I do believe I've saved the best for last.<br />
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It's WEIRD!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNWTeRJi53FtKEw5yZpgk3YqB1NGS2DS1eBNt6SaJLExZXYnihZsoX7Fqk5DbeFnZR6VrUroWkziTHNoPq9BpfyIQbnAh_S45G76LYTSbrDZVqE_TNxCcG0w8XYMuWPO-pxhr-5kXFaMJQ/s1600/DSCF0011.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNWTeRJi53FtKEw5yZpgk3YqB1NGS2DS1eBNt6SaJLExZXYnihZsoX7Fqk5DbeFnZR6VrUroWkziTHNoPq9BpfyIQbnAh_S45G76LYTSbrDZVqE_TNxCcG0w8XYMuWPO-pxhr-5kXFaMJQ/s400/DSCF0011.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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It's TENTACLED!</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit7i5OLpyCtfeBOaQjd4Llqzz9Vq5_ScHlGNIEUZGCZSmZrNr9PNu50c_1aEw2vN_dD02yVagjAEM_ZtBTMj18toYhFUXNxygZXriuZ_izSlTBQNhrjQpAtYpAslyrDhEesgF3aYDseqai/s1600/DSCF0016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit7i5OLpyCtfeBOaQjd4Llqzz9Vq5_ScHlGNIEUZGCZSmZrNr9PNu50c_1aEw2vN_dD02yVagjAEM_ZtBTMj18toYhFUXNxygZXriuZ_izSlTBQNhrjQpAtYpAslyrDhEesgF3aYDseqai/s400/DSCF0016.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Well, sort of.</td></tr>
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It might MAKE YOU SCREAM!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiArQaKKJ5wIcTogfylB958FSgrXpCEa9sMGZMTO0hABKPgxprl1NwRSjRD9ygzPfNNKMNJn6hQY9367jrHheWlyeKONBAZHlD_n5ctZCqnb52dbHVQ4k08L91VDECeDanFkyUOESsXSLgl/s1600/DSCF0027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiArQaKKJ5wIcTogfylB958FSgrXpCEa9sMGZMTO0hABKPgxprl1NwRSjRD9ygzPfNNKMNJn6hQY9367jrHheWlyeKONBAZHlD_n5ctZCqnb52dbHVQ4k08L91VDECeDanFkyUOESsXSLgl/s400/DSCF0027.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you're half an inch tall and stuck in the water with it.</td></tr>
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It's...<br />
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...a predatory crane fly larva!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Rs7Rer06C30z4vD7-WXqPsM-DD0kS8mXshvJMIVif7jkfNNGlpkgxFCpt_Bx0H2Jr_3kABzd_WqeJeJUT2ihyphenhyphenmg98gvww7_bNUKSsr-lIte80Qz15wnHF2XF_g50eCQVSPCSOyyj5APC/s1600/DSCF0102+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1387" data-original-width="1600" height="554" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Rs7Rer06C30z4vD7-WXqPsM-DD0kS8mXshvJMIVif7jkfNNGlpkgxFCpt_Bx0H2Jr_3kABzd_WqeJeJUT2ihyphenhyphenmg98gvww7_bNUKSsr-lIte80Qz15wnHF2XF_g50eCQVSPCSOyyj5APC/s640/DSCF0102+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">RAWR</span></td></tr>
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Oh my GOSH these things are cool.<br />
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Allow me to explain...<br />
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As I wrapped up my first visit to the hillside spring, I decided to bring a bit of it home with me. Mainly I wanted to rear the soldier fly larvae to adulthood, but I also figured there was probably some other interesting stuff hiding amid all the waterlogged muck and calcareous grit. So, I scooped up a few handfuls of the substrate and plopped it in a jar. Back at home I transferred this messy stuff to a shallow container. A few jewelweed sprouts survived the trip, and I "replanted" them.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguV5Wx3ewdeANQCM9iKFPxolBrxSmPAy-pP3hRpxXCgeEaP5p9ISDt9n0cLe8Ftygsbly7kohWJlGI97QHrGRjQVda5yR3qWnwPudxgZDRl2LM9iEUxpiqCB8jTMcLonk8PwOkCrDafaZa/s1600/DSCF7475.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguV5Wx3ewdeANQCM9iKFPxolBrxSmPAy-pP3hRpxXCgeEaP5p9ISDt9n0cLe8Ftygsbly7kohWJlGI97QHrGRjQVda5yR3qWnwPudxgZDRl2LM9iEUxpiqCB8jTMcLonk8PwOkCrDafaZa/s640/DSCF7475.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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If you look at the base of the twin sprouts near the top of the image above, can you see the wormy thing in the muck? It's a bit darker than its surroundings, and has some pinkish color to it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVUcEUzf4Qy86y-IzH7UoP6s1scq2ovJPuHx4uAkx9jQo5HV-M6wwjaGeqA8Q_R5z4Qom1un-FzceKWBTnt-6Zl3A_sd-_oYk-WA8P3pAGsB3V3mMhuH8-u0Rq1Jkv-S1BjY3kW7Y5uSwd/s1600/DSCF7475+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1442" data-original-width="1213" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVUcEUzf4Qy86y-IzH7UoP6s1scq2ovJPuHx4uAkx9jQo5HV-M6wwjaGeqA8Q_R5z4Qom1un-FzceKWBTnt-6Zl3A_sd-_oYk-WA8P3pAGsB3V3mMhuH8-u0Rq1Jkv-S1BjY3kW7Y5uSwd/s640/DSCF7475+%25282%2529.JPG" width="538" /></a></div>
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I was pretty excited when I saw this; even though I had no idea what it was, it looked very interesting. I gingerly picked it out of the muck and dropped it into a bowl of water. What follows is the best shot I could get of the creature in the bowl, which writhed about as if unhappy to be plunked into such unfamiliar environs (imagine that!).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia6jWO0Ra6qXwUTHlTmBYDGtOtkAi1hzuJ7AcNBGhCJdS1PyVPxpRGUd5EEMRb-8iY3NTYt2QqaQR1Cb1on6zyzyHtfVtToq2Fcb05FQP7wdbVrI5B-QiY7zwxPspgxSdux10cMdImBtTY/s1600/DSCF7480+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="758" data-original-width="985" height="491" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia6jWO0Ra6qXwUTHlTmBYDGtOtkAi1hzuJ7AcNBGhCJdS1PyVPxpRGUd5EEMRb-8iY3NTYt2QqaQR1Cb1on6zyzyHtfVtToq2Fcb05FQP7wdbVrI5B-QiY7zwxPspgxSdux10cMdImBtTY/s640/DSCF7480+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I posted this picture to the "ID Request" section of Bugguide.net, and within 24 hours a fellow contributor had <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1505702" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">identified the "wormy thing"</span></a> -- to <i>genus</i>. (Bugguide is truly an impressive resource!) The animal was a species of <i>Pedicia</i>, one of the so-called "hairy-eyed" crane flies. This astounded me: I had no idea there were any fly larvae with such well-developed, pincer-like mouthparts. It seemed clear this was a predator; indeed, Bugguide's information page for <i>Pedicia </i>indicates that "larvae are strictly aquatic and predaceous, a good bioindicator of clean aquatic habitat" (7). What a beast!<br />
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In my Internet search for more information, I came across Jason Neuswanger's <a href="http://www.troutnut.com/specimen/442" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">eye-popping photographs</span></a> of a <i>Pedicia </i>larva. Besides greatly stoking my newfound enthusiasm for these flies, Jason's work really made me want to try for better photos of the larva I'd found. I never got around to it...but fortunately, when I returned to the spring a few weeks later and collected more substrate, a <i>Pedicia </i>larva turned up in the sample! It seemed like the perfect opportunity -- so I rigged up a teeny little aquarium and busted out my camera.<br />
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The first four <i>Pedicia </i>images above came out of that photo shoot; so did these:<br />
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Incredibly, the larva was able to completely retract its mouthparts into its front end:<br />
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And how about all those appendages on the rear end?<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuqsd4QTsf2XtJmivPVUne7OMg9Jnz7CN-vW8baXmtmggjf1ZWEJ2KUBlW4iRjHGxjgiqtl152avK3GCahN1BV32k04VZPjme4w-uYIuHUnK7XJsudWB15yA4Xs2N51fEAUe8b1lBO81-t/s1600/DSCF0026+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1076" data-original-width="1600" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuqsd4QTsf2XtJmivPVUne7OMg9Jnz7CN-vW8baXmtmggjf1ZWEJ2KUBlW4iRjHGxjgiqtl152avK3GCahN1BV32k04VZPjme4w-uYIuHUnK7XJsudWB15yA4Xs2N51fEAUe8b1lBO81-t/s400/DSCF0026+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bye bye, says <i>Pedicia</i></td></tr>
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What a world.<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
Here's a photo of the hillside spring on April 24, roughly a month after I paid my first visit.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5rEwwLghano2SRCtNH32Fng_9U4U22XT47lS3l7rXjCHKl5l9mI2W-dmiA977itf4rmqqwaYHrkb-JCR1jpJs31YtkYVf-4jsNCecCslYArvqPYgDMmnQeyuzCPxXl3nU2kxoyGY2bmqa/s1600/DSCF8962.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5rEwwLghano2SRCtNH32Fng_9U4U22XT47lS3l7rXjCHKl5l9mI2W-dmiA977itf4rmqqwaYHrkb-JCR1jpJs31YtkYVf-4jsNCecCslYArvqPYgDMmnQeyuzCPxXl3nU2kxoyGY2bmqa/s640/DSCF8962.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">24 April 2018</td></tr>
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You might notice it looks less green than it did at the end of March! How did that happen?<br />
<br />
Well, first, in early April we had two or three nights in a row with lows in the teens. Most of the jewelweed sprouts -- out in the open as they were -- didn't fare so well:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8dkhRkBhzbUpgSdVTB5BA87PtPZkBtaL-3rXT6Q6AHzMB-ken5qGkEMmEFM4lB-USdp3q17Xpnyq2NVnJ0Ph0M_rqA-f74wlYS1brtJBYpSBhixzzWjtJ3Esq45k0jbZ12Xkwj6FWnF3P/s1600/DSCF7950.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8dkhRkBhzbUpgSdVTB5BA87PtPZkBtaL-3rXT6Q6AHzMB-ken5qGkEMmEFM4lB-USdp3q17Xpnyq2NVnJ0Ph0M_rqA-f74wlYS1brtJBYpSBhixzzWjtJ3Esq45k0jbZ12Xkwj6FWnF3P/s400/DSCF7950.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">8 April 2018</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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However, by some quirk of terrain -- or perhaps because they had sprouted amid last year's sprawling dead leaves of reed canary grass, and were thus slightly more sheltered -- some of these tough little seedlings survived.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOMPyxUJztuxu7dE3ovUVBoJAhDkW539uGw0DjPEnfRsvA8MG_dW2CNxqT7X0uYKxmePQgX70e283O2GCK7vM9GOy5Sy_7PjO7arF5eXhGw9-F5PzDpPAqdpoJjOqGmjiZTtv8QgrwaKJ4/s1600/DSCF7946.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOMPyxUJztuxu7dE3ovUVBoJAhDkW539uGw0DjPEnfRsvA8MG_dW2CNxqT7X0uYKxmePQgX70e283O2GCK7vM9GOy5Sy_7PjO7arF5eXhGw9-F5PzDpPAqdpoJjOqGmjiZTtv8QgrwaKJ4/s400/DSCF7946.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Survivors, 8 April 2018</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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But that wasn't all our wintry April had in store for the life on this hillside spring. Heavy wet snow descended upon the Decorah area in mid-April, and one afternoon, with a thick covering of white smothering most of the hillside, I visited the spring again.<br />
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I was amazed by what I saw:<br />
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Birds! Everywhere!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm8_GWjLhBH-17cvuc9QP5_YzCfEcmy4UtQJ0gIQ_qP3Shl-c-7m4NCnKDBzNYdoecoWl2KZNEDUEZoycxtznK2tS9HE_CLP6IQByPj_oM39lg51gn_88lLPQ4aLfPmj6AvN6yCVM9oMYa/s1600/bird1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="889" data-original-width="1600" height="354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm8_GWjLhBH-17cvuc9QP5_YzCfEcmy4UtQJ0gIQ_qP3Shl-c-7m4NCnKDBzNYdoecoWl2KZNEDUEZoycxtznK2tS9HE_CLP6IQByPj_oM39lg51gn_88lLPQ4aLfPmj6AvN6yCVM9oMYa/s640/bird1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Early migrant birds foraging in the hillside seep after a recent heavy snowfall, 15 April 2018<br />
Bottom half of image: five American robins; top half of image: one American woodcock and one hermit thrush</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5mHu0s4oqZtwfufbWjy4Izvh73k16hQXNHxmjA2OX9bD-KBESqw12lQ7Fm2a0-Bwu0KweTNEOAD283dOxy0bofZSCiUcTNLU8oM2eBU_7BcSm-Biq5kkYPIosG0B0Ea6D1pxS5Vqs9cCE/s1600/bird2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1011" data-original-width="1600" height="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5mHu0s4oqZtwfufbWjy4Izvh73k16hQXNHxmjA2OX9bD-KBESqw12lQ7Fm2a0-Bwu0KweTNEOAD283dOxy0bofZSCiUcTNLU8oM2eBU_7BcSm-Biq5kkYPIosG0B0Ea6D1pxS5Vqs9cCE/s640/bird2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fox sparrow, American robin, and American woodcock</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8gsuTwK0AFYMDpDqbwXIBa5aKiXJ770mqzBUfkyQFRPHdxTc6U14ZCe3ZhmxyeW5gxRoqSneXcjTkTiDylgcYhWkW0XdxocVvvtjX_gKrTDQHOdHMeYhDW_mPA_4-lWOCR6Nww1wTZ9bt/s1600/bird3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="476" data-original-width="827" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8gsuTwK0AFYMDpDqbwXIBa5aKiXJ770mqzBUfkyQFRPHdxTc6U14ZCe3ZhmxyeW5gxRoqSneXcjTkTiDylgcYhWkW0XdxocVvvtjX_gKrTDQHOdHMeYhDW_mPA_4-lWOCR6Nww1wTZ9bt/s640/bird3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two American woodcocks</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPBWHy2AT_rzUpNb2ADm11Krb9uvXEzoqGCMAdExxGBBNgkDG2nhEbcDq7wrkCp0B37Z75lvU5MeQsYbDB8awO9ylEDkePgE_2igMaaA35-6Av0VzsmoMpPVRRL9wGOHDYftj4Izf6x88x/s1600/bird4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1029" data-original-width="1600" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPBWHy2AT_rzUpNb2ADm11Krb9uvXEzoqGCMAdExxGBBNgkDG2nhEbcDq7wrkCp0B37Z75lvU5MeQsYbDB8awO9ylEDkePgE_2igMaaA35-6Av0VzsmoMpPVRRL9wGOHDYftj4Izf6x88x/s640/bird4.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two American robins (top and right) and a red-winged blackbird (bottom left)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWqyS2iVtE6Zce69Gy_hJfyKR-R_0ppl4-t5PET20KCRgOuA_tr_BqpDAsynGfS5wSsZ-yb41VHUxk8GVKUFdzG8BDtqtrPKgI7Gk9xGuVjg2jIPERW7r6zuIQYxF7mNIIMIbPuubjYONp/s1600/bird5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1089" data-original-width="1600" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWqyS2iVtE6Zce69Gy_hJfyKR-R_0ppl4-t5PET20KCRgOuA_tr_BqpDAsynGfS5wSsZ-yb41VHUxk8GVKUFdzG8BDtqtrPKgI7Gk9xGuVjg2jIPERW7r6zuIQYxF7mNIIMIbPuubjYONp/s400/bird5.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Common grackle</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://youtu.be/TUgp7qcii7I" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Video of the woodcocks feeding at the spring</span></a> (they strut and teeter!)<br />
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These early migrant birds had flocked to the spring because, so soon after the snowfall, it offered them one of the only areas of open ground they could find -- and, as a living landscape even at this difficult time, the saturated muck abounded in easily accessible seeds and insects. (Not to mention fresh water to drink!) It wasn't so great to know that scores of soldier fly and <i>Pedicia</i> larvae were likely getting gobbled up -- but I was really happy for the birds, that they could find such sustenance here.<br />
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And the jewelweed sprouts? Well, by the time I revisited their home on April 24, most of them had perished. But a healthy fraction had persisted -- despite the worst that early spring could hurl upon them. They had narrowly dodged getting frozen to death, smothered by snow, and trampeled by a horde of hungry and desperate birds. And now it was sunny and warm on the hillside spring; and it was time to continue -- time to stretch proudly and fully upward, into the season of life.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The toughest of the tough -- 24 April 2018</td></tr>
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NOTES<br />
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Thank you to my fellow contributors at Bugguide.net for furnishing identifications of the animals mentioned in this post.<br />
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1. Runkel, S.T. and D.M. Roosa. 2010. Wildflowers and other plants of Iowa wetlands. University of Iowa Press: Iowa City. <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=c2AhPnzVcEoC&pg=PA109&lpg=PA109&dq=watercress+iowa"><span style="color: blue;">Link</span></a><br />
2. <a href="https://www.eeob.iastate.edu/research/IowaGrasses/speciespages/PhalaArund/PhalaArund.html"><span style="color: blue;">Reed canary grass webpage</span></a> at ISU EEOB's Grasses of Iowa project; see also <a href="http://www.iowadnr.gov/portals/idnr/uploads/forestry/reedcanarygrass.pdf"><span style="color: blue;">this Iowa DNR factsheet</span></a><br />
3. Lynch, E.A. and A.B. Weckwerth. 2017. Herbaceous vascular flora of forested seep wetlands in Winneshiek County, Iowa, USA. Jour. Iowa Acad. Sci. 124(1-4): 1-10.<br />
4. Page 43 in Ivković, M., Stanković, V.M., and Z. Mihaljević. 2012. Emergence patterns and microhabitat preference of aquatic dance flies (Empididae; Clinocerinae and Hemerodromiinae) on a longitudinal gradient of barrage lake system. Limnologica 42(1): 43-49.<br />
5. Page 214 in R. Rozkošný. 1983. A biosystematic study of the European Stratiomyidae (Diptera): volume 2. Springer Science & Business Media: 431 pp.<br />
6. Ibid., p. 95<br />
7. <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/14194"><span style="color: blue;">https://bugguide.net/node/view/14194</span></a><br />
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-9201059018643573162018-04-24T12:35:00.001-07:002018-04-24T12:37:57.635-07:00Celebrating the skunk cabbage<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Guest blogger today! Beth Lynch, Associate Professor at Luther College, writes below about one of the special plants whose new growth graces our Iowa Driftless landscape at this time of year. Enjoy! -J<br />
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Celebrating the skunk cabbage<br />
Beth Lynch, Associate Professor, Luther College<br />
April 2018<br />
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One weekend in early April the tourists showed up in town. They were thicker than flies around here. I’ll admit that most of them were here for a new beer release at one of the local breweries, but I also spotted some wild plant tourists tromping around the woods in search of skunk cabbage. Skunk cabbage is not the first plant to bloom each spring. That award almost always goes to the silver maple trees. And, it is certainly not as cute as the pussy willow buds. So, why are the tourists coming to see skunk cabbage in the mucky swamps around northeastern Iowa?<br />
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Skunk cabbage lives in cold, water-logged seepage wetlands, an unpleasant habitat on the damp chilly days of late-winter. These little wetlands occur where groundwater seeps out of hillsides, forming mucky areas that provide essential habitat for skunk cabbage, bright yellow marsh marigolds, and a diverse assemblage of less charismatic but intriguing native wetland species.<br />
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In March and April, the skunk cabbage plants are still mostly underground – a massive root firmly anchors the plants in the muck. Only the flowering structures are showing, and let me tell you that the flowers of the skunk cabbage are not classic beauties. Look down at your muddy feet, and all you will see is a mottled brownish cone poking through last year’s rotting leaves and the last of the winter snow. Skunk cabbage is related to Jack-in-the-pulpit, a woodland wildflower common throughout Iowa. In both species, the flowers are very small and inconspicuous. They tightly cluster along a thick stalk (called the spadix) that is completely hidden underneath a hood (a modified leaf called a spathe).<br />
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The hooded flowers of skunk cabbage blend in with the surroundings at this time of year, so you have to look pretty hard to find them. Later in the spring, the huge, bright green, skunky-smelling leaves emerge from underground. As the leaves unfurl and form big floppy cabbages, the plants become much easier to see and, in my opinion, much more attractive than the early spring flowers.ÂÂÂ<br />
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So what, then, is the allure of the skunk cabbage, a plant with drab flowers and skunky leaves? If I were an insect, I might tell you that the reason I seek out skunk cabbage is for warmth. Skunk cabbage is one of a very small number of plant species that can generate its own body heat, a trick called thermogenesis. In fact, not only do the plants generate body heat by metabolizing carbohydrates stored in their massive roots, but they can regulate their temperature, generating more heat as the air temperature gets colder. Through February and March when outside temperatures can dip well below freezing, inside the spathe the plant keeps its flowers at a cozy room temperature (about 68° F).<br />
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While botanists have been able to describe how skunk cabbage regulates its body temperature, they still aren’t sure why the plants exhibit this unusual and metabolically expensive behavior. Possible explanations include protecting the flowers from frost damage or attracting pollinators to the flowers, either by enhancing their skunky odor or by providing a warm shelter. To this point, no one has put these ideas to a serious test, but there is very little evidence that potential pollinators visit plants during the period when pollination is required for their reproduction.<br />
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It might just be that cold late-winter temperatures inhibit another critical step in plant sex. When a flower is pollinated this means that pollen is transferred to the stigma of the plant. After pollination, the sperm cells still need to get from the pollen grain to the egg cell located deep within the tissue of a flower. This occurs through the growth of a pollen tube that delivers the sperm to the egg cells. Researchers studying an Asian sister species to our skunk cabbage found that when early spring temperatures are too cold, the pollen tube won’t grow. In this species, fertilization (transfer of the sperm to the egg), not pollination, is the critical step requiring the plant to generate heat when outdoor temperatures are too cold.<br />
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Why skunk cabbage flowers so early in the spring is a whole other question and no easier to answer. But, searching for these early spring wildflowers certainly provides a terrific excuse to get out in the woods, and I am happy to know th<span style="font-family: inherit;">at skunk cabbage tourism is thriving in my neck of woods!</span><br />
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-ebbdf257-f923-cf0e-a324-c08b53c144d9"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: inherit; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">-2764 (2016)</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">-3881 (2017). Skunk cabbage leaves.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><img height="386" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/ec3nDFdIguv5jToKBuONKHJb4LgMBEmInhIVoGJcLGGuye0EB-QUUJTr3FMA0j6ZaCpYdiOiBdH-_QpbYbJch9JUmYBmkl7y6esXscFG7tbFNk0fT2qm_ZKGe2wH1D7oo2Iwexfz" style="-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);" width="514" /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">2017. Seepage wetland with skunk cabbage and yellow marsh marigolds.</span></div>
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-72169737469148852152018-04-19T22:51:00.002-07:002018-04-19T22:51:34.538-07:00Sun and water, part 2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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On April 4, I saw my first eastern phoebe of the year; and the next morning, while walking at the farm where I live, I saw a second phoebe.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFJowcdjfOmuuAp4-Z6NtIJTIfbkzdiZ_yWpx3A6Yl4NuImQXe9anT7t8kO4uGhpGmEbNZU0PeoXp7qDF53pg7ZUuyhyphenhyphenkMHCUIbpVZTO0LpnoPdX2djWFQ13x91SkX5lvwxUEPu7xLhsHi/s1600/DSCF7756.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFJowcdjfOmuuAp4-Z6NtIJTIfbkzdiZ_yWpx3A6Yl4NuImQXe9anT7t8kO4uGhpGmEbNZU0PeoXp7qDF53pg7ZUuyhyphenhyphenkMHCUIbpVZTO0LpnoPdX2djWFQ13x91SkX5lvwxUEPu7xLhsHi/s640/DSCF7756.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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These intrepid flycatchers are one of our earliest-arriving migrant insectivores. To survive in this season, they rely heavily on sun and flowing water to maintain or open up habitats where insects thrive. My April 5 phoebe was hunting for breakfast along the banks of Dry Run Creek.</div>
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The main draw here is probably the aquatic insect fauna -- perhaps mayflies, midges, or other creatures emerging from riffles and other areas of open water. But as I observed the bird, I realized another force besides flowing water was at play here, making conditions good for a bug hunt. You guessed it...the Sun!</div>
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In particular, morning sunshine was rapidly heating the exposed soil in the vertical banks of the creek. On this chilly morning, with much of the watercourse frozen over and temperatures well below freezing, you could see "steam" -- evaporating water -- rising in wisps from thin patches of snow on the black soil of the banks. (This was only true on the banks that were oriented in the direction of the morning sun -- roughly speaking, those that faced east.) The billowing tendrils of water vapor were beautiful -- and far too delicate to be captured with my basic photography equipment. Still, I snapped a few photos of the sunny banks for the sake of documentation.</div>
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As I watched, the phoebe made multiple dives from hunting perches down onto this sun-warmed earth, attempting to capture invertebrates coaxed into motion by the heat and light. When I stooped to examine one such area, it wasn't long before I saw my first invertebrate -- a good-sized spider, alert, active, and fleet-footed.</div>
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Having spent a lot of time down the bird-diet rabbit hole in the preceding days -- dissecting pileated woodpecker excreta and examining these birds' pecked-up snags to see what they'd been eating -- I decided not to invest much effort in determining if there was a particular type of invertebrate (spiders, for instance) that this phoebe was after. (I'm excited to share my woodpecker diet findings in an upcoming post still in progress: <u>Snag life, part 2</u>.) It was satisfying just to catch a glimpse of the phoebe's intelligence and skill: even on a cold early spring morning, it knew exactly where to find its prey.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Van Peenan Park, 4 April 2018<br /><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPc2a7R0qIuPFcZtsZHbGzH7phPPKWmBb_rYzcYwlpR8x3SE9XIEvHRXK7aWDCrKkMhijp3pvV7oNeQLv6nT6IZ9TtHhV6jVEZw-_t9pfM12ZC-UsvG8Y2ivhryMjZ49X5uuGnm58ks2eL/s1600/DSCF8877.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPc2a7R0qIuPFcZtsZHbGzH7phPPKWmBb_rYzcYwlpR8x3SE9XIEvHRXK7aWDCrKkMhijp3pvV7oNeQLv6nT6IZ9TtHhV6jVEZw-_t9pfM12ZC-UsvG8Y2ivhryMjZ49X5uuGnm58ks2eL/s400/DSCF8877.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Twin Springs Park, 19 April 2018</td></tr>
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On April 18, a "winter" storm (it's nearly a month past the equinox!) walloped Decorah with at least 6 inches of snow -- trouble for ground-foraging migrants like American robins, who, as during our previous April snow, appeared on recently plowed roadways in search of water to drink. The day after the storm, driving along Twin Springs Road, I came upon two robins and a hermit thrush hunkered down on the black pavement, which gleamed in the morning sun. They didn't flush as I approached in my vehicle. The first bird, a robin, didn't even move when I pulled up within three feet of it. But it was neither dead nor critically injured. Instead, it was simply resting on the sun-warmed road surface -- its head tucked into its breast feathers.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK_soGWMns1s5Gp6u8q2ee-pLKd0Hcst-z_9SLzFz0tFsAjPUr5CEkOx8Ln9_xFFajgEoz-1zpDTYGIVBV11FsxKtyoEj9jnKmvzYx4Zwkhd1vLCGaL0DplQ1MXeqod31_jr-OuAZ9qH3a/s1600/resting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="682" data-original-width="953" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK_soGWMns1s5Gp6u8q2ee-pLKd0Hcst-z_9SLzFz0tFsAjPUr5CEkOx8Ln9_xFFajgEoz-1zpDTYGIVBV11FsxKtyoEj9jnKmvzYx4Zwkhd1vLCGaL0DplQ1MXeqod31_jr-OuAZ9qH3a/s400/resting.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I am sure that, had I attempted then to drive on, the bird would have never moved a muscle. But leaving it at the mercy of other motorists seemed risky, so I opened my door to get out. Then I changed my mind -- and the sound of me closing my driver's door finally roused the poor bird. It jerked its head up and stared at me with a tired and surprised expression. This was, it seemed, a pretty worn-out animal.<br />
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As I slowly drove past them, the other robin and the hermit thrush ambled reluctantly away from my car. And I do mean ambled -- if they felt any urgency, it wasn't translating into their body movements. The thrush seemed to be walking stiffly, awkwardly. I thought of another hermit thrush that had zoomed past me into my house the previous day, when I'd carelessly stood with the front door open for a few moments. (It flapped clumsily against my living room window, then fell into the leaves of my potted plants -- allowing me to capture it with my hands and release it outdoors.) And I thought of the hermit thrush I'd rescued from Madison Road the day before that, shortly after it had been hit by a car. (The bird eventually perished.) Things did not seem to be going so well for these birds. <br />
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However, I was consoled to know that they did have certain reliable food sources, even amid such difficult conditions (as I'll discuss in <u>Sun and water, part 3</u>). I drove on, anxious to know the results of a camera trap I'd set recently in an upland woods nearby. What the camera's images revealed would surprise and delight me -- and offer a solution to a mystery I've been wondering about since last spring.<br />
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---<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Sap Flow Nocturna</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1ikpEhStp54nDSWnugO6A-csqPkGgsSV75mxTM7-Asvmh5FvBF2bvzuXvsUm9lJJauP0-MRtsVCYeW2ttPe-7IbDnOkxOOIkmrMLmKVs1SyBNC4MeAAz9PrKxpUHWvXHZKMBkLM94vcD_/s1600/DSCF8816+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1054" data-original-width="1600" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1ikpEhStp54nDSWnugO6A-csqPkGgsSV75mxTM7-Asvmh5FvBF2bvzuXvsUm9lJJauP0-MRtsVCYeW2ttPe-7IbDnOkxOOIkmrMLmKVs1SyBNC4MeAAz9PrKxpUHWvXHZKMBkLM94vcD_/s640/DSCF8816+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Venus and the crescent Moon, 17 April 2018 (1)</td></tr>
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<i>[W]here is water flowing?</i><br />
<i>In the maple trees, for one--</i><br />
<i>water, with a certain</i><br />
<i>sugary life-force of the trees</i><br />
<i>intermixed.</i><br />
-- Sun and water, part 1<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyXGRjE4voJ9LUX918OZ-SAxLCYcUpS7Ad5arUx7Z1G-TYddbRsiy-a7GcgJ_IvOh5Qw9YhA00WlAiBXmTEpPoMIMEzwwPNVosGQLMI65RAJZyVN9lLGRucDlS8A7ixxmRiGVVEb-9qESQ/s1600/DSCF8838+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="852" data-original-width="1600" height="340" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyXGRjE4voJ9LUX918OZ-SAxLCYcUpS7Ad5arUx7Z1G-TYddbRsiy-a7GcgJ_IvOh5Qw9YhA00WlAiBXmTEpPoMIMEzwwPNVosGQLMI65RAJZyVN9lLGRucDlS8A7ixxmRiGVVEb-9qESQ/s640/DSCF8838+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yellow-bellied sapsucker at one of its well trees, a black walnut. Beard Century Farm, 18 April 2018.</td></tr>
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<br />
I saw my first yellow-bellied sapsucker of the year on April 6 at Van Peenan Park. It appeared near the start of my afternoon hike, on the upper limbs of a walnut tree growing in a ravine. When I returned to my starting point in late afternoon, the bird was still there -- on the same tree. The sun sank low, sending most of the ravine into shadow; but the top of the walnut glowed still in the slanting sun, and that's where the sapsucker was: huddled on a branch in the day's last sunlight, braving a strong cold wind that foretold that night's temperatures (which would drop into the middle teens). It seemed unlikely that sapsuckers -- migratory woodpeckers who return to our area around April 11, on average (2) -- were used to this sort of brusque meteorological welcome. How could my Van Peenan sapsucker eat, I wondered, with temperatures seemingly too low for sap to flow?<br />
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On April 15, with four inches of snow on the ground and temperatures in the mid-twenties, I noticed a sapsucker at Dunning's Spring that seemed to be hanging around the same group of trees near the water. When the bird disappeared on some unknown errand, I investigated the trunks of these trees -- and was astonished to find my first active sapsucker wells of the year! Ice clung to the bark just below one such well, and yet liquid still flowed out from the tree's interior. I had been assuming that the sap movement we'd experienced in March had ground to a halt amid our wintry April, and that sunshine and 40s (at least during the day) would be needed to really get sap moving again. Clearly I was wrong. (So much to learn!) And clearly it was time to return to the moth wing trees at Twin Springs Park.<br />
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In <a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/04/sun-and-water-part-1.html"><span style="color: blue;">Sun and water, part 1</span></a>, I mentioned that certain moths frequent the sap wells drilled by sapsuckers. This first came to my attention early last April, when I came across a curious sign at Twin Springs: amputated moth wings (and the occasional moth leg or head) littering the ground at the base of sapsucker trees. From the base of just one such tree, I collected dozens of moth forewings and hindwings, then glued them to a piece of posterboard.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB2sG6CtrFySf2NhjBqJnGKocDXmQ6BIZ4M0QAa-VnuWBrPlCHatgKILTJyZ_xEx_xjim7XIsepap0iQgow2p065PV5tMbCQQaOSJFwZvo89BCBNilzEnqKbtfzdgj9qV0_h6qD1NEry3L/s1600/sugar-maple-moths-9Apr2017-v2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1054" data-original-width="1000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB2sG6CtrFySf2NhjBqJnGKocDXmQ6BIZ4M0QAa-VnuWBrPlCHatgKILTJyZ_xEx_xjim7XIsepap0iQgow2p065PV5tMbCQQaOSJFwZvo89BCBNilzEnqKbtfzdgj9qV0_h6qD1NEry3L/s640/sugar-maple-moths-9Apr2017-v2.jpg" width="606" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />Moth forewings collected at the base of a single sapsucker tree (a sugar maple), Twin Springs Park, 9 April 2017. Wisconsin moth guru Kyle Johnson kindly examined this material, and he determined that the forewings belonged to moth species in the genera <i>Orthosia</i>, <i>Lithophane</i>, <i>Eupsilia</i>, and <i>Pyreferra</i>. Some examples: 5 = <i>Lithophane patefacta</i>; 6 = <i>L. antennata</i>; 10 = <i>Orthosia hibisci</i>; 55 = <i>L. scottae</i>; 58 = <i>L. semiusta</i>; 67 = <i>Eupsilia morrisoni</i>; 78 = <i>E. vinulenta</i>; 85 = <i>Pyreferra pettiti. </i>(3)</td></tr>
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Whenever I visited these "moth wing trees" in daylight, I never came across any live moths, so I deduced that the moths -- and the unknown predator that been de-winging them -- were creatures of the night. This suggested that sapsuckers were not the culprit (they're day-active). So what nocturnal animal would be feasting on the moths visiting sapsucker wells?<br />
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In an effort to find out, I trained my game camera on one of the moth wing trees, programming it to take a picture every 30 seconds. From dusk until dawn on the night of April 9-10, 2017, the camera snapped away, generating more than 1200 frames. Especially when assembled into video form (I'll get to that), these images showed clearly that the sapsucker tree was a hub of moth activity. Here's a detail from one image, showing several moths on one of the sap flows.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifc1g9NWAqXaLtiiIvEf3Q1F6Kk7WKgCEPfHX8IErrFbA4EIToBv4ytUJy55auMekbqtiOo_dwC0L7PQek0n29viN_X3l044KUzG42FvIDSFPGcK2kMDvDl-z6zcEF3WdJngiZ6hwrWgJQ/s1600/moths.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="451" data-original-width="642" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifc1g9NWAqXaLtiiIvEf3Q1F6Kk7WKgCEPfHX8IErrFbA4EIToBv4ytUJy55auMekbqtiOo_dwC0L7PQek0n29viN_X3l044KUzG42FvIDSFPGcK2kMDvDl-z6zcEF3WdJngiZ6hwrWgJQ/s400/moths.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moths at a sap flow on sugar maple, Twin Springs Park, 9 April 2017</td></tr>
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Caught in flight by the camera's infrared flash, the moths made ghostly forms.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifg-OMIHOwkiGeF58cCkVGSC3K1dP6dkCVt5V0g_w3FVEhGw9VWT8_f0HDR8kQgyfXgrl5tpmIKyJqrz2NnF3NhiQYnUCur73Dnh5_Fq9ZZBy9o5abgTrF-FOCy9HmAJSNzWCtw_sKnXwh/s1600/ghosts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="599" data-original-width="1140" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifg-OMIHOwkiGeF58cCkVGSC3K1dP6dkCVt5V0g_w3FVEhGw9VWT8_f0HDR8kQgyfXgrl5tpmIKyJqrz2NnF3NhiQYnUCur73Dnh5_Fq9ZZBy9o5abgTrF-FOCy9HmAJSNzWCtw_sKnXwh/s640/ghosts.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Which one is your favorite?</td></tr>
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<br />
By and large, this was all my camera trap caught -- lots and lots of bright white moth-blurs. In fact, there was only one image of the twelve-hundred-plus that happened to capture another interesting creature. Here it is:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXp0AkcUQqW5mSC1oIOP1np0GT9l8fOoX80p2r0Wj0_PtarNlW_Ij0Dxyej0d8Dp3bCHkPUR2UjM-K60OsdvEgV9fu3yA4Wz3ZiQ8rGhVieZxzkhYj4nXRr4Lsh__gqOS8tfTy-vyjb7e/s1600/B.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1223" data-original-width="1016" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXp0AkcUQqW5mSC1oIOP1np0GT9l8fOoX80p2r0Wj0_PtarNlW_Ij0Dxyej0d8Dp3bCHkPUR2UjM-K60OsdvEgV9fu3yA4Wz3ZiQ8rGhVieZxzkhYj4nXRr4Lsh__gqOS8tfTy-vyjb7e/s640/B.JPG" width="530" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">John's Loch Ness Monster photo of 2017</span></td></tr>
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At first glance it seems you can make out the two left legs and the curved tail of some kind of mammal, which is hanging onto the tree trunk and facing downward.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Hw3wC3DgefNsIkHR5oZ9nOvafyC_ImniWGjJgxb5hdjr6pTHoMVMYNh6kqIFkZ3n5IQpssNwUpHxk_Vld3VA65IXvXbohHIF1u-9RxKKLwOMAz4XzCvPVYABLjd4DoeVhq3ugaABCH-j/s1600/C.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="411" data-original-width="354" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Hw3wC3DgefNsIkHR5oZ9nOvafyC_ImniWGjJgxb5hdjr6pTHoMVMYNh6kqIFkZ3n5IQpssNwUpHxk_Vld3VA65IXvXbohHIF1u-9RxKKLwOMAz4XzCvPVYABLjd4DoeVhq3ugaABCH-j/s320/C.JPG" width="275" /></a></div>
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However, when I scrutinized the images I realized the "left hind leg" is present on the tree before and after the creature appears; it's actually just a conveniently placed light spot on the trunk (arrow). <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp4QJLxFXdg4frq_vIjJzIHvocJOfjew4bo_CmCqJoEpHrdwZdspX7IRo2R3aC_dD3oqbyeJ0alu4uzut9_ba04QOz_gb6barBFCxTQF9ASp72fwd48dOXqbxctMq0aS5bKPd87Ro1MOaV/s1600/A.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="409" data-original-width="705" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp4QJLxFXdg4frq_vIjJzIHvocJOfjew4bo_CmCqJoEpHrdwZdspX7IRo2R3aC_dD3oqbyeJ0alu4uzut9_ba04QOz_gb6barBFCxTQF9ASp72fwd48dOXqbxctMq0aS5bKPd87Ro1MOaV/s400/A.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The <i>real</i> left hind leg, rather than being extended out laterally (the light spot on the trunk), is apparently stretched back, facing up the trunk. It's the elongate white object between the light spot on the trunk and the base of the tail. Apparently.<br />
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All of this suggested to me some kind of mammal -- and in particular, a squirrel. Here's <a href="https://youtu.be/6vIxmWPxHV4"><span style="color: blue;">a collection of before-and-after images I assembled into a video</span></a>, with the alleged squirrel image shown for a bit longer than the others, about halfway through playback. Before the mystery animal arrives, note that moths can be seen on and near the trunk of the tree. However, after the creature departs, the tree trunk is nearly devoid of activity for a few minutes, until moths finally start returning. <br />
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As it happens, this is just the response you'd expect from prey animals when a predator shows up: scatter, wait a little while, and then return when it seems like the coast is clear. Writing about wasps they observed during the day at sapsucker wells, Ehrlich and Daily (1988) note, "the yellow-and-black vespid wasps [feeding at wells] were very attuned to the presence of birds and mammals at the wells and rarely fed when they were there. Virtually all of the wasps vanished immediately when a vertebrate entered the clump [of vegetation], only to return just as quickly upon its departure" (p. 363). <br />
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Of course, my one blurry and overexposed image of a supposed moth predator at a well wasn't enough to draw any solid conclusions as to its identity or its intentions. All that seemed certain was that some mysterious being had visited the sap flow that night.<br />
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Overall, I was unhappy with these results, so I set the camera trap again -- but to no avail. Sugar maple sap-moth season drew to a close, and I was forced to wait until the spring of 2018. <br />
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Which brings me to the past few days of this snowy April.<br />
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---<br />
<br />
After discovering the active sapsucker wells at Dunning's Spring on April 15, I headed to Twin Springs Park. There, I found wells recently opened on the trunks of mature sugar maples. The freshly drilled sapsucker holes possessed a rich golden brown color and leaked sap continuously…<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEuBIAL9F732nSNQkj1MqXq3hpNw1KxclNtDqlJyl_5ZQkKVXb2fCMmAYJTM9bg0wbDIM0tiFW8ZohYBTaC6WT2h5ljUMnSd-st0c8jkZeVf8NcwzNo3MMreEAFmPhpW5e4NgSwjJNd8qy/s1600/DSCF8801+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1120" data-original-width="1600" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEuBIAL9F732nSNQkj1MqXq3hpNw1KxclNtDqlJyl_5ZQkKVXb2fCMmAYJTM9bg0wbDIM0tiFW8ZohYBTaC6WT2h5ljUMnSd-st0c8jkZeVf8NcwzNo3MMreEAFmPhpW5e4NgSwjJNd8qy/s640/DSCF8801+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
…whereas previous years' wells had long ago been healed over by the trees, producing corky "belly buttons."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwb4Fjm5HXFQMPIPwplgo0S0irMTUy0TWs4OPOl1qmiwyCPVnQFi6sP9nfYB9SHXnoaZVEyyWgCIsZiNN1FOsLB7DtIsvoadFgIeJq6gpSioF4Lta88sdcgz37u2kVozQgTb-QGRZD-HF2/s1600/DSCF8808+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1292" data-original-width="1600" height="321" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwb4Fjm5HXFQMPIPwplgo0S0irMTUy0TWs4OPOl1qmiwyCPVnQFi6sP9nfYB9SHXnoaZVEyyWgCIsZiNN1FOsLB7DtIsvoadFgIeJq6gpSioF4Lta88sdcgz37u2kVozQgTb-QGRZD-HF2/s400/DSCF8808+%25283%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Here's an active well from a bit further away, showing the trunk moistened by sap.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ai7oOZZ_2LbEpX5AvI_k-2N-rVkldY-hrBcPDWQizDROjtubw4S_MeL-b9N36ENFnrHrjj-o-5Sgjy_5Gu0PCqmwLhNHATaDfJbxXqiyBC7ll3dJMlLOrw7DEA2FUmtakyq-2WFol4WP/s1600/DSCF8803+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1345" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ai7oOZZ_2LbEpX5AvI_k-2N-rVkldY-hrBcPDWQizDROjtubw4S_MeL-b9N36ENFnrHrjj-o-5Sgjy_5Gu0PCqmwLhNHATaDfJbxXqiyBC7ll3dJMlLOrw7DEA2FUmtakyq-2WFol4WP/s640/DSCF8803+%25282%2529.JPG" width="537" /></a></div>
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As with the trees described in <a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/04/sun-and-water-part-1.html"><span style="color: blue;">Sun and water, part 1</span></a>, these maples' trunks had been stained black by years of sap flows induced by sapsuckers. Can you spot the sapsucker tree in the image below?<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRi8vE1EJz2uaREXeZDu9GwIslEnvR2UBbtNapzSkJ55SCXspvHwb_Hqxkb3pDI_Wtm6UmXULTJR2rtteMMtjOmCooQ4bEtUgTrfVfJjlornU94F2IkAt3Zts0hx-e0Q2UtsrWr3N4Vl1c/s1600/DSCF8859.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRi8vE1EJz2uaREXeZDu9GwIslEnvR2UBbtNapzSkJ55SCXspvHwb_Hqxkb3pDI_Wtm6UmXULTJR2rtteMMtjOmCooQ4bEtUgTrfVfJjlornU94F2IkAt3Zts0hx-e0Q2UtsrWr3N4Vl1c/s640/DSCF8859.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Twin Springs Park, 19 April 2018</td></tr>
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Here's a closer view of this tree's trunk, showing an active sap well. Recently drilled sapsucker holes are visible at the top of the image; at bottom, sap has flowed onto the snow.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD9d7EacDHZo8lLDLQSqxQV5r4qJ7f-Tb_4aoBCPU6ndMbS_j70vvAf0ZLoChtnhTekpVFkHoX0oUj3TPHhA_2xUK6hOO3vcevJRMYNKyadTMX_q2grUeKp_suQFMQSJ4R6uLvFRHf4X0y/s1600/DSCF8862+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1106" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD9d7EacDHZo8lLDLQSqxQV5r4qJ7f-Tb_4aoBCPU6ndMbS_j70vvAf0ZLoChtnhTekpVFkHoX0oUj3TPHhA_2xUK6hOO3vcevJRMYNKyadTMX_q2grUeKp_suQFMQSJ4R6uLvFRHf4X0y/s640/DSCF8862+%25282%2529.JPG" width="441" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Twin Springs Park, 19 April 2018</td></tr>
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The preceding image is from the morning of April 19. For the previous two nights, my game camera had watched the trunk of this very tree. And guess who had glided in to the tree trunk at about 9 pm on the first night?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6ZCptXtiILm_zUGMTJjMh71E9BMkurREeb4e8RsNVUoZ3U0YHTpXUvN9wiso8Uw6RBg1By4oqbECznuydAtQrKHtY6J8bWXoGwRrDQDmDwzxd1U_959fgeaxX4Dn4L3jh-z-2NXD5T22e/s1600/MFDC3041+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="543" data-original-width="885" height="392" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6ZCptXtiILm_zUGMTJjMh71E9BMkurREeb4e8RsNVUoZ3U0YHTpXUvN9wiso8Uw6RBg1By4oqbECznuydAtQrKHtY6J8bWXoGwRrDQDmDwzxd1U_959fgeaxX4Dn4L3jh-z-2NXD5T22e/s640/MFDC3041+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Twin Springs Park, 17 April 2018</td></tr>
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A flying squirrel!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4YOVKiXbs1KQL3ZYBQLfJjds7LP7a_YfVK-NonDWtq_I4_lc_2QHY9nqMO7FUmi5lCJY3iC8J9ZR0ESu9q1NiaoPd9vxq3BDKh-kqQ_MDsxQmIrk_rj80sQNkmsMvzaw2o0BOgw7tZ0sr/s1600/MFDC3039+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="1000" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4YOVKiXbs1KQL3ZYBQLfJjds7LP7a_YfVK-NonDWtq_I4_lc_2QHY9nqMO7FUmi5lCJY3iC8J9ZR0ESu9q1NiaoPd9vxq3BDKh-kqQ_MDsxQmIrk_rj80sQNkmsMvzaw2o0BOgw7tZ0sr/s640/MFDC3039+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />It now seems likely to me that the sapsucker tree visitor I caught on camera in 2017 was also a flying squirrel. Whether this nocturnal rodent is also the mystery moth predator remains to be seen: the current batch of sapsucker wells is quite fresh, and I have not yet seen any moth wings at the base of sapsucker trees. (As temperatures warm I intend to keep my game camera running.) In fact, with the extended cold I have yet to see a single insect at a sapsucker well this year -- which strongly suggests to me that the flying squirrel shown above was feeding on sap rather than bugs.<br />
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Flying squirrels are certainly not the only vertebrates to enjoy sugary drinks from sap wells. A 1988 paper by Gretchen Daily and Paul Ehrlich (4) includes photographs of an orange-crowned warbler, a rufous hummingbird, and a red squirrel feeding at active wells maintained by red-naped sapsuckers in Colorado. The authors also mention visits to the same wells by broad-tailed hummingbirds and chipmunks. Another Colorado author, Dave Leatherman, reports that hairy woodpeckers will visit sapsucker wells -- and he also documents downy and hairy woodpeckers making their <i>own </i>wells to drink from (rather than just waiting around for some sapsucker to do it!). (5)<br />
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And then, of course, there are the <i>in</i>vertebrates. Once things get a bit more springlike around here, I hope to make a post highlighting some of the insect and arachnid fauna at sap wells, as they begin to show up (which should be quite soon). For now, we'll have to be content in the knowledge that our local flying squirrels and yellow-bellied sapsuckers -- and perhaps other vertebrates too? -- are finding flowing tree-water to be a helpful source of nourishment in this time of transition.<br />
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--<br />
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In Sun and water, part 3, we'll visit still other places where sunlight and flowing water help bring things to life at this time of year.<br />
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<u>Coming soon: Sun and water, part 3</u></div>
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NOTES</div>
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1. Thanks to P. van der Linden for sharing the identity of the planet (Venus).</div>
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2. From a phenology article (including bird migration tables) written by Tex Sordahl and published in a Decorah newspaper (copy of the article provided to me by a friend)</div>
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3. Kyle Johnson, pers. comm.</div>
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4. Ehrlich, P.R. and G.C. Daily. 1988. Red-naped sapsucker feeding at willows: possible keystone herbivores. Am. Birds 42:357-365.</div>
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5. See https://cobirds.org/cfo/ColoradoBirds/HungryBird/79.pdf</div>
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-28586872145005438672018-04-15T19:58:00.000-07:002018-09-18T18:56:53.870-07:00Sun and water, part 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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There is "spring"<br />
and then there are all the happenings<br />
today that don't fit into it.<br />
To know these things, ask yourself,<br />
Where is water flowing?<br />
Where is sun-heat pooling,<br />
gathering?<br />
Here you will find the creatures<br />
that do their thing now,<br />
not waiting for greenup--<br />
because this is their time.<br />
They are a quirky lot,<br />
and no less captivating for it.<br />
In staking their claim<br />
to this forgotten season,<br />
they help me to value it,<br />
and to give it due place<br />
in the march of life.<br />
And more than that,<br />
they give me heart.<br />
I am buoyant, for them.<br />
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<br />
It's twenty-eighteen,<br />
March the first,<br />
and where is water flowing?<br />
In the maple trees, for one--<br />
water, with a certain<br />
sugary life-force of the trees<br />
intermixed.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Friends Wendy and Jim in their maple grove, March 1, 2018</td></tr>
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Jim, one of two human syrupers</div>
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in this caref'lly tended sugar bush,</div>
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had told me as I went out this day</div>
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that he'd already seen </div>
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a few "Diptera."</div>
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Music to my ears;</div>
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and yes, there they were.</div>
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The hardy few,</div>
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already astir--</div>
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drawn by the life-water</div>
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drip-dropping from the spiles.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Fly #1</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisxx28raNrnMSMwPUAY2Fdprdg2cE47-Dt9xvEs-AKxpmRs-2_HCIKy0arkSChW3ZYevod4AvLUi3sn2sxNVM0t9P-7lklCN0PvzNq_AcRxcr927zkNEI1g8-nqViQ8dd-3Z9m4bNJYNjj/s1600/12.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="822" data-original-width="1600" height="328" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisxx28raNrnMSMwPUAY2Fdprdg2cE47-Dt9xvEs-AKxpmRs-2_HCIKy0arkSChW3ZYevod4AvLUi3sn2sxNVM0t9P-7lklCN0PvzNq_AcRxcr927zkNEI1g8-nqViQ8dd-3Z9m4bNJYNjj/s640/12.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Fly #2...</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-rtMPK3gEAQa5ioD3LLYdpdzVBl_bOc1pK4AqgLwxcsEx6kgJ63QrVjONxeQplGwqZUQSd3Ml2zSUMlYqdyR9URpKkqUSVTuL8-UelLu434X46vtnC3cYW9aTFZRuT20WwpwaB1fL6yNj/s1600/14.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1009" data-original-width="1417" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-rtMPK3gEAQa5ioD3LLYdpdzVBl_bOc1pK4AqgLwxcsEx6kgJ63QrVjONxeQplGwqZUQSd3Ml2zSUMlYqdyR9URpKkqUSVTuL8-UelLu434X46vtnC3cYW9aTFZRuT20WwpwaB1fL6yNj/s640/14.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">...and a springtail nearby (at lower left).</span></td></tr>
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Ah yes, the springtails!</div>
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(More on them soon.)</div>
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And spiders on the buckets, too.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNeOTQetLwOakrIOIcat_-mXCgvxH057fiHslPszkmuFfuuLj-cZ1kdkD9TjjWs0c9o4jRfOwc2BH-GEuAvEkPIzVnTbGKO2OBREiaIu9eXrBBtesUvThbK6U8IyFtgDZCORl_dtmOOBWi/s1600/16.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNeOTQetLwOakrIOIcat_-mXCgvxH057fiHslPszkmuFfuuLj-cZ1kdkD9TjjWs0c9o4jRfOwc2BH-GEuAvEkPIzVnTbGKO2OBREiaIu9eXrBBtesUvThbK6U8IyFtgDZCORl_dtmOOBWi/s400/16.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<br />
This creature was all too familiar:<br />
An arachnid of the most intrepid sort,<br />
one I'd seen before, in winter--<br />
<a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/02/winter-arachnids.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">on the snow</span></a>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBQaKumThyqMfSyrd0TcstBP19HK0Pd2iE1gxeh2WNoT1uCpklx0GlPHywW2ls2B2Qfzak9sdvBkJHSWoa3fiAXHbRVNjPxScA2_GdjVVZ-9maIjEXxeWN5h-ZIpzVnJAOAF8zNTQ2NWS3/s1600/18.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1291" data-original-width="1600" height="322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBQaKumThyqMfSyrd0TcstBP19HK0Pd2iE1gxeh2WNoT1uCpklx0GlPHywW2ls2B2Qfzak9sdvBkJHSWoa3fiAXHbRVNjPxScA2_GdjVVZ-9maIjEXxeWN5h-ZIpzVnJAOAF8zNTQ2NWS3/s400/18.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Eustala </i>sp. orbweaver on sap bucket, March 1, 2018</td></tr>
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<br />
Another spider refused to pose on the bucket<br />
where I found it;<br />
we had to settle<br />
for a more terranean photo shoot.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7mZjkzwH099CugUri5sG7KddY0Wv1LDtAep0Es2cpW7E2AlSd4VAYpVVK_D1U4Prs45ZazQxQcYRYsBu9GUWnAzsxPTIFJlyzJ47nXwOW2tkUnD6P2uhD-2Gl6QUXUsrPPB8ivkffqk7Q/s1600/21.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1079" data-original-width="1600" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7mZjkzwH099CugUri5sG7KddY0Wv1LDtAep0Es2cpW7E2AlSd4VAYpVVK_D1U4Prs45ZazQxQcYRYsBu9GUWnAzsxPTIFJlyzJ47nXwOW2tkUnD6P2uhD-2Gl6QUXUsrPPB8ivkffqk7Q/s400/21.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXslGDFe7vM7d9WvPW7DrwT5Mw3D4DhkfL2FnvUzxAAyvlKRTeNCFXdwHUfutCD2hjH9gitK9SQB2Vud5PG0uM408zduholscB7i_1iMvfIebKgFPQhmzy6Ch4pbfFDIPIW8UhyphenhyphenFv5WABK/s1600/23.0.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1171" data-original-width="1600" height="467" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXslGDFe7vM7d9WvPW7DrwT5Mw3D4DhkfL2FnvUzxAAyvlKRTeNCFXdwHUfutCD2hjH9gitK9SQB2Vud5PG0uM408zduholscB7i_1iMvfIebKgFPQhmzy6Ch4pbfFDIPIW8UhyphenhyphenFv5WABK/s640/23.0.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Young<i> Dolomedes</i> sp. spider from sap bucket, March 1, 2018</td></tr>
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There was even a scale-wing</div>
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I'd count among the smallest moths</div>
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I'd ever seen.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXUoVxR1RBxer0E5payAYsJqm-N3j_xKfLXrLolafHyIxAuYPwEzRymQFbqJ5Hd5C0Ozmvffemne-ubYuGbp05VoHh4SWnQSfongSUROtlFtL8XjYQQY4ZclFj9UfZHVgdec2LAoPyaN0f/s1600/23.2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="865" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXUoVxR1RBxer0E5payAYsJqm-N3j_xKfLXrLolafHyIxAuYPwEzRymQFbqJ5Hd5C0Ozmvffemne-ubYuGbp05VoHh4SWnQSfongSUROtlFtL8XjYQQY4ZclFj9UfZHVgdec2LAoPyaN0f/s640/23.2.JPG" width="552" /></a></div>
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Pale as a grain of rice,</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
but smaller still than that!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltNSZQ1Hn2PVGwToNaeV5mbHdQw21Qa4lakjLG9Up7164r2pjxgkKYQH0GxwWfKH2QTxp4-_gFRKg_D2ztG0gtnYtBTGTQuQA1brh9CRH0UBeRlpQOvE_PW_213DGdaH2ON9Bg1hATUlv/s1600/23.5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="636" data-original-width="1157" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltNSZQ1Hn2PVGwToNaeV5mbHdQw21Qa4lakjLG9Up7164r2pjxgkKYQH0GxwWfKH2QTxp4-_gFRKg_D2ztG0gtnYtBTGTQuQA1brh9CRH0UBeRlpQOvE_PW_213DGdaH2ON9Bg1hATUlv/s400/23.5.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfUKWjwMaLtoIIF5HcBRX4I6sTyZ4ZmtZOb2crKNaVTlA6zL3ch64xAeJWC2piuTARgrqU1bYSTfOZPTikR1owAX4UQHKEnEJMqEZVtYE8BotMZWNARcDnbaMmDCQKuFq2QRUIKqj7LLDf/s1600/23.6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="940" data-original-width="1600" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfUKWjwMaLtoIIF5HcBRX4I6sTyZ4ZmtZOb2crKNaVTlA6zL3ch64xAeJWC2piuTARgrqU1bYSTfOZPTikR1owAX4UQHKEnEJMqEZVtYE8BotMZWNARcDnbaMmDCQKuFq2QRUIKqj7LLDf/s640/23.6.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Phyllocnistis</i> (Greek: "leaf scraper") moth resting on sap bucket, March 1, 2018.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"> As a larva, this animal mined the leaf of a tree or shrub sometime in the previous growing season. (1)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">See also: <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/734350"><span style="color: blue;">Another local example</span></a> of a similar adult; a <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/896362"><span style="color: blue;">larva's leaf mine</span></a> and a <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1039664"><span style="color: blue;">pupa</span></a> of <i>Phyllocnistis insignis</i></span></td></tr>
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All this life! And yet--</div>
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On some nearby slopes</div>
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where maples grow,</div>
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the ground slumbers daylong</div>
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in shadow, sunbeams never reaching</div>
its deep blue patches of snow.<br />
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Things are quieter there.</div>
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<br /></div>
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But Jim and Wendy's trees</div>
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stand on ground more favorably inclined.</div>
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<br /></div>
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The slope is gentle, the aspect such</div>
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that sunlight does its thing--</div>
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brightening the russet sea of fallen leaves;</div>
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heating up the maple trunks;</div>
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melting puddles in remnant ice...</div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ7tcZPeLgvpgSEObLhUaYuxUPOjic0kRIuIr_UVise2ckf9WBrqkNxF4r8RGxNtgn6q0goGVeiRcluuN7rXu6fSgWihPNl3DfUKhXOtlkGp0qvAFAzAzabpgZgYs433eCfqnK0_HQ8-ZE/s1600/28.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ7tcZPeLgvpgSEObLhUaYuxUPOjic0kRIuIr_UVise2ckf9WBrqkNxF4r8RGxNtgn6q0goGVeiRcluuN7rXu6fSgWihPNl3DfUKhXOtlkGp0qvAFAzAzabpgZgYs433eCfqnK0_HQ8-ZE/s640/28.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLpbH7vQEXpZMICD2ayZL-KRMesBqEpIcvST-sNhLIFmjjWrfkCRyDEp-Kan-pb307cbKs0M1GTZDfnl26Nn1vMmS79fB3JhSoKV7bwsaPaJv6ZjE1-YRuzFxgZYAwg7tCqBtdBxmYXvmw/s1600/29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLpbH7vQEXpZMICD2ayZL-KRMesBqEpIcvST-sNhLIFmjjWrfkCRyDEp-Kan-pb307cbKs0M1GTZDfnl26Nn1vMmS79fB3JhSoKV7bwsaPaJv6ZjE1-YRuzFxgZYAwg7tCqBtdBxmYXvmw/s640/29.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd6zWH4LQoTyLYmH80CuoCwzWNmKNCm9wamX9X5FJD_0FRywJi4VXGdcn3LtlSVI2rQtgLmtrN5d6pqTAMu-7_9nvv7Wf0Vfp6XNmwJ9z-LDvjCLqQCMBUbSUx8S_GD21uZtl1f04GLlB0/s1600/30.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="900" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd6zWH4LQoTyLYmH80CuoCwzWNmKNCm9wamX9X5FJD_0FRywJi4VXGdcn3LtlSVI2rQtgLmtrN5d6pqTAMu-7_9nvv7Wf0Vfp6XNmwJ9z-LDvjCLqQCMBUbSUx8S_GD21uZtl1f04GLlB0/s640/30.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
...Puddles where <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5xP-j9OvxM" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">springtails play</span></a>!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI1e0L_vRU_fyLiAj12n67QefazBvsh4tPorCAQze4GWmzQGHX-mPtmEJXmrHSl8tSjXlFlurrMCeKC2AO9km22vg2TqaUDBbbcddh7X8nmM4SJQb34GBqgDxr5iiyPdwdCUbqWv2ooDEK/s1600/32.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI1e0L_vRU_fyLiAj12n67QefazBvsh4tPorCAQze4GWmzQGHX-mPtmEJXmrHSl8tSjXlFlurrMCeKC2AO9km22vg2TqaUDBbbcddh7X8nmM4SJQb34GBqgDxr5iiyPdwdCUbqWv2ooDEK/s640/32.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtlO4vu5NSEPA85_WW92hwcDRuYOmPQ3D-MrHoHZGrsrHarYFD1YCf5FxZD16yibDKVPXTEQkkQNJ2759gr8Fd7kl3rulxk_fBfiEGNoxST464if3hxJ1W4UnnGf690kdPwBBZ33VXqcJv/s1600/33.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="452" data-original-width="800" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtlO4vu5NSEPA85_WW92hwcDRuYOmPQ3D-MrHoHZGrsrHarYFD1YCf5FxZD16yibDKVPXTEQkkQNJ2759gr8Fd7kl3rulxk_fBfiEGNoxST464if3hxJ1W4UnnGf690kdPwBBZ33VXqcJv/s640/33.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A still from a video of a springtail "raft" on meltwater, March 1, 2018</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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(<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5xP-j9OvxM"><span style="color: blue;">Click here for a video</span></a> of these animals afloat and awriggle on their puddle.)</div>
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<br /></div>
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Now you may say,</div>
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Yes, well and good this is--</div>
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but nothing's green!</div>
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But then of course if you were there</div>
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you might have stooped at base of tree</div>
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where trunk and ground,</div>
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both sun-warmed, met;</div>
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and there you would have found</div>
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indeed and truly, all asprout,</div>
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that tenderest of toughies:</div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mtvl-hLACfoT975hFXe9j8YPCrhznVaaHHF8yKfgzdZrnh19CHDFWn0KauuG-Rj7Z7ufhb6nn1XnKWT8eiTbdyhBdY8pF6zBbXw4AkbpcMHUaWYWQ8d1CPtzopgOc4yiW1tAzPMYMh-D/s1600/24.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1358" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mtvl-hLACfoT975hFXe9j8YPCrhznVaaHHF8yKfgzdZrnh19CHDFWn0KauuG-Rj7Z7ufhb6nn1XnKWT8eiTbdyhBdY8pF6zBbXw4AkbpcMHUaWYWQ8d1CPtzopgOc4yiW1tAzPMYMh-D/s400/24.JPG" width="338" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Spring beauty!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghyphenhypheneuZLfT7AA6PMEXUKR0Rqv6uEpW3e7srs0XevejLg88etVNm7Q5Z4P1-HrrjfqIeZOUz9u1U7NPYXFNh86OWlJcU9o2WvKyNLuV-D06pr1W701Ug2cZW1ha6JdMv8eh5C8-AgKaukZDd/s1600/25.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1149" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghyphenhypheneuZLfT7AA6PMEXUKR0Rqv6uEpW3e7srs0XevejLg88etVNm7Q5Z4P1-HrrjfqIeZOUz9u1U7NPYXFNh86OWlJcU9o2WvKyNLuV-D06pr1W701Ug2cZW1ha6JdMv8eh5C8-AgKaukZDd/s640/25.JPG" width="458" /></a></div>
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See how readily it emerges,</div>
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Leaves and flower-buds,</div>
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all in one!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXXlWoYqEcRdW2mUHnN5d5n-2ec-SEaqJaaZpGkdMY4zLjD3hDsTrSXDLvbNkHdS6MBQG-31dO1k7UqNIdpeh1DgsaEK6EY1M_8_JddQwMCiZCaL6iQu0E0mlJtsyiwWkvOFib_QLICygo/s1600/26.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1012" data-original-width="776" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXXlWoYqEcRdW2mUHnN5d5n-2ec-SEaqJaaZpGkdMY4zLjD3hDsTrSXDLvbNkHdS6MBQG-31dO1k7UqNIdpeh1DgsaEK6EY1M_8_JddQwMCiZCaL6iQu0E0mlJtsyiwWkvOFib_QLICygo/s640/26.JPG" width="489" /></a></div>
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---</div>
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Now, of those arthropods I found</div>
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resting on the buckets--</div>
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The leaf-scraper moth, tiny and pale;</div>
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the spiders; </div>
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just perhaps</div>
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they're on the buckets just by chance.</div>
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But not the flies.</div>
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Nay, they know when sap's adrip;</div>
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reliably they seek it out.</div>
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In April soon, sapsuckers' wells</div>
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will draw them by the dozen.</div>
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Also, larger moths will come--</div>
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<i>Lithophane</i>, <i>Orthosia</i> too,</div>
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<i>Eupsilia</i>, and more.</div>
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Wisconsin moth guy Kyle J</div>
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knows them all by sight!</div>
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Algona, Iowa's Matthew K</div>
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spends time with sap-moths too;</div>
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both more than I.</div>
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Soon I'll make a sap-moths post</div>
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to bring these creatures more to light.</div>
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For now, I'll simply show a few</div>
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that got into the buckets</div>
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at Jim and Wendy's sugar bush</div>
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around the thirty-first of March:</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsKCVQtCw_mnXfda5IUI_x4oLkUflUkNHqNvhnsSMt9KVc9YjlPDYsNNLN1x_Ru318ivj_GsQ_6G-Cq2S5bwvBl_kvXqOFuTKg6PP1irBtYj3wjA_ktAf-NCvNXGzImD_GFcK2vas3-gfC/s1600/DSCF7492.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsKCVQtCw_mnXfda5IUI_x4oLkUflUkNHqNvhnsSMt9KVc9YjlPDYsNNLN1x_Ru318ivj_GsQ_6G-Cq2S5bwvBl_kvXqOFuTKg6PP1irBtYj3wjA_ktAf-NCvNXGzImD_GFcK2vas3-gfC/s640/DSCF7492.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Unidentified moth in sap bucket, March 31, 2018. This moth was alive, <br />
and upon bringing it indoors I was able to keep it that way for a number of days.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg65Z2P17kc-Z2j9UBXfTw5nLL1VJbD0qVhvjsoeyhV3uKnL9WmwCuS00vv5TNXMA8-k1K1pLeHAEIiQatEVBofgz9ytyUMGPflLJld5TTt5gSkkZLGeuzkLzN0Txk8kGHlthggzlWI5IHo/s1600/DSCF7526.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg65Z2P17kc-Z2j9UBXfTw5nLL1VJbD0qVhvjsoeyhV3uKnL9WmwCuS00vv5TNXMA8-k1K1pLeHAEIiQatEVBofgz9ytyUMGPflLJld5TTt5gSkkZLGeuzkLzN0Txk8kGHlthggzlWI5IHo/s640/DSCF7526.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A second sap bucket moth, removed from the bucket and placed on leaf litter for photography. <br />
Clearly this is an animal well adapted for life in the current season of browns and grays.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Nu9QkjA5rFHwhTsMHXUkiiAGbWDcly136cSNlfbv0sKMkHHOdk2nBb71g972-wwIKo-bcuVljI9nXy4b1PeIs9sF17dXLuPXbD8L5YcACfBezJrYkPOAq-Lqy0sm1ZxGpDB15maCR4Fy/s1600/DSCF7527+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1031" data-original-width="1600" height="411" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Nu9QkjA5rFHwhTsMHXUkiiAGbWDcly136cSNlfbv0sKMkHHOdk2nBb71g972-wwIKo-bcuVljI9nXy4b1PeIs9sF17dXLuPXbD8L5YcACfBezJrYkPOAq-Lqy0sm1ZxGpDB15maCR4Fy/s640/DSCF7527+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioEgH4W3oVNuyp17ggnvzI0AdgLRSJ5_N_txTqK4OzZASPlx616NNw0xXg3NWA3hM6CajgPsXL23ZF9mzrR3LPEjN7CCLQM2pv2KcZcxnuDr8yBWaCaTBJG4IVRGe4l3TUbijlzc3gK-ZY/s1600/DSCF7522+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1338" data-original-width="1600" height="532" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioEgH4W3oVNuyp17ggnvzI0AdgLRSJ5_N_txTqK4OzZASPlx616NNw0xXg3NWA3hM6CajgPsXL23ZF9mzrR3LPEjN7CCLQM2pv2KcZcxnuDr8yBWaCaTBJG4IVRGe4l3TUbijlzc3gK-ZY/s640/DSCF7522+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho4jdl7elggNyltObl59G2xBzo6IytGAk-9Pae5DZ_d4upHuwxxP7A8S1xmK5BuJmIHjl1_TTBU_rmQSo8w_wQvoeXq3ph1mJW9eLw7xECLqIm1WMPAMsRzuSzQnk-YLaqR4-edqPglpnO/s1600/DSCF7516+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="1600" height="531" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho4jdl7elggNyltObl59G2xBzo6IytGAk-9Pae5DZ_d4upHuwxxP7A8S1xmK5BuJmIHjl1_TTBU_rmQSo8w_wQvoeXq3ph1mJW9eLw7xECLqIm1WMPAMsRzuSzQnk-YLaqR4-edqPglpnO/s640/DSCF7516+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNWK3L2M29y7ZlpSFebqrczUQbWXcRogOSAYkDbZPmw9__QmQN2B6-DLaMNJ_ijr-YNoea4kV7j8vn7NppkqPbjH_87ILrdosED4Pmj9rmiPTJ-mlZkzBNaJprohQj1OcOVacaKrZt4Ws2/s1600/DSCF7534+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1075" data-original-width="1600" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNWK3L2M29y7ZlpSFebqrczUQbWXcRogOSAYkDbZPmw9__QmQN2B6-DLaMNJ_ijr-YNoea4kV7j8vn7NppkqPbjH_87ILrdosED4Pmj9rmiPTJ-mlZkzBNaJprohQj1OcOVacaKrZt4Ws2/s640/DSCF7534+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A third sap bucket moth -- also alive...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwxzz_wue6MoT6pBZkA8pWHToUovXS2h12DFSeg5PhzFObUQ3PsXlJUrIkSqdjatQEFcEETSDlUHfz2ei0TDcspj3km-sxlfx4iRUnTsuiQyyWoP7cnt3i6oP-Og8bgxnWKjbV7rnG3Qbh/s1600/DSCF7536+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1095" data-original-width="1600" height="438" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwxzz_wue6MoT6pBZkA8pWHToUovXS2h12DFSeg5PhzFObUQ3PsXlJUrIkSqdjatQEFcEETSDlUHfz2ei0TDcspj3km-sxlfx4iRUnTsuiQyyWoP7cnt3i6oP-Og8bgxnWKjbV7rnG3Qbh/s640/DSCF7536+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and likely grateful to be rescued</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggJoKotYbz5C5klobDQg2I_866cg8wAGjCloUGcs5Rurrc6iYxD9QgWQBR-Nz_MzZH38wUvqDEUiMjQmR-Rbajz6NqKkeUj9BRVSdl5gYe6ixt5-Z0Z2gDQliZ6x6yVy1dOBu8fpJoDpur/s1600/DSCF7546+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1148" data-original-width="1600" height="458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggJoKotYbz5C5klobDQg2I_866cg8wAGjCloUGcs5Rurrc6iYxD9QgWQBR-Nz_MzZH38wUvqDEUiMjQmR-Rbajz6NqKkeUj9BRVSdl5gYe6ixt5-Z0Z2gDQliZ6x6yVy1dOBu8fpJoDpur/s640/DSCF7546+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The previous two moths, posed side by side on an old maple leaf. <br />
I believe (correct me if I'm wrong, readers!) these are both <i>Eupsilia</i> sp. (Noctuidae)</td></tr>
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<br /></div>
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And that's not all!</div>
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Indeed will moths like these appear</div>
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at wells from which sapsuckers drink; </div>
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but plant exudates draw in birds</div>
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beside sapsuckers, too.</div>
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This titmouse sipped some resinous stuff</div>
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oozing from a cut ash stump</div>
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just out my kitchen window--</div>
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way back on January 31st,</div>
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a day sun-soaked but still quite cool.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXJx3tE7T0Qz_zLREtcYRQ8CT74KjIXq76KDSUYqvJUDVDpbcFBGz-livFK55XhxAqMOyu6YXRwiDGCm0Wib0caXDesf5BtX9sk4qcPac4g-z_8eU1bNcV5qIie3wnPdtILq2CFojyY83n/s1600/4th+time%252C+i.e.%252C+4th+visit+to+stump+by+titmouse.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1208" data-original-width="1600" height="481" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXJx3tE7T0Qz_zLREtcYRQ8CT74KjIXq76KDSUYqvJUDVDpbcFBGz-livFK55XhxAqMOyu6YXRwiDGCm0Wib0caXDesf5BtX9sk4qcPac4g-z_8eU1bNcV5qIie3wnPdtILq2CFojyY83n/s640/4th+time%252C+i.e.%252C+4th+visit+to+stump+by+titmouse.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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Oops! I spooked the titmouse</div>
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as I watched it, once or twice;</div>
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yet three times it returned</div>
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to take another drink!</div>
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When it left the final time</div>
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I crept outside that I might try</div>
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this liquid worth four visits</div>
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from a certain thirsty bird;</div>
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I put a drop upon my tongue--</div>
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'twas noticeably sweet!</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpx3iblEjO3uB49-sU_uB1TMiEa_v6xPyI57Z7vjKOzGLNNrFF0Oswu2nZSnSpeuYp_1Jiyw-t24T9FPK3WfdVnvTZMoNJl9Tdfy7UgZ-NbK33mq7rYmlui406jw_s80I-1kzj-XW2q_j2/s1600/DSCF5175.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpx3iblEjO3uB49-sU_uB1TMiEa_v6xPyI57Z7vjKOzGLNNrFF0Oswu2nZSnSpeuYp_1Jiyw-t24T9FPK3WfdVnvTZMoNJl9Tdfy7UgZ-NbK33mq7rYmlui406jw_s80I-1kzj-XW2q_j2/s640/DSCF5175.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV0U21fm8bD4iYyUZ_Bn5WKcw8VlSImAyqP1R1w9zJoTwigaqXDwh_AMVL6OjF_G4d2d563OgAIOO9tT1vj6-nmWZGs54Z7bLBcx66tehv-gKxkmzUQJuS_ISSzUvvDI4XJ3354oAjIn2-/s1600/put+drop+on+tongue%253B+noticeably+sweet.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV0U21fm8bD4iYyUZ_Bn5WKcw8VlSImAyqP1R1w9zJoTwigaqXDwh_AMVL6OjF_G4d2d563OgAIOO9tT1vj6-nmWZGs54Z7bLBcx66tehv-gKxkmzUQJuS_ISSzUvvDI4XJ3354oAjIn2-/s640/put+drop+on+tongue%253B+noticeably+sweet.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet exudate from cut ash stump, imbibed repeatedly by a tufted titmouse. Beard Century Farm, January 31, 2018</td></tr>
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Nearby I watched as chickadees</div>
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oft visited a leaky wound</div>
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on a walnut twig.</div>
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<br /></div>
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So liquid flows and brings new life!</div>
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<br /></div>
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---</div>
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<br /></div>
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Now sap flow* moths from March's end</div>
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and January titmouse drinks</div>
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are lovely through and through--</div>
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but where was I?</div>
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Ah yes, at certain sugar bush</div>
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on March the very first.</div>
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<br /></div>
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And still, back then at March's start,</div>
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<i>yet one more </i>sap flow consequence</div>
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(albeit left from springs now gone):</div>
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Where is sun-heat</div>
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pooling, gathering?</div>
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Once again, on maple trunks!</div>
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Past years' sap-flows stained them black,</div>
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a color good at holding warmth!</div>
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________</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">* From here on out I use the term "sap flow" to refer to the special circumstance of sap leaking from a tree trunk due to some injury to the tree. In dendrology the term "sap flow" may more properly be used to describe the normal movement of liquids <i>inside</i> the tree.</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYUkGGUE9ou_JPzokdLQcmVvFU_isars7Bd2kQPoWxlRT_5Ki_0AlaasPvP3iOAkGGpmW6JFwgWBC15TSCZjAMq-sqESZ1X1aN7W4ExAk7B_Ukl0JSCRiH2xxeyz9jHzfFGNMl9y5Om4LM/s1600/DSCF6904.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYUkGGUE9ou_JPzokdLQcmVvFU_isars7Bd2kQPoWxlRT_5Ki_0AlaasPvP3iOAkGGpmW6JFwgWBC15TSCZjAMq-sqESZ1X1aN7W4ExAk7B_Ukl0JSCRiH2xxeyz9jHzfFGNMl9y5Om4LM/s640/DSCF6904.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fly basking on blackened trunk of sugar maple, Twin Springs Park, March 2, 2018.<br />
Maple trees affected heavily by sap leakage ("sap flows") in previous seasons <br />
may be located by visually scanning the woods for their trunks' dark color.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg0cAjfwnTsZ8-GBUSeapYAAC_H9Jbz967VCFHjSvQSKwt8ssJD-3PFmPE2NJwsuVUIdSuGdDlHGYSyzfUynlfCME1HCP5Sezch1i4JbUjkomXoE_qyoTN2UiZ0T-aVL4xPTho5Tj9RxQc/s1600/tree-fly0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="520" data-original-width="792" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg0cAjfwnTsZ8-GBUSeapYAAC_H9Jbz967VCFHjSvQSKwt8ssJD-3PFmPE2NJwsuVUIdSuGdDlHGYSyzfUynlfCME1HCP5Sezch1i4JbUjkomXoE_qyoTN2UiZ0T-aVL4xPTho5Tj9RxQc/s640/tree-fly0.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzOvqvwaizH-LeUpJMtqM8_AEec1XOIIvrXzP9GywXVvvEaITRdlGjGFAGlPz3lKVCXJrsIgihMnj-bMurC-jJwdwTQIjPOraBiTL_hBv7ayL-M1SpampfYmZzGvZTEEYDpYBhHU_jXE9Y/s1600/tree-fly1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="453" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzOvqvwaizH-LeUpJMtqM8_AEec1XOIIvrXzP9GywXVvvEaITRdlGjGFAGlPz3lKVCXJrsIgihMnj-bMurC-jJwdwTQIjPOraBiTL_hBv7ayL-M1SpampfYmZzGvZTEEYDpYBhHU_jXE9Y/s640/tree-fly1.jpg" width="412" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnqfbo2Q3ApDWu4dJEIwfU0_9XKGyT0I03aZ0mw2oGpoblTUJ7FES-FlsFyLAc-jFr_XJ3OpQWdH9UumjsMCdArpB-1FPMgVDFVXtQP34yBYndHxUT_THng9d9NNnopXQIaWHmNkeBY63Y/s1600/tree-fly2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="650" data-original-width="463" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnqfbo2Q3ApDWu4dJEIwfU0_9XKGyT0I03aZ0mw2oGpoblTUJ7FES-FlsFyLAc-jFr_XJ3OpQWdH9UumjsMCdArpB-1FPMgVDFVXtQP34yBYndHxUT_THng9d9NNnopXQIaWHmNkeBY63Y/s640/tree-fly2.jpg" width="454" /></a></div>
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Worshipping the sun god, eh?</div>
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<i>Helios</i> was, for Greeks, that god.</div>
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<strike>Clearly, then, it's fitting that</strike></div>
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<strike> this family of flies bears his name--</strike></div>
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<strike>Heleomyzidae!</strike></div>
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<strike>(Hee-lee-oh-MY-zih-dee.)</strike></div>
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<strike>The flies of Helios.</strike></div>
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**CORRECTION near the bottom of the page here: <a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/06/falling-in-spring.html" target="_blank">Falling in Spring</a>**</div>
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The sun flies!</div>
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<br /></div>
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Of heleomyzids, Bugguide says:</div>
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"Tend to be common in early spring"<sup>2</sup></div>
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(and also late in autumn).</div>
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<br /></div>
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Same day, same place,</div>
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I came across two sun flies, who,</div>
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perhaps for all the sunniness,</div>
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were in a certain mood.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggBcRHe3OicaXo_d-yFM24Ui_u_EDNuIDLOurUBeG7S1Bfa2iL0tY9lyfAL_JIOVFIMsan_XZ_WikWw9jMUGVKLsoBdR8SwevLqoSKVjVuLa9ls2n8toPRXHBekjs-kgZH-knfzUifDIL5/s1600/DSCF6600+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1111" data-original-width="1600" height="441" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggBcRHe3OicaXo_d-yFM24Ui_u_EDNuIDLOurUBeG7S1Bfa2iL0tY9lyfAL_JIOVFIMsan_XZ_WikWw9jMUGVKLsoBdR8SwevLqoSKVjVuLa9ls2n8toPRXHBekjs-kgZH-knfzUifDIL5/s640/DSCF6600+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heleomyzids <i>in copula</i>, Twin Springs Park, March 2, 2018</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzyFT1k5gZt46xWBx9aBM8PjEoB06e4T8y5QU33saQrHUuCpfRKDCLa6w1O4Lrx6ehlj-NjaoOnCqoWGb9duFUkIbCBlLXfJUDf76GCxj2M57dMPKY9skjYMzmsgx3y5chCdckqQnkqhcg/s1600/DSCF6598+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="659" data-original-width="518" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzyFT1k5gZt46xWBx9aBM8PjEoB06e4T8y5QU33saQrHUuCpfRKDCLa6w1O4Lrx6ehlj-NjaoOnCqoWGb9duFUkIbCBlLXfJUDf76GCxj2M57dMPKY9skjYMzmsgx3y5chCdckqQnkqhcg/s400/DSCF6598+%25282%2529.JPG" width="312" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio5YR-80CCawq3y9wNgPFjqo00Lw7FEdZwGCAHFYRWCIzCSWoej76HI0jKzxQwurfesUroy-DHAQD1sise1to6Y-AvHkzh4aqjXf-cpyjHl6T7WzVQtFIHKAHan2XvJVRQvrOdpo0myO_W/s1600/DSCF6601+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1030" data-original-width="842" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio5YR-80CCawq3y9wNgPFjqo00Lw7FEdZwGCAHFYRWCIzCSWoej76HI0jKzxQwurfesUroy-DHAQD1sise1to6Y-AvHkzh4aqjXf-cpyjHl6T7WzVQtFIHKAHan2XvJVRQvrOdpo0myO_W/s400/DSCF6601+%25282%2529.JPG" width="326" /></a></div>
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Did the person who named the sun flies know</div>
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them to bask in Sol's good rays?</div>
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Is that why they possess this name?</div>
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Perhaps.</div>
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They <i>are </i>surely known for hardiness</div>
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when it comes to cold, like early spring's.</div>
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To this could Vikings testify.</div>
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Two <i>Heleomyza </i>species flew</div>
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amok in Viking settlements,</div>
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breeding in the pit latrines;</div>
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to them they were as house flies.</div>
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Yes, archaeol'gists poring over</div>
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yard-deep cores of Greenland soil</div>
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find sun fly exoskeleton bits</div>
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where'er the Vikings were!<sup>3</sup></div>
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And truly, yes, it must behoove</div>
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these northerly flies to be</div>
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attuned to spots like maple trunks</div>
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where sun-heat cuts a chilling breeze.</div>
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Just one more thing,</div>
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I promise.</div>
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Another moving-water place</div>
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is bubbling spring or seep.</div>
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The third of March already saw</div>
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fresh growth at one such local spot:</div>
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Skunk cabbage! Lo!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOh1LL4wjhL-54cfnS9gut7n_5KWs1omKB5yC5d71ProtoD2fWWu1meqx6cEswhyphenhyphen-GeZc9GnJzOLmLPNk9tYF340-8dAKq8DqRSMFEj1FFVek25feCE4Z9s8ihTqyIiQRJ6q7p6VDssZ3C/s1600/skunk01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOh1LL4wjhL-54cfnS9gut7n_5KWs1omKB5yC5d71ProtoD2fWWu1meqx6cEswhyphenhyphen-GeZc9GnJzOLmLPNk9tYF340-8dAKq8DqRSMFEj1FFVek25feCE4Z9s8ihTqyIiQRJ6q7p6VDssZ3C/s640/skunk01.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the year's first skunk cabbage spathes, Seed Savers Exchange, March 3, 2018. Photo courtesy Mark v.</td></tr>
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At that time neighbor cabbages</div>
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lay dormant under ice or snow;</div>
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But just along a trickle where</div>
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the water kept things thawed--</div>
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Here only grew the hoodlike <i>spathes</i>,</div>
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the cabbage-patch's first forays</div>
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into the temperamental season.</div>
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And see, already, came a fly</div>
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attracted by the pungent scent!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQUfd9U_kx34brM4OnUs1lmya60f3VDWtNNY0xiLphxmkPrWqiCH6bPOB8OJ5WrrNwxNqzRxKC6_GEHNQgrm69CZlBq1GTZgmI3Uuo3AZ5MUknYB-V_lsel5Dw9W3S4OQ1e4jAQ8Nw-T0G/s1600/skunk01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="826" height="416" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQUfd9U_kx34brM4OnUs1lmya60f3VDWtNNY0xiLphxmkPrWqiCH6bPOB8OJ5WrrNwxNqzRxKC6_GEHNQgrm69CZlBq1GTZgmI3Uuo3AZ5MUknYB-V_lsel5Dw9W3S4OQ1e4jAQ8Nw-T0G/s640/skunk01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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By March 19th, few other spathes</div>
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arose in yonder cabbage-patch;</div>
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Yet still were flies attracted there</div>
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to ply skunk cabbage <i>spadices</i></div>
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(the yellowish clubs inside the hoods</div>
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that bear this odd plant's flowers)--</div>
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on which the flies soon found themselves</div>
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aglow with golden pollen.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0oE4-zY2pPPUhEJ2lpEVqowzuLcVwwCF1wAH5blH8UkGRnYZYHlNqvAYXiHcRBOTSaPBNcjEDNWvrB2aEYeYt-N8cKCrcbQFgeYRibDTKbYtWdztiYJATEyJ6Bdymgo2gRZmvyGslh5aP/s1600/DSCF6916.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0oE4-zY2pPPUhEJ2lpEVqowzuLcVwwCF1wAH5blH8UkGRnYZYHlNqvAYXiHcRBOTSaPBNcjEDNWvrB2aEYeYt-N8cKCrcbQFgeYRibDTKbYtWdztiYJATEyJ6Bdymgo2gRZmvyGslh5aP/s640/DSCF6916.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spathe with fly, March 19, 2018. Note spadix concealed inside the spathe.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGJGQ4J2ACy7bm9EnImSfcxp6CHLNx9afqhIVa5klhTkwuS7CmacJakRbBO9jabqMkLQEpl3o6YJl_VvfrMjLEP7noubgSbVx99es2ZfQgvaZywTU9c1lexAwmmwdj8CcwX8OnDbtIrwrH/s1600/DSCF6919+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1174" data-original-width="1600" height="468" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGJGQ4J2ACy7bm9EnImSfcxp6CHLNx9afqhIVa5klhTkwuS7CmacJakRbBO9jabqMkLQEpl3o6YJl_VvfrMjLEP7noubgSbVx99es2ZfQgvaZywTU9c1lexAwmmwdj8CcwX8OnDbtIrwrH/s640/DSCF6919+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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In part 2 (written in regular prose...) we'll visit a few other local places where sunshine and flowing water enable a diversity of interesting life-forms to thrive, even in this wrenching season of fits and starts.</div>
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<u>Sun and water, part 2 (coming soon)</u></div>
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NOTES</div>
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Thanks to John and Jane B, Laura P, Kyhl A, John C, and others for their expertise and assistance with my associated Bugguide posts; to Seed Savers Exchange and to Wendy and Jim S for access to their wild places; to Kyle J for identifying some moths I collected from a sap flow last year; to MJ for permission to reference her rearing and photography work; and to my brother Mark v for his photo of the March 3 skunk cabbage spathe</div>
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Check out this <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1337613"><span style="color: blue;">heleomyzid fly drawn to fermenting sap in June</span></a> (Bugguide photo series by MJ Hatfield)</div>
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I'm definitely not the only Decorah area naturalist who enjoys using poetry to communicate about the wild world. Another example: Larry Reis' book <a href="http://www.iowacenterforthebook.org/authors/browse/larry-reis"><span style="color: blue;">Noting Nature</span></a>.<br />
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<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /></div>
1. "Genus Phyllocnistis" (Bugguide): <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/92118"><span style="color: blue;">https://bugguide.net/node/view/92118</span></a><br />
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2. "Family Heleomyzidae" (Bugguide): <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/12760"><span style="color: blue;">https://bugguide.net/node/view/12760</span></a></div>
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3. Skidmore, P. A dipterological perspective on the Holocene history of the North Atlantic area. PhD thesis, University of Sheffield: 1996. This is an incredible work! Available online at <a href="http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/14628/1/364330_VOL1.pdf"><span style="color: blue;">http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/14628/1/364330_VOL1.pdf</span></a></div>
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-49127475925280076682018-03-14T23:08:00.005-07:002023-08-08T02:42:00.312-07:00An early spring blessing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdz00EbkROG-maTWnyicdphEJWZfBwbijfVJH3z7VKhHJnJ4bCNxo4keHdUgU3apuQVcCIUaMngndXNtwkQDBBzxw9xR_LIYhhNxudO_re1nXir9yUwAhF6xv2W0NmWvaoyb1xcg3bhKga/s1600/AFasf.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1002" data-original-width="1153" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdz00EbkROG-maTWnyicdphEJWZfBwbijfVJH3z7VKhHJnJ4bCNxo4keHdUgU3apuQVcCIUaMngndXNtwkQDBBzxw9xR_LIYhhNxudO_re1nXir9yUwAhF6xv2W0NmWvaoyb1xcg3bhKga/s200/AFasf.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
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<i>"See the little cutworm,<br />brave and cunning soul."</i> -Anon.<br />
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I</h2>
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If you were to cross the Mississippi River from Iowa to Wisconsin on the Lansing bridge, and then head north along the highway that follows the river at the base of the bluffs, you'd soon come upon an imposing feature with a stark and soulful presence. It is a wild, windswept slope of grass and rock, looming obscenely out of the bluffside -- the mighty chest of the embodied Earth, bared for all to see.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUjGkxdQrVEYcOPRPAmSa0dGT_kT0mDzsN-S3pBaJCfyGcG0_ep49cyWHB_wUWdwNjDzjpVRXPgeLEtLC3EXlLj__vOh0rU8b1jALyKxZUgAJJ5IsuGtYuQav0WCJA0miYACoBuxra6zbZ/s1600/1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="476" data-original-width="879" height="345" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUjGkxdQrVEYcOPRPAmSa0dGT_kT0mDzsN-S3pBaJCfyGcG0_ep49cyWHB_wUWdwNjDzjpVRXPgeLEtLC3EXlLj__vOh0rU8b1jALyKxZUgAJJ5IsuGtYuQav0WCJA0miYACoBuxra6zbZ/s640/1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of Battle Bluff Prairie from Hwy 35, north of De Soto, WI</td></tr>
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This prairie is defined by extremes. It is so steep that in places one must crawl upward on all fours. Outcrops of rough black stone jut here and there from the slick, wiry native grasses, and sharp-edged rocks shift suddenly underfoot. The south- and west-facing slope bears the full force of our powerful Sun, which sears off recently fallen snow even while the nearby roadsides and floodplains are covered in thick frozen blankets of white. During the growing season, there is little shelter from the pounding heat and harsh brightness. Eagles and turkey vultures wheel overhead, and chiggers scuttle up the legs of careless visitors. On a few fateful days in the 19th century, this prairie bore witness to the brutal end of the "Black Hawk War," in which U.S. Army troops and their allies cornered and slaughtered a band of First Nations people attempting to flee across the river. For this unconscionable distinction, the grassy landmark earned its present-day nickname: Battle Bluff.<br />
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Amid all the harshness, Battle Bluff Prairie possesses a beauty that is by turns austere, hopeful, and even riotous. Once, I clambered up the slope in the slaty blue-gray cloak of predawn, on one of those September mornings in which all the moisture had fallen out of the cold clear sky the night before and now rose up again in a thick, drenching, low fog. Every leaf and blade of grass drooped, sopping wet with dew. I stood on the slope quietly as light began to suffuse the river valley. At first, immersed in pea soup, I could see only a few feet around me. Even as the sun rose, attempting to pierce the layers of gray, the horizon and all below me was obscured. I savored what illumination there was.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrvB90mJ_Pt-YHsNcS76u5qfKi1zeIvm4a5HCDOJ5AeTYLuGx8-YWFy8n8V5ibGoXDG1Wt9Y7anpM2AC-l-s_MqR1-CHa3whNoQNggnxhctSq1vbV80KryUjSxS0so0IN4zGjmmlMDsR9N/s1600/2.0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrvB90mJ_Pt-YHsNcS76u5qfKi1zeIvm4a5HCDOJ5AeTYLuGx8-YWFy8n8V5ibGoXDG1Wt9Y7anpM2AC-l-s_MqR1-CHa3whNoQNggnxhctSq1vbV80KryUjSxS0so0IN4zGjmmlMDsR9N/s640/2.0.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii2ialYAWYqhgGx9amMUpyvfN8xmvaCOTqggXTCm6t8WnYCHKEnyGvpdU8KtY_7gYHUpXjXJkiwvPf8qqq9fudhqQcbJ86-0rFpND-dLQD4DQFuJbZbrAOoc5vbnS-iTFyTMEgm3JhbxB7/s1600/2.1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii2ialYAWYqhgGx9amMUpyvfN8xmvaCOTqggXTCm6t8WnYCHKEnyGvpdU8KtY_7gYHUpXjXJkiwvPf8qqq9fudhqQcbJ86-0rFpND-dLQD4DQFuJbZbrAOoc5vbnS-iTFyTMEgm3JhbxB7/s640/2.1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Before long the air around me began to clear. A glinting orb-web caught my eye.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC5TaeVPy0YqfHf5g-fdd8a1_qEdjzsKifWPLmaJRyShqlvVOGLkouT5BMLqMopVoUbGz5mQAZJKHm1ikIA_ijlvOcEYGeJj3O8Sn-Sc6WDBx3xtR4SbLXJK7QIEVn3X5xcKjP8nNbg6eF/s1600/3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1063" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC5TaeVPy0YqfHf5g-fdd8a1_qEdjzsKifWPLmaJRyShqlvVOGLkouT5BMLqMopVoUbGz5mQAZJKHm1ikIA_ijlvOcEYGeJj3O8Sn-Sc6WDBx3xtR4SbLXJK7QIEVn3X5xcKjP8nNbg6eF/s640/3.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
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Eventually, the full light of day revealed a rare and precious remnant prairie, resplendent in late-season wildflowers and the delicate russet hues of dried-down grasses.<br />
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The river valley stretched to the south.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDTPaLacG4FtW7MS1oCni_8fZgcEbmxbTcXnjs-3EcskTVnWfZx0BrOKVoTCekkvN56inHwX-vui6B5uq4nKJFfPqYdIwQ0niRLVHVhP3Xc-Cl-ecIAzD9xvEn0ky6_gsg0voHBLtefbtm/s1600/5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDTPaLacG4FtW7MS1oCni_8fZgcEbmxbTcXnjs-3EcskTVnWfZx0BrOKVoTCekkvN56inHwX-vui6B5uq4nKJFfPqYdIwQ0niRLVHVhP3Xc-Cl-ecIAzD9xvEn0ky6_gsg0voHBLtefbtm/s640/5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Months later, after winter's longest and coldest days had passed, I returned to Battle Bluff on a mild and sunny day in mid-March -- three years ago today. Though treacherous to navigate as usual, the slope was warm and dry.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvlyDoEbddv3yaWQTuPMWLZg0hme7hcGDI1srD3YuGFSiGp1TAgipi65VqV4nu-ABl5Ucy21eiq-LU-GafT6C6tUrgb-H-3_-tBYxJD5eyljbI45dmYDvJi2nt50Vp01TrId6lljy7U18t/s1600/6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1063" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvlyDoEbddv3yaWQTuPMWLZg0hme7hcGDI1srD3YuGFSiGp1TAgipi65VqV4nu-ABl5Ucy21eiq-LU-GafT6C6tUrgb-H-3_-tBYxJD5eyljbI45dmYDvJi2nt50Vp01TrId6lljy7U18t/s640/6.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
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The wildflowers, grasses, and other plants I'd enjoyed the previous fall had long since drawn their energies into the ground for the dormant season, leaving behind seedheads, leaves, and culms in various shades of tan, brown, and gold. But clear skies and above-freezing temperatures in recent days had made me wonder if some hardy breed of plant life might have awakened in a sun-soaked place like Battle Bluff. Indeed, as I moved gingerly across the prairie, I was delighted to find, sprouting out of the thin soils, a pale little gray-green plant covered densely in white hairs.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeJLIo_hJnbQ36O4BVRHDjvR1cau6s50xvqMc1ZJ2wVh2mpGYWLlLB_z88Iz-GnYkAWxZQmzTrsC30IYJkpSWdDllQGIGE05GR7Jr6Uoo07EVAdmNFnbokFvitkX7XQ8f4N-t-6GHx3Sl8/s1600/7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1129" data-original-width="1600" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeJLIo_hJnbQ36O4BVRHDjvR1cau6s50xvqMc1ZJ2wVh2mpGYWLlLB_z88Iz-GnYkAWxZQmzTrsC30IYJkpSWdDllQGIGE05GR7Jr6Uoo07EVAdmNFnbokFvitkX7XQ8f4N-t-6GHx3Sl8/s640/7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Clearly, this was a unique creature -- eager, adaptable, and tough. (Its name? Wormwood, <i>Artemisia campestris</i> var <i>caudata</i>.) Though the rest of my time there that day produced few other early signs of spring, my spirits were lifted. As I left the prairie, the waning sunlight conjured an ethereal mood.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsT69xS4dQt4ijcX1CpkWI8sWLqdarl_Ue2Hdkqk1NA7CQ64gebeJzidoaaxUrnyuiLGCr9vSPstSaDn3m6XRl9xmQSmxhLJTtNyS9SpLWHFP6sw1JmWZg-7qDuTGmV1g5iFlur-oXpOj3/s1600/8.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsT69xS4dQt4ijcX1CpkWI8sWLqdarl_Ue2Hdkqk1NA7CQ64gebeJzidoaaxUrnyuiLGCr9vSPstSaDn3m6XRl9xmQSmxhLJTtNyS9SpLWHFP6sw1JmWZg-7qDuTGmV1g5iFlur-oXpOj3/s640/8.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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---<br />
<br />
A week later I was back, and the wormwood was continuing its slow but steady March toward spring. Crouching to admire one wormwood sprout, I noticed an elongate little something attached to one of its leaf-tips. The color pattern of the miniature mystery object had caught my eye -- a repeating pattern of light brown chevrons, like a dead needle from a cedar tree.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4W-aCfCtLo7daKPtdjtr7eKfdWOGCSvf3dCL6ArXjuAvQPK-CM2pwgjly-p3vHvq_z8Il7s-M5kW3P97b9fcJ2-S0LSLf_Ud3u6GO_eDtNOpsuEDO3MEFn0vd49sAescHoFOl9rlZtcBo/s1600/10.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1546" data-original-width="1600" height="618" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4W-aCfCtLo7daKPtdjtr7eKfdWOGCSvf3dCL6ArXjuAvQPK-CM2pwgjly-p3vHvq_z8Il7s-M5kW3P97b9fcJ2-S0LSLf_Ud3u6GO_eDtNOpsuEDO3MEFn0vd49sAescHoFOl9rlZtcBo/s640/10.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
I was surprised to discover that this was a tiny caterpillar with its head buried in a hole it had mined in the leaf-tip. Here's the leaf tip with the hole in it…<br />
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<br />
…and here's the leaf-miner. (The "chevrons" aren't quite as obvious in this lighting.)<br />
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<br />
Though I didn't bring this caterpillar home with me to rear, I did post pictures of it to Bugguide.net, a citizen science website used by thousands of insect enthusiasts all over the United States and Canada. Nobody there recognized it, but those who responded to my post encouraged me to investigate this animal further. <br />
<br />
It was almost two years before I found the time to do so. <br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
II</h2>
<br />
In late February and early March of 2017, I revisited Battle Bluff several times. Now, though, I brought with me a research permit from the Wisconsin DNR and a particular goal: to find and collect live specimens of the mystery caterpillar, which I would attempt to rear to adulthood. Here's what the prairie looked like on Feb. 21:<br />
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My notes from that day read, in part: "Found two of the <i>Artemisia</i> larvae…. The first was curled around a leaf tip. The second I found by parting the leaves in the center of the shoot / crown. Only 1-2" of growth on the <i>Artemisia</i>." I took home one of the two larvae (along with some wormwood leaves to feed it) and photographed it that night on my kitchen table. As you can see, it's pretty darn mini.<br />
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Three days later, it had grown, but not by much.<br />
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During my March 5 visit I collected four more caterpillars and a fresh bunch of wormwood leaves. I harvested only one or two leaves from each plant, since the wormwood (like the caterpillars) was still pretty small:<br />
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As I located and captured the mystery caterpillars, I noticed a peculiar habit of theirs. When I came upon a larva in the field, and moved in close to observe it -- often accidentally jostling part of its host plant in the process -- the larva would drop suddenly from its leaf-perch, wriggling its body back and forth. The wriggling action tended to work it rather quickly into the leaf litter and debris beneath the plant, where it blended in masterfully.<br />
<br />
I don't remember quite how the idea came to be, but a few days later my friend Brad and I hatched a plan to gather footage of this interesting evasive maneuver, using his tripod-mounted video camera. On a March 19 visit to Battle Bluff, Brad <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bf3T0wQb18k&list=PLJk0LjZ5WBjf11dqMH2cf6H_4p7FIWZtK&index=1" target="_blank">recorded a larva's "wriggle move" on camera</a> -- along with other footage of a larva <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rGyrKE9kGw&list=PLJk0LjZ5WBjf11dqMH2cf6H_4p7FIWZtK&index=3" target="_blank">crawling over its hostplant</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqyHDypN-o0&index=2&list=PLJk0LjZ5WBjf11dqMH2cf6H_4p7FIWZtK" target="_blank">feeding</a>. During that outing we also collected two larvae for my rearing project, bringing my total number of captive caterpillars to seven.<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
III</h2>
<br />
By late March, the "tiny brown chevron larvae" in my rearing containers were starting to get big, fat, and muscular. (Look what a vegetarian diet can do!) Here's one I photographed on March 26.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz54xEApyw3CAyp2qYSiVGusGlEe3f0HFCEkxYDl-Gjn9CHJiYhNxa548QEuHydaPh-xHl7M4aq5mHZOwBjVpT0gNCuWrjWnpw6Ju3nGOJMn0BEGLFRmXEa2_ucAGbBLG0wk-RuIXaq98H/s1600/25.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="734" data-original-width="1600" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz54xEApyw3CAyp2qYSiVGusGlEe3f0HFCEkxYDl-Gjn9CHJiYhNxa548QEuHydaPh-xHl7M4aq5mHZOwBjVpT0gNCuWrjWnpw6Ju3nGOJMn0BEGLFRmXEa2_ucAGbBLG0wk-RuIXaq98H/s640/25.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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On April 23, one of the caterpillars pupated -- and by May 9, the other six had pupated, too. That all seven of them survived to pupation seemed unbelievably fortuitous.<br />
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Of course, once I was done waiting for my charges to pupate, it was time to wait again -- for adults to emerge. I carefully regulated the moisture in their containers. I drummed my fingers. I checked up on the pupae compulsively -- sometimes several times in a day. I had poured so much grunt work, attention, and love into these creatures, and I desperately wanted them to make it to adulthood. Even just one or two of them -- please.<br />
<br />
On May 30, my wish was granted.<br />
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<br />
<br />
Welcome to the world, lovely scale-wing!<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
In the following weeks, more adults emerged; the rearing was a success. I knew I'd need to "retain" (kill and preserve) one or more of the adults and send the specimens to an expert in order to obtain a clear-cut species-level identification. But the way things were going -- with the animals surviving so well -- it seemed likely I could end up with seven adults, and I certainly didn't need to keep <i>that</i> many for the sake of science.<br />
<br />
So it was that I made a final trip to Battle Bluff in early summer to release three pupae and an adult. The killing-and-preserving part of insect work is usually tough for me to do -- I get attached -- so I was grateful to be able to return some of the wormwood moths alive and unharmed to their prairie home. It felt like the right thing to do.<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
IV</h2>
<br />
"This represents a pretty significant finding of larval behaviour," wrote Chris Schmidt. Note the "u" in "behaviour" -- Dr. Schmidt wasn't writing from the United States. He works as a research scientist for the Canadian National Collection of Insects, Arachnids & Nematodes. (How cool would it be if our country had a government institution with "Insect" in its name...let alone "Arachnid" or "Nematode"?) Chris was responding to my request for information about the wormwood moth, which (I had learned) belongs to a group of Lepidoptera in which he specializes.<br />
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"There is virtually no info in the literature on this species," Chris explained. "Lots to learn about these moths...they generally get ignored or overlooked because they are perceived as dull and boring!" To show me what had been previously known about the wormwood moth -- whose official name is <i>Euxoa immixta</i><sup>1</sup><i> </i>-- Chris pointed me to an article published in 1987 (the year I was born, as it happens). In it, the author, J. Donald Lafontaine, writes, "The immature stages of <i>immixta </i>are unknown. This is a species of the central and eastern Great Plains and relict prairie habitat to the west of the Appalachian mountains. ... Adults have been collected from late April until early September; they fly later in the North than in the South." Chris also provided this map of <i>E. immixta </i>records confirmed by Lafontaine:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9RvUFQiFzkAWnUXjCk3EejeXiImt_aEQei8s725uWjHo41-5wmC4FZGjuKP5XDYhvBA3-kvw-rGAQOe2GnjEtQX3ft1GJutWzPpvNO0soK-MPHRKpWHApz4QGDqNLV2m6rtBdUyMnesv/s1600/Euxoa_immixta_map+%25281%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9RvUFQiFzkAWnUXjCk3EejeXiImt_aEQei8s725uWjHo41-5wmC4FZGjuKP5XDYhvBA3-kvw-rGAQOe2GnjEtQX3ft1GJutWzPpvNO0soK-MPHRKpWHApz4QGDqNLV2m6rtBdUyMnesv/s640/Euxoa_immixta_map+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy Chris Schmidt, CNC</td></tr>
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(You can see a map with several additional adult sightings <a href="http://mothphotographersgroup.msstate.edu/large_map.php?hodges=10753" target="_blank">here</a>, courtesy of the Moth Photographers Group project.)<br />
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Before my finding of this moth at Battle Bluff, what records of it did exist were, of course, records of <i>adult </i>moths. No one knew what the larva looked like; no one knew what the larva ate. If the wormwood moth adult were as beloved to people as, say, the monarch butterfly, it would be like knowing and loving the monarch but not knowing that its larva was that delightful yellow-, black-, and white-striped beast that munches merrily away on milkweed plants.<br />
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Needless to say, I am happy to have contributed some basic life history details to our collective human knowledge of the wormwood moth. It feels all the more special when I consider that Lafontaine identified <i>E. immixta </i>as a moth of relict prairies -- a creature known to dwell in those few tiny remnants of the once vast tallgrass ecosystem that stretched across central North America. I feel I am, in some way, standing up for these surviving prairies by telling a story of their tiny brown chevron larvae. I am helping nudge my fellow humans toward an understanding that prairie life matters -- and that, even when it seems like we've almost smudged out that life for good, there are still things about it we have yet to discover.<br />
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NOTES<br />
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1. Chris dissected my three adult moths from Battle Bluff in order to make this species determination.<br />
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Special thanks to Charley, MJ, Chris, Armund, Terry, and Brad<br />
"View of Battle Bluff from Hwy 35" image obtained from Google Earth Street View<br />
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-87717636703879991512018-03-14T18:27:00.004-07:002018-03-14T18:27:57.770-07:00Readers respond<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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After reading my last post, friend John must have noticed I didn't have a photo of the Footbridge Farm oriole nest -- the one with strands of housewrap woven into it -- because he promptly sent me one (thanks, John!):</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnqcszKnVT16VzMzqd6Xee8uD2xCNbJ_utrBQrZLC63bJywQNIUjrvBNzP2MG61-1bqzecU7O6E0JzvOPVB-vXT-G-9jN2gOujKhMC-4p-yox7Iu5B_evaqFXhFC9xnyPVIWeR6iXB4gj1/s1600/oriole-nest.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1196" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnqcszKnVT16VzMzqd6Xee8uD2xCNbJ_utrBQrZLC63bJywQNIUjrvBNzP2MG61-1bqzecU7O6E0JzvOPVB-vXT-G-9jN2gOujKhMC-4p-yox7Iu5B_evaqFXhFC9xnyPVIWeR6iXB4gj1/s640/oriole-nest.JPG" width="476" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMbCytP_wwJ_PKhyphenhyphen3x_v0GMtRAw-cYXo6ukpJs0t7W-tqRWGhacRzSxxVQj6uY4sqhmTtepCWEDbrrLExU2EZceGIbiU4PwDppErklmQ7lCYtVL5NHurlCji3R_c6zDqFQSxjApjf1cDgM/s1600/oriole-nest2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="687" data-original-width="770" height="355" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMbCytP_wwJ_PKhyphenhyphen3x_v0GMtRAw-cYXo6ukpJs0t7W-tqRWGhacRzSxxVQj6uY4sqhmTtepCWEDbrrLExU2EZceGIbiU4PwDppErklmQ7lCYtVL5NHurlCji3R_c6zDqFQSxjApjf1cDgM/s400/oriole-nest2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Also, the results are in...and Tom and Jean (my uncle and aunt) are the winners of the <a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/03/updates.html" target="_blank">snowman plant ID contest</a> with three plant species apiece. I look forward to treating them to lunch at Decorah's food co-op as promised! (In case you're curious, I've provided identifications for the snowman plants in a comment at the end of that post.)<div>
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My aunt's response came in the form of a poem (thanks, Aunt Jean!):</div>
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When you are in a prairie,</div>
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or more truthfully,</div>
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in a prairie community,</div>
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do not rush to judgement.</div>
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Common can be uncommon,</div>
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And showy, not so showy.</div>
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Sumac, dressed her showy red</div>
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is abundant, but certainly not common.</div>
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Canada rye is restorative</div>
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but not without a sense of newness.</div>
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And sticky, sticky burdock,</div>
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who can be painful in fall,</div>
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relents, in winter to a wet fuzziness.</div>
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-84686664277789143572018-03-06T16:48:00.000-08:002018-09-18T19:47:24.115-07:00Updates, and a snowman<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<td>I.</td><td>The mummy returns</td>
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<td>II.</td><td>Tyvek</td>
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<td>III.</td><td>Au naturel</td>
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Remember the mummified caterpillar from my last post, <a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/02/the-craft-of-woodpecker.html" target="_blank">The craft of the woodpecker</a>?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGqrU-ntLGuHIHNYoH1u4B6uvcMaNMqe1tN1qWzVIHV78ZK4sMgIwIJbeMLCzlHbjPqmOr8_Vnz7OdmNhjBQpUZuED7QSguZobNNyoxG-IZ_dMSESmN8vVQ-_4CtCYJgXtiL8d_iSCQKQC/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="940" data-original-width="1600" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGqrU-ntLGuHIHNYoH1u4B6uvcMaNMqe1tN1qWzVIHV78ZK4sMgIwIJbeMLCzlHbjPqmOr8_Vnz7OdmNhjBQpUZuED7QSguZobNNyoxG-IZ_dMSESmN8vVQ-_4CtCYJgXtiL8d_iSCQKQC/s640/2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Well, after taking these photos, I kept the mummy indoors, in a glass vial with a little moistened peat. And guess what happened just the other day?</div>
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That's right...the mummy-wasp emerged!</div>
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/FRI/QCR/FRIQCRKQFRHQ9RFKURLQ3QM01RYKURZQDQZQVRZQURSQDR3K1RIQYRP0Z090K050DQ709RSQS0N0Z020.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="352" data-original-width="800" height="280" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/FRI/QCR/FRIQCRKQFRHQ9RFKURLQ3QM01RYKURZQDQZQVRZQURSQDR3K1RIQYRP0Z090K050DQ709RSQS0N0Z020.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/LZE/LRZ/LZELRZWL3LBL7ZCLERYZQRFZIRULLZOZMR3ZKRDZ0R9LRZDZZZFZHZULIRQH4RZH6RVLKZCL0Z0HIZ0H.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="567" data-original-width="800" height="451" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/LZE/LRZ/LZELRZWL3LBL7ZCLERYZQRFZIRULLZOZMR3ZKRDZ0R9LRZDZZZFZHZULIRQH4RZH6RVLKZCL0Z0HIZ0H.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/DZI/RCZ/DZIRCZKRFZ6RHH4RKH4RKH6RSHMZ0HERJZSRDZZZ9LSRPLIROZIRYZ3LWLLZULQR2L0RTZ7RCZXRSH8R.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="522" data-original-width="560" height="596" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/DZI/RCZ/DZIRCZKRFZ6RHH4RKH4RKH6RSHMZ0HERJZSRDZZZ9LSRPLIROZIRYZ3LWLLZULQR2L0RTZ7RCZXRSH8R.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Fellow Bugguide.net citizen scientist Ross Hill confirmed my hunch that this wasp was in the genus <i>Aleiodes,</i> and he identified it as <i>A. terminalis</i>. Bugguide's <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/401481" target="_blank">information page</a> for this species says it's "probably the most commonly collected <i>Aleiodes</i> species in [eastern North America]." Its host range is known to include caterpillars in the family Noctuidae (from the Latin for "owl," probably in reference to the night-flying habit of the adult moths) -- so the mummified larva I found most likely belonged to that family.</div>
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Here's an "action shot" of the wasp grooming itself. (Wasps devote a lot of time to grooming.)</div>
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Another group of parasitoid wasps -- the ichneumon (ick-NYOO-min) wasps -- are commonly referred to as "ichneumon flies" in older literature. However, <i>true </i>flies, such as the house flies that buzz inside your windows during the winter, have only two wings, and belong to the order Diptera ("two-winged"). Ichneumons, <i>Aleiodes </i>mummy wasps, and most other wasps have four wings -- an easy way to distinguish them from flies. If you like, take another look at the grooming photo above to see the four wings of the mummy-wasp.</div>
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In <a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/01/a-smart-bunch-part-2.html" target="_blank">A smart bunch, part 2</a>, I wrote about birds eating gall wasp larvae hidden in stems of a wild lettuce, <i>Lactuca biennis. </i>I included this dorky self-portrait with an <i>L. biennis </i>stem, photographed in 2015 at Footbridge Farm, home of friends John and Jana.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1NK35dEwxsjVa0gq9LjA30oBEr4yJx9Ejqlbrjdx8yPrgboXgfdD8a41y4XIXBOCriTRxOCVEwafxjpm67gK31NdHASY8q7gFpjUXX0SzRgty5HntnTKNIU33gyqfdKwtPS0Rv2AhyziK/s1600/lettuce2.0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="929" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1NK35dEwxsjVa0gq9LjA30oBEr4yJx9Ejqlbrjdx8yPrgboXgfdD8a41y4XIXBOCriTRxOCVEwafxjpm67gK31NdHASY8q7gFpjUXX0SzRgty5HntnTKNIU33gyqfdKwtPS0Rv2AhyziK/s400/lettuce2.0.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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Fast forward to today (March 6, 2017). John and I were chatting over the phone this morning about an old oriole nest that hung in a willow tree above his farm's namesake footbridge. Here's an example of an oriole nest as we humans often encounter it: high up in a tree, exposed by fallen leaves and backlit by the sky.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oriole nest, Mexico. Courtesy Jim Conrad and Wikimedia Commons</td></tr>
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John mentioned that the Footbridge Farm oriole nest had fallen from the tree recently, and when he picked it up to examine it, he found a number of white plastic fibers woven into it -- fibers that looked strangely familiar.</div>
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If you look back at my self-portrait / <i>Lactuca </i>photo above, you'll notice that a synthetic homewrap fills the background. This "Green Guard" -- presumably a more sustainably-sourced equivalent of Tyvek -- encloses the walls of a guest cabin that John and Jana were finishing at the time (remember, this was in 2015). Well, as John explained in our conversation today, the homewrap had begun to deteriorate in the time since that photo was taken -- and the orioles had apparently noticed: John recognized the white fibers in the nest as frayed strips of Green Guard!</div>
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The weathered homewrap on the cabin walls is long gone, replaced by a more durable material. However, it's fun to know that even as its time as a human building material came to an end, it found a second life as an avian building material, too.</div>
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While searching for a public-domain oriole nest photo to share with you all in this post, I came across Lauren Schaffer's photo-journal entry here:</div>
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<a href="http://www.birdingpictures.com/baltimore-oriole-nest/" target="_blank">Baltimore Oriole Nest -- Birding Pictures</a></div>
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The second image on that page shows a female oriole harvesting plant fibers for her nest. The opposite branching and elongate, catkin-like seed clusters dangling from the dead stem clearly identify the plant in this photo as a nettle, <i>Urtica</i> sp. Since the photo was taken in mid-May, the nettle stalk is likely a dead and dry remnant from the previous growing season. Lauren's next image shows the same female oriole on another dead plant stalk that I assume is a milkweed, <i>Asclepias</i> sp., for in this post Lauren writes, "[The orioles] like to use long plant fibers, some of which they strip from the old dead plants such as milkweed and other weeds."</div>
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Why does this matter? Because nettle and milkweed aren't your average Joes or Jills when it comes to the strength of their stem fibers. Humans have been incorporating nettle fiber into their textiles since <a href="http://orgprints.org/6926/1/AJAA18_3_2003_nettle.pdf" target="_blank">at least A.D. 900</a>; in fact, just a year or two ago my friend Heidi led a nettle twine making workshop right here in Decorah. And friend Lee recently mentioned that an outdoor program he's involved with was scheduled to make twine out of dogbane -- a relative of milkweed.</div>
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Is it a coincidence that Lauren's orioles chose these exceptionally tough-bodied plants to supply fibers for their hanging nest? *Sigh*...I guess it could be; stinging nettle and common milkweed are both pretty ubiquitous. But if you're like me, you tire of dismissing observations like this as mere coincidence. It's more exciting to suppose that the orioles know what they're doing to this extent. And it's more in keeping with a worldview that imagines animals as complex and intelligent beings, rather than mindless automatons. Besides...in this same post, Lauren describes the oft-noted behavior in which orioles (and other nest-weavers) gather hair from domestic animals such as horses for incorporation into their nests. If they're smart enough to identify horsehair as a good building material, why wouldn't they be smart enough to recognize ideal fiber sources in the stems of certain native plants they've lived alongside for millions of years?</div>
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III</h2>
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This snowman on the Luther campus made me grin and giggle big time when I came upon it today.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl0z1Te9qKsXdOPkjdxnfhFB70H6JrMbMYG0nqbH9qEEbjUtEaMd8sYZg3zKCoirkSvky35Ok-fCuKQg0s3GEFZqqseMVs6ur1i8bGWQR6MnCfck3wSHZ7l4KkY8HDCQIrsPgEszuQ6ru-/s1600/DSCF6754.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl0z1Te9qKsXdOPkjdxnfhFB70H6JrMbMYG0nqbH9qEEbjUtEaMd8sYZg3zKCoirkSvky35Ok-fCuKQg0s3GEFZqqseMVs6ur1i8bGWQR6MnCfck3wSHZ7l4KkY8HDCQIrsPgEszuQ6ru-/s400/DSCF6754.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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I'm told that a professor and her student are mostly responsible for this artwork, and that they describe it as "au naturel." Indeed, if you look closely, you might recognize the various dormant-season plant parts incorporated.</div>
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Which leads me to your challenge for the day: Can you identify at least three species of native or exotic plants built into this snowman? Hint: With one or maybe two exceptions, you needn't search Luther's carefully landscaped environs to find the plants in these photos -- they're almost certainly growing wild in a forest or a field near you, or in one of Decorah's several reconstructed (planted) tallgrass prairies.</div>
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Here's some closer views that should be helpful.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihjCpz3qHS_v2vPqjVdyAfSSQfvD0Zmi09xhAYglBMjzw-_5knyl-FQC-sFLwzSyAXlylMhW8Twxvq2pMYgWAauDbdGZuV-kPXwWQlp-ry2fAGrGCzsYmGP52TsAo_gsB9ASkwVp57ckFM/s1600/DSCF6747.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihjCpz3qHS_v2vPqjVdyAfSSQfvD0Zmi09xhAYglBMjzw-_5knyl-FQC-sFLwzSyAXlylMhW8Twxvq2pMYgWAauDbdGZuV-kPXwWQlp-ry2fAGrGCzsYmGP52TsAo_gsB9ASkwVp57ckFM/s640/DSCF6747.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSdnMoV-EHTt9YBD05UME7la3SJH_I4U04JRjVBjXODog8lU6ZYz34HNLrCnSfJaK21Z3l6UTh6bpWXkWkFP_dnIp5J_Gf_i6Ei0AXrY2YkDhknb7-xoYtp8ievpF7YIS0UBIhYuw2gLgN/s1600/DSCF6744+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1229" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSdnMoV-EHTt9YBD05UME7la3SJH_I4U04JRjVBjXODog8lU6ZYz34HNLrCnSfJaK21Z3l6UTh6bpWXkWkFP_dnIp5J_Gf_i6Ei0AXrY2YkDhknb7-xoYtp8ievpF7YIS0UBIhYuw2gLgN/s640/DSCF6744+%25282%2529.JPG" width="490" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidthVFqV2S3jaT4Pj_FgeOrydfz5p5_wcXrJ7VN5ptBXmkBxZSzEtSZuYeJ8axP9YTp65HdEUc8qhcBLoorgr0FviFTnMCJSq03gIYEkQ3cWY0PJkUppTH6LtVIG8uMa-_R_3-Z-pWHSqS/s1600/DSCF6744+%25284%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1391" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidthVFqV2S3jaT4Pj_FgeOrydfz5p5_wcXrJ7VN5ptBXmkBxZSzEtSZuYeJ8axP9YTp65HdEUc8qhcBLoorgr0FviFTnMCJSq03gIYEkQ3cWY0PJkUppTH6LtVIG8uMa-_R_3-Z-pWHSqS/s640/DSCF6744+%25284%2529.JPG" width="555" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Detail of headdress (note especially the grass seedhead in the upper right corner)</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqcXDLDEFM1UBmckh9G4b1EJR5gG64WQLO3hf_cAKHnqNHpF7-ceDa4SL_VpFrnXlcfse62fZCPDEDaGvoAfTrjKLgQ7oxLVAciRigbP9yo1fm62NB5ov80nsAtLw6Si7xBzVmdYykmn87/s1600/DSCF6744+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="857" data-original-width="1600" height="340" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqcXDLDEFM1UBmckh9G4b1EJR5gG64WQLO3hf_cAKHnqNHpF7-ceDa4SL_VpFrnXlcfse62fZCPDEDaGvoAfTrjKLgQ7oxLVAciRigbP9yo1fm62NB5ov80nsAtLw6Si7xBzVmdYykmn87/s640/DSCF6744+%25283%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Extra credit: Write a haiku or other poem about our snowy friend that includes the names of some of her planty parts. (I'll publish my favorite entry here on the blog.) And the person who correctly identifies the greatest number of snowperson-plants wins a free lunch at the Oneota Co-op with yours truly. (Just one rule: you've gotta name at least three kinds of plants, using their common names or the genus part of their scientific names.) Email me, text me, track me down in person, or leave a comment on this page to share your poem or your plant list!</div>
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-63928711210490461082018-02-19T13:46:00.001-08:002018-02-19T14:01:14.655-08:00The craft of the woodpecker<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
All right! Today's Twig or Stem All Pecked Up by Birds belongs to elder, <i>Sambucus</i> sp. I ran across this example the other day at Footbridge Farm, while housesitting for friends John and Jana.<br />
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Arrows point to holes pecked in the stem. Count them with me now!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB6ueoHdr7RsYGpsaLSJPWAm6Frzok_w5AnrSc299v1n349Dm7Kje9vIg1lbxIL3q76edTDTd2nrXQ4CY6yyTK2jGb09l8R3oS9bY7mUGlq0I8PEhtafnM0GEOO_V-d1xrvtagNDy9nI1G/s1600/elder-long2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3900" data-original-width="700" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB6ueoHdr7RsYGpsaLSJPWAm6Frzok_w5AnrSc299v1n349Dm7Kje9vIg1lbxIL3q76edTDTd2nrXQ4CY6yyTK2jGb09l8R3oS9bY7mUGlq0I8PEhtafnM0GEOO_V-d1xrvtagNDy9nI1G/s1600/elder-long2.jpg" /></a></div>
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Eleven holes can be made out (some more easily than others) from this view...and, counting the ones further up or down the stem, or on the side not visible to the camera, there were 17 total holes! On one stem! That's some serious foraging.<br />
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Here's part of another elder stem showing some bird holes in more detail.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKMjkZ5U7I1ZS2F0kNBnRjEYlNnUwNzKrdpbMLCMV1iCx0IcFXmo0TBgLgl9H7Jf1WESGPyxGFPApf9ZjZXEwmt6XMPZoSAYPYwACaPwJtSY3PXeEWOymp3Fp_75XYdUen5-DDXTvAlMPG/s1600/elder-short.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="1600" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKMjkZ5U7I1ZS2F0kNBnRjEYlNnUwNzKrdpbMLCMV1iCx0IcFXmo0TBgLgl9H7Jf1WESGPyxGFPApf9ZjZXEwmt6XMPZoSAYPYwACaPwJtSY3PXeEWOymp3Fp_75XYdUen5-DDXTvAlMPG/s640/elder-short.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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One problem with trying to figure out which insect the birds were after when you find something like this is that, well, the birds <i>ate </i>what they were after...so it's not there anymore. And, of course, even when the birds miss a few larvae or pupae in the stem, if the foraging event happened a while ago, say, in early summer -- and any surviving insects have since emerged -- then you're also out of luck. Since the bird holes on these elder stems looked pretty weathered, I figured that second scenario was probably the case here: even the insect survivors had long since departed. But I dutifully opened the stems up anyway, just to see what was in there.<br />
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Sure enough, they were mostly empty. I found obvious signs of pith tunneling, probably by larvae of some kind of moth or beetle -- perhaps what the birds had been hunting -- but no actual insects.<br />
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Except, that is, for this one.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYkTAoNy6EKrA5hrWsO2y6RoBqYNsMFtZQBBa_x_4LAyl1bEcJwe-NIy1dj9vSVr3_tmZq9ygwlHPvzmRPTdHtlzthX-l46iFr-_7qV4-fImj8vBCzDny9UxuPceQqFl5mYxTeugOdtica/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="940" data-original-width="1600" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYkTAoNy6EKrA5hrWsO2y6RoBqYNsMFtZQBBa_x_4LAyl1bEcJwe-NIy1dj9vSVr3_tmZq9ygwlHPvzmRPTdHtlzthX-l46iFr-_7qV4-fImj8vBCzDny9UxuPceQqFl5mYxTeugOdtica/s640/2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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As you may recognize, this is a caterpillar -- the larva of a moth (order Lepidoptera). Here's a head shot.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6dF9SfgyFw6ItDqB-x-FEcuo1uTtW1yLIGIXShQGUjNrR-gLUYY2liLKWDmtReGHETe6UqssHIN0XGgGpmzG3IC0oeDwzJP1K0tUZIEOHKC8v0dCK1N-3_8k0ouOfTd4X58GuCxmtqiDS/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1138" data-original-width="1558" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6dF9SfgyFw6ItDqB-x-FEcuo1uTtW1yLIGIXShQGUjNrR-gLUYY2liLKWDmtReGHETe6UqssHIN0XGgGpmzG3IC0oeDwzJP1K0tUZIEOHKC8v0dCK1N-3_8k0ouOfTd4X58GuCxmtqiDS/s400/4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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This detail of a lateral (from the side) shot shows two of the caterpillar's spiracles, through which it breathes (look closely to see the two small oval openings in the caterpillar's exoskeleton).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhId48zlu84xyc-BVDUcNQ9I8tguqcBmy1zGDfpE1GV4YO3GdShLwaKDqwYbo4_ZEIiY1meKPdQhGETuiqq-Jzph0xvUsqWZa16MQzHA64b11N1usLPKESQ7IwtJdYNuBOnokPGRLLGSWnJ/s1600/6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="387" data-original-width="800" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhId48zlu84xyc-BVDUcNQ9I8tguqcBmy1zGDfpE1GV4YO3GdShLwaKDqwYbo4_ZEIiY1meKPdQhGETuiqq-Jzph0xvUsqWZa16MQzHA64b11N1usLPKESQ7IwtJdYNuBOnokPGRLLGSWnJ/s640/6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Unfortunately, there is something seriously wrong with this caterpillar. For one thing, it's dead. But besides that...can you see how it's sort of swollen?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5FdO1J5lAO6JvMjvGmm-kkJ-duqsqdPfJJiZSMFE8zW-Z6oDiP5tunJK8ily9bNt1lisTT7btY82jSD_E9h5QrqE_n6cMx2_w06Wjg57qfkGvm24Us0WffcBrYKleXijOxfx7Cl9mlSz_/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="1600" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5FdO1J5lAO6JvMjvGmm-kkJ-duqsqdPfJJiZSMFE8zW-Z6oDiP5tunJK8ily9bNt1lisTT7btY82jSD_E9h5QrqE_n6cMx2_w06Wjg57qfkGvm24Us0WffcBrYKleXijOxfx7Cl9mlSz_/s640/3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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(The big whitish thing in these shots is a paper point, to which I've glued the specimen.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYPMxqCRAG6eKdB5wIZo41Sdx3A36gV2mAeXdknJI9tNCgcffzmXcx9jz91mU3pFj_ScjSUlUjJlxhIm3118Nkhgqp7_-Lasac9uAnCMAmoPpwA_P_R0d1ZkPHupaOHrzQeCEvnvA3yYmk/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="745" data-original-width="1600" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYPMxqCRAG6eKdB5wIZo41Sdx3A36gV2mAeXdknJI9tNCgcffzmXcx9jz91mU3pFj_ScjSUlUjJlxhIm3118Nkhgqp7_-Lasac9uAnCMAmoPpwA_P_R0d1ZkPHupaOHrzQeCEvnvA3yYmk/s640/5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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If you were to gently squeeze this caterpillar between your thumb and forefinger, you would find it to have no give at all -- it is stiff. Hard. Dry.<br />
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It's a caterpillar mummy!<br />
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And guess what: <i>another animal made it into a mummy</i>.<br />
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Nope, not a spider. We're talking about something <i>way</i> weirder than a spider. Something that's actually<i> still inside the caterpillar</i>.<br />
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A mummy-wasp!<br />
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There are over 200 North American species of wasps in the genus <i>Aleoides</i>, and they are known collectively as the mummy-wasps. These aren't social wasps like yellow jackets; they don't build big elaborate nests and they can't sting you. Instead, they are specialized <i>parasitoids </i>of caterpillars. Unlike a <i>parasite</i> (a human head louse, for instance), which lives on or in its host without killing it, a <i>parasitoid</i> kills its host to complete its larval development. Many species of parasitoid wasps emerge from their host's corpse as fully grown larvae, and then spin a cocoon externally. Mummy-wasps, however, have figured out how to manipulate their host so that its tissues harden and dry with the immature wasp still inside -- effectively creating a sheltered "cocoon" in which the wasp can pupate and undergo the transformation to adulthood.<br />
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More pictures of caterpillar mummies made by these wasps: <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1187086/bgimage" target="_blank">Mummy #1</a> | <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1121892/bgimage" target="_blank">Mummy #2</a> | <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/954029/bgimage" target="_blank">Mummy #3</a><br />
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And here's a great image from a scientific paper<sup>1</sup> showing a mummy-wasp adult, its host caterpillar (while still healthy-looking), and the mummy (#97) whence the adult wasp emerged.<br />
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<a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Aleiodes_shakirae01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="744" data-original-width="800" height="594" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Aleiodes_shakirae01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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In most cases just one adult wasp emerges from each mummy, but larvae of <i>Aleoides stigmator</i> mummy-wasps develop gragariously in a host, so that many adults may come out of a single mummy -- leaving it <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/605438" target="_blank">riddled with neatly round exit holes</a>.<br />
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That won't be the case with the mummy from the elder stem, though. <i>A. stigmator</i> apparently emerges from its host in summer or fall and does not overwinter inside it. Since I don't see any exit holes, the maker of this mummy is probably some other species of <i>Aleoides</i> -- and it's still inside its host's hardened remains, waiting for spring.<sup>2</sup><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiC1iU4rsp_tQru_Y7fxa5SZlg-wfOdW1DHwg2ajOdbrCkqL_3398jpX1QKYO1pjwN3_5ugJ28OaQdnsdyaCzN898De3gyJsYXa77IaCF8R-pKD3hnxntYnpxbGt_RiKE2Nb5ruXqsVuN/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="625" data-original-width="1600" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiC1iU4rsp_tQru_Y7fxa5SZlg-wfOdW1DHwg2ajOdbrCkqL_3398jpX1QKYO1pjwN3_5ugJ28OaQdnsdyaCzN898De3gyJsYXa77IaCF8R-pKD3hnxntYnpxbGt_RiKE2Nb5ruXqsVuN/s640/1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is all very interesting, but unless we can figure out the identity of the mummified caterpillar, we're no closer to determining which particular insect the birds are looking for in elder canes. And even if we <i>can</i> identify the mummy, there's no guarantee it's what the birds were after. How do we know this caterpillar (pre-mummification) didn't just wander into the cane a few months after the cane was raided by birds? (Many foliage-feeding caterpillars undergo a "wandering phase" just before pupation, and they can wind up in all sorts of interesting nooks and crannies.) So...where do we go from here?<br />
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Let's leave the subject of bug-mummies and turn instead to the first photo in this post -- the one with the long section of elder cane, all pecked full of holes. Here's a detail from that image to jog your memory (I've rotated it ninety degrees).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoAxzN2XTFh-DP-rvfeQAZaB5s1lImGXkJ20zNBfvE92yrXH07lL8ShEVbGeym9nv0zOk4mW1zSi9v98YoXUeCEa0vh-2avQ2_wTi47f6QZmqzRMrb8DfrvVGa2bCCm9enGpLjE5rI8lU-/s1600/craft7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="221" data-original-width="473" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoAxzN2XTFh-DP-rvfeQAZaB5s1lImGXkJ20zNBfvE92yrXH07lL8ShEVbGeym9nv0zOk4mW1zSi9v98YoXUeCEa0vh-2avQ2_wTi47f6QZmqzRMrb8DfrvVGa2bCCm9enGpLjE5rI8lU-/s400/craft7.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Now, with that in mind, check <i>this </i>out:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuHX3V7BFkQYq4Q1hj9iS-mukI6eCfdkbul37zC7D-ptajcrybRgKcxE9bkCXyjCRVJngBUVRy0WJEZjmJGF6lSlX6HhyojdSal6xaAJCJPRX_R6lX6ZKLLjsZelmxaQYlTSGYj9mIw6-n/s1600/craft00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="336" data-original-width="944" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuHX3V7BFkQYq4Q1hj9iS-mukI6eCfdkbul37zC7D-ptajcrybRgKcxE9bkCXyjCRVJngBUVRy0WJEZjmJGF6lSlX6HhyojdSal6xaAJCJPRX_R6lX6ZKLLjsZelmxaQYlTSGYj9mIw6-n/s640/craft00.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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If you look closely, you can see holes in the stems. Here's the caption that came with this image:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7yHEazlsCQbMktRkNZiW9Jwqq734YrClDOTWeLx0sDPamnbgO5Up7iwgQ7yU5zRZ1_mtDzuOAbeUy1QAtQPHFvDDLescnziqd_Dm0QHrJvHm5SMTtCc3ti149U3aprUeVAJXmVMUmquUE/s1600/craft0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="43" data-original-width="516" height="32" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7yHEazlsCQbMktRkNZiW9Jwqq734YrClDOTWeLx0sDPamnbgO5Up7iwgQ7yU5zRZ1_mtDzuOAbeUy1QAtQPHFvDDLescnziqd_Dm0QHrJvHm5SMTtCc3ti149U3aprUeVAJXmVMUmquUE/s400/craft0.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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OK, so who exactly is "<i>Achatodes zeae</i>"? And what's with that weird font?<br />
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Well, the font's not <i>weird, </i>it's just <i>old</i>, that's all. I think old fonts are pretty cool.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtRSyywlqUIYH1rWDeH55lEtGtAYZm8rCeUNQzfdDiaRNgK-XUEcgMnZZdRSJCmL_n1dUhN9rKIwtPIEOSl4wakrUD_q1sOwTr3oWscNS5OiJqynKaVv48-8KUf5TtXjqQCtjPkJfz57af/s1600/craft2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="151" data-original-width="407" height="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtRSyywlqUIYH1rWDeH55lEtGtAYZm8rCeUNQzfdDiaRNgK-XUEcgMnZZdRSJCmL_n1dUhN9rKIwtPIEOSl4wakrUD_q1sOwTr3oWscNS5OiJqynKaVv48-8KUf5TtXjqQCtjPkJfz57af/s400/craft2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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To be specific, this font is at least 85 years old, as of this month. February 1933 is, as far as I can tell, the last time anyone snapped a picture of an elder cane raided by birds and then tried to share the photo (and a written explanation) with the world. My über-retro counterpart (if I may call him that) is a certain J.C. Silver...and here's part of the title page from Silver's writeup<sup>3</sup>:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVe-QxreOWIXnx_AXJAsD_5g06LVIBLglugz_Ou0IRhRqr9oSy0uARbPspxFz73VlORib8TL8x_X124pKf0Lws9_RYLmf2vd5A5ZPcJt0tf9bY1xUBrPJFXu54FE-VtP9mzABLR4EdQeW3/s1600/craft1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="519" data-original-width="806" height="411" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVe-QxreOWIXnx_AXJAsD_5g06LVIBLglugz_Ou0IRhRqr9oSy0uARbPspxFz73VlORib8TL8x_X124pKf0Lws9_RYLmf2vd5A5ZPcJt0tf9bY1xUBrPJFXu54FE-VtP9mzABLR4EdQeW3/s640/craft1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The "spindle worm" Silver refers to in his title is <i>Achatodes zeae -- </i>the creature those hungry birds were looking for when they tore into the elder stems shown in that black-and-white photo. Here, Silver gives the full story behind the photo.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL8Yip50hkqcHFYewlOY9AQ0ByhrNF5mt57YUQEgBYJ-W-fFv_GHj_d7wymZ7Lpt-Shq5OeuGc0XcFFTO8Wk-y42pdoFhbK-UXmR5fh3ViL8qYar4mg8sltMrLZm2ZNFhfnci1V34-QvPC/s1600/craft4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="223" data-original-width="700" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL8Yip50hkqcHFYewlOY9AQ0ByhrNF5mt57YUQEgBYJ-W-fFv_GHj_d7wymZ7Lpt-Shq5OeuGc0XcFFTO8Wk-y42pdoFhbK-UXmR5fh3ViL8qYar4mg8sltMrLZm2ZNFhfnci1V34-QvPC/s640/craft4.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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In this article he also includes an image showing spindle worm larvae inside elder canes. (This animal is also referred to as the elder borer for its habit of feeding inside <i>Sambucus </i>stems.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWRdzsRYqcZBL3OpNSvS8WHu8gWquQU_jab8L1QQQ5RGbatB8S_p7cAwxQkEtRKuzlh0GNdkpdby-nX1ZrKK_UQC5ykQejrq7hppXteysbxn1gTXhbtaGdyGBJzkHzugtlXpgzuCk8Rzd3/s1600/craft3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="698" data-original-width="502" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWRdzsRYqcZBL3OpNSvS8WHu8gWquQU_jab8L1QQQ5RGbatB8S_p7cAwxQkEtRKuzlh0GNdkpdby-nX1ZrKK_UQC5ykQejrq7hppXteysbxn1gTXhbtaGdyGBJzkHzugtlXpgzuCk8Rzd3/s640/craft3.jpg" width="460" /></a></div>
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As it turns out, MJ Hatfield has collected these caterpillars from elder <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1342196" target="_blank">right here in Winneshiek County</a>, in an attempt to rear them to adulthood.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://bugguide.net/images/cache/3QG/0TQ/3QG0TQ80L0LQDRMQVRZQBRFKNRJK9RSQ00E0S0W0H0E0S0U0Q050Q0P0OQM0URJK9RG0DQG0TQ70JQYKVRJKFQ40FQ70.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="505" height="400" src="https://bugguide.net/images/cache/3QG/0TQ/3QG0TQ80L0LQDRMQVRZQBRFKNRJK9RSQ00E0S0W0H0E0S0U0Q050Q0P0OQM0URJK9RG0DQG0TQ70JQYKVRJKFQ40FQ70.jpg" width="360" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.1333px;">©</span> MJ Hatfield</td></tr>
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Pretty striking, eh? Interestingly, the spindle worm bears a strong resemblance to the parsnip webworm -- another insect that bores into herbaceous stems and is there sought out by birds. (I wrote about that bird-plant-insect association in <a href="https://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/01/a-smart-bunch-part-2.html" target="_blank">A smart bunch, part 2</a>.)<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDf_Gdix0zQKJrRBKqxSrjFeeOg_54DaOrQH4b5iYtM6PdKQcgnFNuG2BgoI6Kpm6ZtEikOOqN_RxssdeULFSTHJs9lMFDmr0wWjK6ww1o6uLTEFWxZYgM2y-PA0PBFAiNBDfhFAFapv3n/s1600/craft5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="533" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDf_Gdix0zQKJrRBKqxSrjFeeOg_54DaOrQH4b5iYtM6PdKQcgnFNuG2BgoI6Kpm6ZtEikOOqN_RxssdeULFSTHJs9lMFDmr0wWjK6ww1o6uLTEFWxZYgM2y-PA0PBFAiNBDfhFAFapv3n/s640/craft5.jpg" width="425" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.1333px;">Parsnip webworm © </span>Tarmo Lampinen</td></tr>
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The likeness is uncanny enough to make me wonder if some sort of <i>mimicry complex</i> might be going on here -- a game of evolutionary bait-and-switch in which one or more animal species evolves to resemble an unrelated model species that predators (like downy woodpeckers) already recognize as distasteful. But that's just speculation....<br />
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---<br />
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It sure seems like J.C. Silver and I may have both observed evidence of the same kind of insect, albeit eight and half decades apart. But it's important to remember that many plants may have their stems tunneled out by more than one species of insect -- and the sign left behind is not always clear and diagnostic for a particular culprit. (I suspect the mummified caterpillar is something other than a spindle worm -- you may notice it doesn't resemble an <i>A. zeae </i>larva very closely.) We'll have to wait for spring and summer in order to confirm that spindle worms are common enough around here to attract downy woodpeckers to their elder stem hideouts.<br />
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For now, I'll just say this appears to be yet another example of how intelligent woodpeckers are. I got some much-appreciated vindication on this point just the other day, when I picked up my housemate's copy of the February 2018 issue of National Geographic. When I turned to the illustration comparing the known or hypothesized "smarts" of various birds, I whooped with joy. There -- right next to the common raven and the gray parrot, two of humanity's most celebrated "bird brainiacs" -- was our very own pileated woodpecker! <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/interactive-assets/nggraphics/ngm-1802-bird-brains/build-2018-01-24_13-42-48/ngm-assets/img/ngm-1802-bird-brains_ai2html-desktop-medium.jpg">The illustration ranks birds</a> based on the proportion of their brain devoted to the forebrain, explaining that, according to a prevailing hypothesis, "the bigger a bird's forebrain as part of its entire brain, the smarter the bird." Pileated woodpeckers, having 77% forebrain mass, are neck and neck with common ravens (80%) and gray parrots (79%)...and, among the bird species studied, pileateds ranked <i>second </i>in "innovativeness," behind only ravens.<sup>4</sup><br />
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Downy woodpeckers were not included in the study; and yes, I know, I know, leave it to humans to rank other animals according to the size of their brains. But this illustration sent my mood sky-high. The more I watch woodpeckers, the smarter they seem...and the more I want their intelligence to be witnessed by others, to be commonly appreciated. When you think about it, what these animals do is remarkable. They survive the coldest, harshest months of the year by locating little insect larvae hidden away behind walls of cellulose. For this they may seem quirky, or odd, or not quite "with it" -- the stuff of Woody Woodpecker cartoons -- but, to me, quite the opposite truth is becoming clear: they absolutely deserve our respect.<br />
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---<br />
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Notes<br />
1. Shimbori, E.M. and S.R. Shaw. 2014. Twenty-four new species of <i>Aleiodes</i> Wesmael from the eastern Andes of Ecuador with associated biological information (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Rogadinae). ZooKeys 405: 1-81.<br />
2. However, Aleoides isn't the only genus to which our mystery mummy-wasp could belong. There's a whole subfamily of mummy-wasps -- the Rogadinae -- containing several other genera.<br />
3. Silver, J.C. 1933. Biology and morpohology of the spindle worm, or elder borer. Technical Bulletin No. 345. United States Department of Agriculture: Washington, D.C.<br />
4. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2018/02/bird-brains-crows-cockatoos-songbirds-corvids/<br />
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-86412555104083436422018-02-09T04:13:00.000-08:002018-02-09T08:32:32.968-08:00Winter arachnids<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHaa3XX_ktU7d9ZP5AqPj5dh4zBpDryIa5Nv5e4fRDAmJs9N5qZztdcn4zuXKgls7n5mH4yDb_QWB6vDCHZ6e5KwEXOuzg4J4YlRfvjCPXSSyz1FCsMXxosL0fg_MhdB7tZu5ibdxcR7A_/s1600/DSCF5208.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1504" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHaa3XX_ktU7d9ZP5AqPj5dh4zBpDryIa5Nv5e4fRDAmJs9N5qZztdcn4zuXKgls7n5mH4yDb_QWB6vDCHZ6e5KwEXOuzg4J4YlRfvjCPXSSyz1FCsMXxosL0fg_MhdB7tZu5ibdxcR7A_/s320/DSCF5208.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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<i>Let us give thanks for what we have.</i></div>
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<tr><td align="left">I.</td><td align="left"><a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/02/winter-arachnids.html#1">Gift wrap</a></td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">II.</td><td align="left"><a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/02/winter-arachnids.html#2">Beatrice</a></td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">III.</td><td align="left"><a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/02/winter-arachnids.html#3">Personality, in a pinch</a></td></tr>
<tr><td align="left">IV.</td><td align="left"><a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/02/winter-arachnids.html#4">Snow spiders</a></td></tr>
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="1">
I</a></h2>
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I awoke the other day to a little present waiting for me on my bedside table.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmboeV70J08QdVXfI20a8Kmom6CaIPbUlKF_BwYpjqoGwZqc_XM7-2uk5AMBtVx5Ltv4AU9gI7QDccWrHbWj6kE98yU29dFXwT4Vir5v7EzJJnFj3WL2N8JEfFf5xW8OoyQKoeGNqxFDTp/s1600/present1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1253" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmboeV70J08QdVXfI20a8Kmom6CaIPbUlKF_BwYpjqoGwZqc_XM7-2uk5AMBtVx5Ltv4AU9gI7QDccWrHbWj6kE98yU29dFXwT4Vir5v7EzJJnFj3WL2N8JEfFf5xW8OoyQKoeGNqxFDTp/s400/present1.JPG" width="312" /></a></div>
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See that little speck on the notebook?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFUmHY8IMd0xrLUL_-sKo4lRerOftylJ2GtMfW2dGpz12JAX02RT2i1JB0S44nsldA9_Fp5evNNIWboBnYmLDvJONOFYaQh6sUFXH_O5T08lkcpCVlpozQ-Ynn7sha0QzVWBm1oJR6bPRN/s1600/present2.0.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFUmHY8IMd0xrLUL_-sKo4lRerOftylJ2GtMfW2dGpz12JAX02RT2i1JB0S44nsldA9_Fp5evNNIWboBnYmLDvJONOFYaQh6sUFXH_O5T08lkcpCVlpozQ-Ynn7sha0QzVWBm1oJR6bPRN/s400/present2.0.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7o-gU1AHzh5yWuND6Y1YATRKUTGw29OLyWu-hKPOoiCrzRiDQwvk3m66sY5YmrjY4Z4vkrcyZJBMi_NbR0vd6l4oWK5gHEkHA8D1UVsze8eOCWS1W_czZWkaLAGVg8bhhSPZ935yWHxj8/s1600/present2.5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1208" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7o-gU1AHzh5yWuND6Y1YATRKUTGw29OLyWu-hKPOoiCrzRiDQwvk3m66sY5YmrjY4Z4vkrcyZJBMi_NbR0vd6l4oWK5gHEkHA8D1UVsze8eOCWS1W_czZWkaLAGVg8bhhSPZ935yWHxj8/s400/present2.5.JPG" width="301" /></a></div>
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Not the memory card, but rather the thing next to it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTBeWYRBzyZhjiwzgzxMp1Fkd6ulEw5lrKlEBrM80WV90h2S4XiY42buEETVpuIt9-7OV8-zXntnJVMKa5SGpxFt9MjYa3zbpFrEVXv6HJShHFxH-3pwWDnm2YdUbeaNqUQa9fj1OV5TVV/s1600/present3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTBeWYRBzyZhjiwzgzxMp1Fkd6ulEw5lrKlEBrM80WV90h2S4XiY42buEETVpuIt9-7OV8-zXntnJVMKa5SGpxFt9MjYa3zbpFrEVXv6HJShHFxH-3pwWDnm2YdUbeaNqUQa9fj1OV5TVV/s400/present3.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Oooo! Gift wrapped in silk and everything.<br />
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My benefactor was directly overhead (cackling with glee, I'm sure).<br />
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Hello you! </div>
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This is <i>Parasteatoda tepidariorum</i>, also known as the common house spider. You may recognize it as one of the spiders responsible for the cobwebs in our homes; in fact, it belongs to a family called the "cobweb weavers." This family, whose scientific name is Theridiidae (don't ask me how to pronounce that!), also contains the dreaded black widow spider. However, most species in the family -- including <i>P. tepidariorum</i> -- are harmless.</div>
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After feeding on its prey, the common house spider carefully cuts the corpse from its cobweb and lets it fall to the ground...or to wherever it ends up landing (a bedside table, for instance). Makes a good way to let everyone know you're around, eh? Oh, y' know, just little ol' me, hanging out up here, watching your comings and goings...reading over your shoulder before you turn out the light...hey, you know that fly that was banging around in the lampshade while we were trying to read <u>Wicked</u> the other night? Well, there's a <i>reason </i>you didn't hear it <i>last </i>night. Yeah. Not that you noticed. (*drops fly*) Well now you will! Heh heh heh...</div>
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II</a></h2>
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Speaking of cobweb weavers...and black widows in particular...have you met Beatrice?</div>
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Beatrice is my pet black widow spider. About two and a half years ago, she showed up in a box of organic California red grapes at the food co-op where I used to work. I had lifted the box of grapes off the pallet, opened it up, and pulled out a few bags of the grapes to inspect them -- only then to notice, left behind in the box where the bags had been, an eight-legged creature, <i>jet black and shiny...</i>not at all like the spiders I'm used to seeing around here. My heart jumped when I realized what it was. Most people would have killed the spider immediately, and I considered this...but decided to save her instead. Here she is shortly after I brought her home, in July 2015:</div>
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As you can see, she's not looking particularly plump...the journey from California via refrigerated truck left her hungry. Fortunately, she accepted a fly I placed in her container for food. I have mostly fed her flies ever since.</div>
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People tend to react with surprise and sometimes fear when I tell them about Beatrice. This is understandable; I was afraid of her at first too. I still occasionally dream about her escaping from her terrarium. And if she were a restless, wandering sort, this could indeed be a legitimate concern. But instead of prowling her new, secure, homemade container-dwelling, searching every nook and cranny for an escape route, Beatrice settled right in. When I first opened the tiny door I built into the terrarium in order to introduce prey items, she did not race over and try to squeeze out. She stayed right where she was -- hanging upside down and motionless from her newly spun cobweb.</div>
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Female black widows, I would soon discover, are very sedentary. Beatrice has spent nearly every hour of the last two and a half years in that same posture and position -- calm, still, and ready, suspended from her web. Of course she leaps into action when a live fly is buzzing around in her container. But otherwise, she has a serene and meditative energy about her. Honestly, in her long stretches of peaceful silence, she gives the impression of one who is...well...how else to say it? <i>Communing with the divine.</i></div>
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Some other fun facts about Beatrice: She drinks water (which I provide by wetting my hand and letting a few drops fall onto the screen top of her terrarium); she won't eat Asian lady beetles (believe me, I've tried!); she has molted twice (I think) since we became acquainted. And yes, she has the infamous red hourglass! In fact, only females have it, and it's on the <i>underside</i> of the abdomen -- not the upperside, which is where I had expected it to be when I saw Beatrice for the first time.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdkpcVYDUZjzBc9rtrUW9ZH1BeWbQCOhkddxhnJZdEmZ24XO0z5Rpqewc67e6-Qzu5IEQx4p7TpTnabgJ6NMMqUumOYM7Y3n-Uhe9OOYoF3Boijmq2Vx5LO1XKmKfsK10d_cMpDrupmFuU/s1600/100_7865.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1434" data-original-width="1600" height="357" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdkpcVYDUZjzBc9rtrUW9ZH1BeWbQCOhkddxhnJZdEmZ24XO0z5Rpqewc67e6-Qzu5IEQx4p7TpTnabgJ6NMMqUumOYM7Y3n-Uhe9OOYoF3Boijmq2Vx5LO1XKmKfsK10d_cMpDrupmFuU/s400/100_7865.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Just beneath the hourglass are her spinnerets, from which she pulls her silk.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKiziNHZ-azrX38S0BH7XJXIft6sVyi35eGkKIOYlBHfoZ-uuvFiPq1mt4CAQrgqQzqJ6-lYpqPX409Qwg4js_LSpMXVnCy_-ouW-mGIKx9HLbzJymDheev15DYamNJWyPdH4Li6a0MRE7/s1600/100_7851+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1112" data-original-width="1304" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKiziNHZ-azrX38S0BH7XJXIft6sVyi35eGkKIOYlBHfoZ-uuvFiPq1mt4CAQrgqQzqJ6-lYpqPX409Qwg4js_LSpMXVnCy_-ouW-mGIKx9HLbzJymDheev15DYamNJWyPdH4Li6a0MRE7/s320/100_7851+copy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here's to you, Beatrice; may you spin your way through many a coming day in comfort and peace...and continue to inspire admiration and respect as an ambassador for the eight-leggeds.</div>
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Once, in an upstairs hallway of the house I share with two human housemates, I spotted a very small and very charismatic creature perched on the wall. I was delighted to see it -- an animal of this kind had not appeared in my life for quite some time -- and I showed it off to my housemate Steffen. Roughly a year would pass before I would see one again. This time it was on the wall in my bedroom, just the other day.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY1uGZXbn0kQOJC5my46at8wsB1yq6LWH8t05s3ayQKZzvISrY9QQ5qszn3bchu45AMaaaVNzLLQcVlnFoeCTydhz6TKplL3YxV3niOyo-efS0PFHfoXyyfr90JPN1i93FaS9mpNlLnB6s/s1600/P1110742.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="993" data-original-width="1600" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY1uGZXbn0kQOJC5my46at8wsB1yq6LWH8t05s3ayQKZzvISrY9QQ5qszn3bchu45AMaaaVNzLLQcVlnFoeCTydhz6TKplL3YxV3niOyo-efS0PFHfoXyyfr90JPN1i93FaS9mpNlLnB6s/s640/P1110742.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is a pseudoscorpion (the first part is pronounced "soo-doh"). It belongs in the arachnid clan with spiders -- notice its eight legs -- and, though it resembles a true scorpion (which is also an arachnid), it's something different. Perhaps the most obvious difference is that it lacks that jointed, stinger-barbed tail. As a result, it's harmless to people. Pseudoscorpions are predators that feed on other arthropods and, as such, they deserve a hearty welcome when they choose to settle in our homes.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtgwLEeo8LxH_Ah-AShZxRXQvfsq21_wQWjW4RiXJK6XAEg0XftGMpTvd_K6AQspB2yeZ_YB-8phQCYto7jH37CW93oVg_ms-jMAA2JILltoMLfVKppGZLRXseU8XxZtwoSsb9Yfbkk7Ko/s1600/DSCF5209.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1434" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtgwLEeo8LxH_Ah-AShZxRXQvfsq21_wQWjW4RiXJK6XAEg0XftGMpTvd_K6AQspB2yeZ_YB-8phQCYto7jH37CW93oVg_ms-jMAA2JILltoMLfVKppGZLRXseU8XxZtwoSsb9Yfbkk7Ko/s320/DSCF5209.jpg" width="286" /></a></div>
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The pincers -- borne on leglike appendages called <i>pedipalps</i> -- are useful for capturing prey. I find them fascinating for a couple reasons. First of all, they typically contain poison glands (although again, these animals are too small to harm people). Second, the pincers are highly dexterous. When confined briefly to a glass vial, this pseudoscorpion used its pincers to feel its away around and to search for an escape route.</div>
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As I photographed the pseudoscorpion, I discovered that its pincers are equipped with a number of tiny hairs. Here, I've adjusted the brightness of the image so the hairs are more visible.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPtEd9ZN1-Zk2PuoLLnFtSmOMyDXYC4Brma-edToA3tzx-2wLtNSrOXx5dkczBHyvU5BhDrGcoFBKJxN17X-TsPabeYgEAI8M5WuY6VwLGPeqouqFAJqtozzXXbUiQBSRh3snI2V_Bi_7g/s1600/DSCF5217+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="669" data-original-width="1203" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPtEd9ZN1-Zk2PuoLLnFtSmOMyDXYC4Brma-edToA3tzx-2wLtNSrOXx5dkczBHyvU5BhDrGcoFBKJxN17X-TsPabeYgEAI8M5WuY6VwLGPeqouqFAJqtozzXXbUiQBSRh3snI2V_Bi_7g/s400/DSCF5217+copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I imagine these hairs (technically <i>setae</i>) could serve to enhance the sensitivity of the pincers, but I have no evidence in support of that idea.<br />
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The pseudoscorpion also took time during its photo shoot to groom its pincers -- a slow and careful ritual. I felt lucky to capture this behavior on camera.<br />
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Being small doesn't mean you can't have a big personality.<br />
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I played around with the lighting, too.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1l3Tu7s8oS-0WcTibvEA0eceLF8o4hkYC0ixHtTVmB3lM5EenLK6yNVzZHFuMx5tjPGTyJDfCpcHD4po7Qey72_dAYke95sfTk4QZn5CBUJW4zO6oUiGPQWuXaPDJFl9cxmYPEgBswpvp/s1600/DSCF5262.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="975" data-original-width="1600" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1l3Tu7s8oS-0WcTibvEA0eceLF8o4hkYC0ixHtTVmB3lM5EenLK6yNVzZHFuMx5tjPGTyJDfCpcHD4po7Qey72_dAYke95sfTk4QZn5CBUJW4zO6oUiGPQWuXaPDJFl9cxmYPEgBswpvp/s640/DSCF5262.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<table align="center" style="width: 300px;">
<tbody>
<tr><td align="left">And thou art lovely, my friend,<br />
and ferocious --<br />
A little terror who fits<br />
on a pencil eraser.<br />
How many people know of you?<br />
I, a bully, with those looming<br />
fleshy fingers,<br />
nudging you here and there<br />
for the photo shoot --<br />
I do not know the fear of you.<br />
We are giants, we humans,<br />
behemoths of the vast house-realm,<br />
oblivious to the inky-black crevasses<br />
of wooden trim and wallboard<br />
in which you lurk.<br />
A merry terror you are to me,<br />
your pinchers waving.<br />
Prowl the shadows kindly,<br />
with a buoyant heart,<br />
if that be in your nature;<br />
for you also<br />
are a being of light.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<br />
---<br />
<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="4">IV</a></h2>
<br />
Have you ever seen a spider in the snow?<br />
<br />
Walking through the woods on a mild winter day -- sun shining, temperature right around freezing or just above -- I sometimes come across small spiders making their way optimistically, if sluggishly, across expanses of snow. I've never understood why they're there, but it's a delight to come upon them. For a time, in the winter of 2016, I would even go hunting for snow spiders. (They stand out on snow, but many individuals may also be found on dead stems of herbs or twigs of low shrubs and saplings, where they often rest motionless and bud-like.) Scooped gently from snow, stem, or twig and placed under my homemade portable "bug scope," these hardy little beasts made coy and likable subjects.<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/YKW/RZQ/YKWRZQ1RMQFRIQJRP0TQZQYQ70CQJKAR7QFRRQVRG0JQRQ3R7QYRQQK090FQHQUR80CQJKJQN03RIQYR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="553" data-original-width="466" height="400" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/YKW/RZQ/YKWRZQ1RMQFRIQJRP0TQZQYQ70CQJKAR7QFRRQVRG0JQRQ3R7QYRQQK090FQHQUR80CQJKJQN03RIQYR.jpg" width="335" /></a></div>
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<br />
I found the patterns on their abdomens to be intricate...<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/VRY/KVR/VRYKVRLQYRXQJRIQCR90K0U03RIQ00U0Z0W0Q0U0CR0Q00W0OR60CQ80OQFKCRIQQ0509R3KFQ3KOQFK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="509" data-original-width="496" height="320" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/VRY/KVR/VRYKVRLQYRXQJRIQCR90K0U03RIQ00U0Z0W0Q0U0CR0Q00W0OR60CQ80OQFKCRIQQ0509R3KFQ3KOQFK.jpg" width="311" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
...and downright lovely:<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/C04/QD0/C04QD02QRS1QHSBQLSNQ1KZKVKZK2KQKNKLK10KKUK6QT0LKVKZK2KKKA0LK9KGKRS1QBKXK1KMKLSVQ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="558" data-original-width="436" height="640" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/C04/QD0/C04QD02QRS1QHSBQLSNQ1KZKVKZK2KQKNKLK10KKUK6QT0LKVKZK2KKKA0LK9KGKRS1QBKXK1KMKLSVQ.jpg" width="499" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/ULF/L9L/ULFL9LHZCLIZDLXZLHSZSHGRZHKR2L0RRH6RFZ0RJZRZULXZKH0ZAL6RSHXZULFL2LXRJZ7R9L0RYZ7R.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="543" data-original-width="554" height="625" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/ULF/L9L/ULFL9LHZCLIZDLXZLHSZSHGRZHKR2L0RRH6RFZ0RJZRZULXZKH0ZAL6RSHXZULFL2LXRJZ7R9L0RYZ7R.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Those spiders were all orbweavers in the genus <i>Eustala</i>. Here's one that belongs to the family Dictynidae, the so-called mesh web weavers:<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/M0C/Q40/M0CQ40FQU0Q090S0MQS060H0N0H0E0TRJKJQ40URFKWRI09RRQFR903Q80UR0QORKQZ0U0JRKQCRSQYR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="560" height="342" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/M0C/Q40/M0CQ40FQU0Q090S0MQS060H0N0H0E0TRJKJQ40URFKWRI09RRQFR903Q80UR0QORKQZ0U0JRKQCRSQYR.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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And, perhaps my favorite, a long-jawed orbweaver, genus <i>Tetragnatha</i>:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/NK5/KWK/NK5KWK0KDK0KUK0KNKQKTKGKCK4KVK7KHS7KY01QO0PQPKMKF0WQHS9QF01QJ0XK6K0KDK8KCKXKDK9Q.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="394" height="640" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/NK5/KWK/NK5KWK0KDK0KUK0KNKQKTKGKCK4KVK7KHS7KY01QO0PQPKMKF0WQHS9QF01QJ0XK6K0KDK8KCKXKDK9Q.jpg" width="449" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/EKI/KEK/EKIKEKHKBKHK2KHKWKKKV0HK6KLK9KHKAKAQBKBQC05QT0GQNK6QO0KK102Q9KKKPKKKTK7KAK5KTK5K.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="496" height="640" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/EKI/KEK/EKIKEKHKBKHK2KHKWKKKV0HK6KLK9KHKAKAQBKBQC05QT0GQNK6QO0KK102Q9KKKPKKKTK7KAK5KTK5K.jpg" width="564" /></a></div>
<br />
I'll close this quite-long post with a couple highlights from one of my all-time favorite arachnid photo shoots. The runway star is a crab spider in the genus <i>Tmarus</i>, which I found hunting cryptically on a twig. These pictures are from spring rather than winter, but no matter.<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/4LU/ZML/4LUZML8ZLL4ZZL5Z8H4ZSLOHXHTHWH3HUHRRXLAZ7LYHML1ZPH9Z8L1Z7L1ZNHNZNHNZNHLREHYHXLAZ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="493" data-original-width="560" height="561" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/4LU/ZML/4LUZML8ZLL4ZZL5Z8H4ZSLOHXHTHWH3HUHRRXLAZ7LYHML1ZPH9Z8L1Z7L1ZNHNZNHNZNHLREHYHXLAZ.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/AQF/0WQ/AQF0WQ105QB08QV0EQ9KGKDKXKHSNQ1K4KZSWQV08QJ0IKEKZKEK4QT04QD06QC0AQC06QHS2QNKEQO0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="545" data-original-width="527" height="640" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/AQF/0WQ/AQF0WQ105QB08QV0EQ9KGKDKXKHSNQ1K4KZSWQV08QJ0IKEKZKEK4QT04QD06QC0AQC06QHS2QNKEQO0.jpg" width="617" /></a></div>
<br />
Toodle-oo!<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br /></div>
John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-87302153126483535172018-02-04T22:01:00.000-08:002018-02-22T10:40:31.475-08:00Snag life, part 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgTVNRaBxbrlWGkQbAw5UG5j74INXg48MHs1Yc0PqMH3KZXAPXlirf9It5esgrVlFqVw7_f6vfKCHUcZKs_b361Asxo2bC3_EO7jBxWX4Tnn_EqZq6EboPgPsBP31mxpx_JCD1zatRAlwI/s1600/leaf.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="727" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgTVNRaBxbrlWGkQbAw5UG5j74INXg48MHs1Yc0PqMH3KZXAPXlirf9It5esgrVlFqVw7_f6vfKCHUcZKs_b361Asxo2bC3_EO7jBxWX4Tnn_EqZq6EboPgPsBP31mxpx_JCD1zatRAlwI/s400/leaf.JPG" width="362" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
It was clear<br />
that part of my journey was happening there,<br />
then, in that place.<br />
<br />
Not far down the trail,<br />
I had paused,<br />
lifting my arms and facing the sun,<br />
which was screaming its brilliance down<br />
onto the naked golden woods and fields.<br />
Screaming, in a quiet and calm sort of way.<br />
<br />
I had taken off my eyeglasses.<br />
With my eyeglasses off the world sometimes feels different;<br />
this day especially.<br />
<br />
Through these motions perhaps I had invited<br />
the feelings that followed,<br />
which I take to have been granted by the place.<br />
Joy, at the discovery of a giant red oak leaf,<br />
senesced, poised gently on the trail,<br />
flooding my eyes in its color --<br />
the kindest mahogany brown.<br />
Intimidation and fear, as the sun dipped behind thick looming pines<br />
and I strolled into their deep shadow-world.<br />
Utter entrancement, at the sight of the bank of trees<br />
at field's edge, backlit,<br />
sun suffusing through in sort-of sunbeams,<br />
steamy gray, soft, and radiant, the air still<br />
and yet ashimmer with their energy.<br />
<br />
On such days, sometimes, when I turn<br />
so that the sun is at my back,<br />
and I look up to see it booming proudly<br />
on tree and sky above,<br />
I am filled with the deep-colored sky,<br />
which then I know arches far back,<br />
to ancestor time;<br />
I am filled with the unspeakable mystery<br />
and energy and love of the world;<br />
There it is, it's all there,<br />
unfairly, intolerably.<br />
All I can do is close my eyes,<br />
sigh,<br />
listen to the stirrings of my heart,<br />
and feel filled<br />
and yet jolted --<br />
jolted,<br />
in a gentle sort of way,<br />
back to the knowledge that this indescribable thing<br />
is here.<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
We don't always feel such things when we are out and about; it is special when we do -- special, and fleeting. I had come to this parcel of the Upper Iowa River Wildlife Management Area hoping to do at least a <i>little</i> bug hunting, relationship hunting, pattern hunting, whatever you call it when you are maintaining watchfulness for patterns and recent happenings in a wild place. So, the glasses went back on, and the entrancing vista gave way to an ever more ordinary and immediate world of tree trunks, leaf litter, bare twigs and branches, as I left the open field and walked into the adjacent woods.<br />
<br />
Immediately my eyes locked on a particular tree.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFC5lHnlrlSGQC3jUAH1STpsm6eR7_fQ5DnYX3D6xkaMGiwS9kgO0fgp6t66kEXonzJhvZP_WXuZ-lTu1HGfeHWW5PlRn7f-5m69ALP7c5Ehg-4rCxn7RmI7pEGZvKOjOl3gHHYVuknDEI/s1600/funf-1.0.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFC5lHnlrlSGQC3jUAH1STpsm6eR7_fQ5DnYX3D6xkaMGiwS9kgO0fgp6t66kEXonzJhvZP_WXuZ-lTu1HGfeHWW5PlRn7f-5m69ALP7c5Ehg-4rCxn7RmI7pEGZvKOjOl3gHHYVuknDEI/s640/funf-1.0.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdqSmggc1WFtJKutboy2YiAODCjTrU3GS4xAqsPGBwQx_4Ta9b9yT3eHd6cMuIm-g66uLQ_gptSTJT8kxbYHc9fls7WZt75JQba7Y-3rpSbmTBWw3VinVmLLiw96ROu8S2djjuD0VNpdSt/s1600/funf1.16.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdqSmggc1WFtJKutboy2YiAODCjTrU3GS4xAqsPGBwQx_4Ta9b9yT3eHd6cMuIm-g66uLQ_gptSTJT8kxbYHc9fls7WZt75JQba7Y-3rpSbmTBWw3VinVmLLiw96ROu8S2djjuD0VNpdSt/s640/funf1.16.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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This <i>snag</i> (a handy word for a dead tree) had clearly undergone some heavy excavation by large woodpeckers.<br />
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<br />
Judging by the bark, which matched that of neighbor trees that were still alive (and thus more readily identifiable), the snag was a "popple" (<i>Populus</i> sp.) -- apparently quaking aspen, <i>Populus tremuloides</i>. Examining the bole, I noticed a curl of bark and wood that seemed especially dark underneath.<br />
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Well, doesn't look to be much of anything yet, while still in shadow like this. Thank goodness for flash bulbs on cameras.<br />
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<br />
A bunch of exoskeletons!<br />
<br />
Here, I've pulled up the curl to expose them.<br />
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Let's zoom in.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMTBrXNfOghOGa1jzjUnqjD0NE7JJiXYe7lfEu6G8yiW742r5gdz-s6vRo0NzxJBthWIPGTFlDQ4br-JLHWiJBxfSyUwebgIl22vOOFafPkQB1rbQ9Y4gs9DERbshnRRSqtwf9GOV4ZfzW/s1600/funf1.70.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1462" data-original-width="1111" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMTBrXNfOghOGa1jzjUnqjD0NE7JJiXYe7lfEu6G8yiW742r5gdz-s6vRo0NzxJBthWIPGTFlDQ4br-JLHWiJBxfSyUwebgIl22vOOFafPkQB1rbQ9Y4gs9DERbshnRRSqtwf9GOV4ZfzW/s640/funf1.70.JPG" width="484" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiywUiNWyETtROcCvSEgZ_NUbPdQTtwjYyYdz76If6bEjVyLumsHF8MlATFcvfSrZeEsrPN0lwCLyL1qZn0hKlMMwj97rgBaF_pvxScpDg4iTfUxfm9PqoAsu851YBRdnp23VnaDbTDIinx/s1600/funf1.80.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="368" data-original-width="349" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiywUiNWyETtROcCvSEgZ_NUbPdQTtwjYyYdz76If6bEjVyLumsHF8MlATFcvfSrZeEsrPN0lwCLyL1qZn0hKlMMwj97rgBaF_pvxScpDg4iTfUxfm9PqoAsu851YBRdnp23VnaDbTDIinx/s400/funf1.80.JPG" width="378" /></a></div>
<br />
This is the shed skin of a firefly larva! <br />
<br />
A <i>larva</i>, you ask? Well, fireflies (family Lampyridae) are technically <i>beetles...</i>and, like all beetles, they pass through an immature larval stage, then a pupa stage, and then finally adulthood. (The winged adult is our beloved flying "lightning bug.") If you have a hard time believing that fireflies are beetles, consider this: When you watch a firefly taking off, have you ever noticed it almost seems to have <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1411638" target="_blank">two pairs of wings</a>? First it lifts up one pair of thick, darkened "wings," which it holds upright in a "V." Next it unfolds a thinner, transparent "second pair" of wings that begin to vibrate and then pull the animal aloft. As it turns out, the first structure -- those thick, darkened "wings" held in a V -- aren't really wings at all. They are a sort of storage cover for the <i>real </i>wings, the fragile, transparent membranes underneath that actually do the flying. All beetles have such protective wing sheaths. In fact, beetles are named for them: <i>Coleoptera</i>, the taxonomic order to which all beetles belong, comes from the Greek for "sheath" (koleos) and "wings" (ptera). So if humans are the "two-leggeds," then fireflies and other beetles are the "sheath-wingeds"...the ones with the sheathed wings.<br />
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Firefly larvae, by the way, are seriously cool-looking. They might be the spawn of an <i>Ankylosaurus</i> dinosaur and one of the man-eating sand worms in <i>Tremors</i>...only quite a bit smaller. Here's one I came across in April 2012, prowling a sap flow on the trunk of a sugar maple:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx8HWyGgDhP1ZqWjXONFT89XaHdBsbhRQrZEU1NyfddvqxoEPXJNSnhSH2wEra6SrA0Ms-GEFuCAVb_AlXpOWb8iQV5MCG79Ngpe_lDCVWYN3C3SnPhd_hAsc4GvYJtZFmcbihmrQwA9Da/s1600/fire1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="612" data-original-width="1000" height="390" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx8HWyGgDhP1ZqWjXONFT89XaHdBsbhRQrZEU1NyfddvqxoEPXJNSnhSH2wEra6SrA0Ms-GEFuCAVb_AlXpOWb8iQV5MCG79Ngpe_lDCVWYN3C3SnPhd_hAsc4GvYJtZFmcbihmrQwA9Da/s640/fire1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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They have this funky extensible structure on their front end:<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1352585/bgimage" target="_blank">Follow this link</a> for another shot of a larva sticking its "neck" out. Also on Bugguide you can see one of these larvae <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/701946/bgimage" target="_blank">eating a snail</a> (they're predatory). And just like adults, <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1352445" target="_blank">they glow</a>.<br />
<br />
But getting back to the exoskeletons on the snag...evidently, in this case, a whole cohort of firefly larvae had crawled up the snag, settled under the bark curl, shed their skins to become pupae, and then (after a while) emerged as adults, sometime during a previous growing season. <br />
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OK, so a few firefly larvae might end up on a tree trunk here and there, every once in a while...but not on <i>purpose</i>, right?<br />
<br />
You might be surprised! Here's researcher Lynn Faust on a firefly species in eastern Tennessee:<br />
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<div style="text-align: left;">
"...[L]ast instar larvae of [the cold-hardy firefly species] <i>Pyractomena borealis</i> become active in February when snow and below-freezing
temperatures are common. They gather in the furrows on the warmer, sunlit south
sides of still-leafless preferred trees, the majority of which are...hickories ...and tulip poplars...." <sup>1</sup></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
Yep, you heard right:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>"[Day-active] <i>P. borealis</i> larvae climb from cold
winter ground up preferred trees seeking sunny, protected pupation sites. Frequent
moving is common in Jan-Feb as larvae select ideal arboreal sites." </b><sup>2</sup></div>
<br />
So Lynn watched as these firefly larvae climbed tree trunks during the winter, snuggled into the warmest, coziest nooks and crannies in the bark, and then pupated there! Which is surprising enough...but wait till you hear what she witnessed several weeks later, when the adults started to emerge (<i>eclose</i>) from their pupae:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>
Males<i> </i>began to eclose late in March, 9 ± 7 days...<b>earlier than the
females</b>... There was no flashing from these first-eclosing, day-active
searching males for over a week. These males, [day-active] at this stage, methodically
searched the trunks for larval or pupal females by day and rested motionless in
furrows at night... Every pupa, furrow or scale 3 m up the trunk was
investigated. Upon locating a female, the male clasped her with his legs, pressed his pronotum to hers and became motionless. Pupae, when approached by a potential
guard male, arched back and forward rapidly (12 times in 2 min in one instance)
before being clasped and subdued by the male. A few male pupae (2 in 2011) were
guarded, but only briefly.... All pupae guarded for over a day eclosed
as females (2008-11). <b>Competing males piled on top, grappled with, and often
displaced the guard male, which would then be forced to search for another female
pupa.</b> Males also used their pronotum to pry under or push away other males.
This competition intensified as females approached eclosion, with frequent power
reversals occurring among the increasing numbers of males. <b>Female pupae 24 h
from eclosing had 3-7 males competing for them</b>... <sup>3</sup></blockquote>
<br />
Well, I suppose you can guess what the males are hoping to do once the females emerge...<br />
and here's Lynn, confirming your suspicions:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>
Typically, a newly-eclosed (still
white and soft) female...would be mobbed by her guard
and competing males. She would
rapidly leave her pupation site,
seeking cover under a bark scale
or crevice, with 1-3 males riding
her back. Copulation commenced
before her elytra had hardened and
darkened and no flash dialogue was
involved... <sup>4</sup></blockquote>
<br />
Evidently this doesn't harm the female. Indeed, it wouldn't make sense if it did: presumably, females must remain healthy and vigorous after mating in order to successfully find an egg-laying site and deposit their eggs. That the females emerge unscathed from these mating brawls is also suggested by both sexes' promiscuity:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>
Once copulation began, competing males left. If a new male arrived, brief
skirmishes occurred as he tried to take the female, but did not succeed. <b>Both males
and females re-mated readily</b>.... After copulating, the males glowed continuously. <sup>5</sup></blockquote>
<br />
---<br />
<br />
Of course, all of this is not to say that it's already time to watch for the "magic lights" flashing in shadowy corners of your yard. Those exoskeletons I found are old: the adults emerged in a previous growing season...last year, or perhaps the year before. And we have no way of knowing if their particular tree trunk drama happened in February, April, June, or even later. Different firefly species are active at different times of year, and there's no guarantee these belong to the same species as the ones Lynn observed. Really, we can't say anything other than that a bunch of firefly larvae once pupated on the snag and emerged as adults. All we have is a few wispy leftovers to hint at what might have unfolded beneath that sheltered curl of bark in a season long since past.<br />
<br />
It's also worth mentioning that not all firefly species climb tree trunks to pupate. In her new book <u>Fireflies, Glow-worms, and Lightning Bugs</u>, Lynn details some other common firefly pupation habits:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>
The last instar larvae seek out the perfect place to pupate according to their species needs. For the <i>Photinus</i>, pink and intermittently glowing as a pupa, it is a chamber several inches underground or underneath a spongy mass of moss. For the <i>Photuris</i>, glowing and cream colored, it can be an igloo-shaped cell of dirt on the soil's surface or under a log or board, often in the company of three to five other pupating <i>Photuris</i>. (...) It is still unclear if, in addition to the <i>Ellychnia</i>, other species might possibly overwinter not as larvae but as pupae or even as newly emerged yet dormant adults. <sup>6</sup></blockquote>
<br />
---<br />
<br />
You might recall that its cache of firefly exoskeletons wasn't the first thing I noticed about the dead tree I came upon in the woods. In Snag life, part 2, we'll focus on the snag's woodpecker damage -- digging in (quite literally) to the question of what those hungry birds were after.<br />
<br />
Coming soon: Part 2<br />
<br />
---<br />
<br />
NOTES:<br />
1. Page 48 in Faust, L. 2012. Fireflies in the snow: observations on two early-season arboreal fireflies <i>Ellychnia corrusca</i> and <i>Pyractomena borealis</i>. Lampyrid 2012 (2): 48-71.<br />
2. Ibid., p. 48. Emphasis added.<br />
3. Ibid., p. 60. Emphasis added.<br />
4. Ibid., p. 62<br />
5. Ibid., p. 63. Emphasis added. The fireflies referred to in this quote were collected as pupae, enclosed in containers within their habitat, and monitored as they emerged.<br />
6. Page 47 in Faust, L. 2017. Fireflies, glow-worms, and lightning bugs: identification and natural history of the fireflies of the eastern and central United States and Canada. University of Georgia Press: Athens.<br />
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-25556109996114163172018-01-25T13:49:00.003-08:002018-01-26T10:39:28.720-08:00When Prairies Provide<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<i>Insect life graces planted prairies, even at this time of year -- hiding in stems (and other places), waiting for warmth to return.</i><br />
<br />
My friend and collaborator MJ Hatfield recently issued an invitation to Iowa naturalist-types: Would you be interested in investigating the insect life in a planted prairie near you?<br />
<br />
Part of my insect natural history work in the last couple of years has involved hunting for bugs in prairie -- but I usually search remnant prairies, those few
rocky slopes and soggy fields from which native prairie plants were never evicted. I am fascinated by the question of what little-known insects might persist in these remnants, living out their lives in age-old relationship with their now-scarce host plants.<br />
<br />
It's been an interesting path of discovery, and I intend to continue it...AND MJ's invitation was also just too good for me to turn down. Her insect natural history studies have for years included both remnant and planted (or <i>reconstructed</i>) prairies, mostly in Iowa and Minnesota -- and her work in reconstructions has shown clearly that these places do harbor native insects, including specialists that require native prairie plants for their survival. Research led by Kirk Larsen at Luther College is another local example of work that's shedding light on the insect life in northeastern Iowa's planted prairies.<br />
<br />
At the same time, there's a lot still to learn. While reconstructed prairies are becoming more and more common -- consider Decorah's own Anderson Prairie and Community Prairie -- our understanding of their insect fauna, generally speaking, is quite poor. In most cases we know very little about how this whole prairie reconstruction thing is working out for native insects. So it's a good thing that MJ's invitation garnered at least ten "yes!" responses. As each of us respondees hunts bugs in a planted prairie near us -- which we will be doing without pay, on our own time, mind you -- we'll share what we find with one another and on <a href="http://bugguide.net/" target="_blank">Bugguide</a>, and hopefully in other outlets too. In this post, I'll be sharing my findings from a recent walk at Decorah's Community Prairie.<br />
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---<br />
<br />
It was a dreary afternoon for a walk through the <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/decorahprairiebfgarden/home" target="_blank">Community Prairie</a>. A thaw was on, and moisture hung thickly in the still air -- but it was a cold sort of wet, clammy and dank. I dressed in many layers.<br />
<br />
First item of business: checking the dead stems (or <i>culms</i>) of big bluestem for a little yellow grub. Last winter I found these "grubs" -- the larvae of a delightful, iridescent green, long-legged fly -- waiting out the cold in tunnels they'd drilled (with their mouthparts!) through big bluestem culms in a nearby remnant prairie. They belong to a genus known scientifically as <i>Thrypticus</i>. With various other larvae of moths, beetles, flies, sawflies, and more, <i>Thrypticus</i> in turn belongs to the informal and surprisingly diverse clan of <i>stem borers </i>-- animals that feed on the whitish, spongy pith inside stems of herbaceous plants.<br />
<br />
As it happened, some dead culms of big bluestem stood at attention right beside the wooden Community Prairie entrance sign. The first one I cut open had nothing inside. But the second culm had been tunnelled...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfc5L_OndB66wEk5rP1l7QOPntLD_wHhGXAXrozuswb8DdxkVOQ_CV0Au0mlvkwkjv4n4_mvffrv3JE-bSUjVIk4G_D4JY-ruswWUmvnjs7IF3uxVF_Fe-uXrOBy9cYc7KPUJ9i1jzSANR/s1600/cpw1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="726" data-original-width="1600" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfc5L_OndB66wEk5rP1l7QOPntLD_wHhGXAXrozuswb8DdxkVOQ_CV0Au0mlvkwkjv4n4_mvffrv3JE-bSUjVIk4G_D4JY-ruswWUmvnjs7IF3uxVF_Fe-uXrOBy9cYc7KPUJ9i1jzSANR/s640/cpw1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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...and it was a good thing I cut it off at ground level, because there, inside the very base of the culm, dwelled my quarry. Here is is, posed on the tip of my index finger.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY0LGoHMBmSspsXUXIsgfLEZz-btM_rN6IlILyiNw-K-DGJzCRrK5G52hjzsZGiXLFli7nH9jybuy4DssGv4_4vWSThQpXDXq1W8SxdngyXTF_UVjuWZ4g1VSizGWp-ZgBFObPEAIHDph0/s1600/cpw4.0.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="931" data-original-width="1149" height="518" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY0LGoHMBmSspsXUXIsgfLEZz-btM_rN6IlILyiNw-K-DGJzCRrK5G52hjzsZGiXLFli7nH9jybuy4DssGv4_4vWSThQpXDXq1W8SxdngyXTF_UVjuWZ4g1VSizGWp-ZgBFObPEAIHDph0/s640/cpw4.0.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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In the spring this animal pupates inside the dead grass culm and soon thereafter emerges as an adult fly:<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/9QF/0UQ/9QF0UQB05QY0UQ307KCK5KAKMKLSIKDK4KVKMKPKZKPKZK6KRK10QK6KLK2K6QV08QUKLKB05QWKRKWK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="453" height="640" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/9QF/0UQ/9QF0UQB05QY0UQ307KCK5KAKMKLSIKDK4KVKMKPKZKPKZK6KRK10QK6KLK2K6QV08QUKLKB05QWKRKWK.jpg" width="516" /></a></div>
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Isn't she lovely? In spring 2017 this female came out of one of those big bluestem culms I gathered from the remnant prairie. Here is her pupal skin, still lodged in the culm whence she emerged:<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/7L4/ZRL/7L4ZRLUZIL5ZRLGZSLOH8HVHHLUZ7L1ZMLYHGLUZ4L2ZSL2ZKLOHMH1H8HLR4LWZMLFHMLYHGL6ZHLDH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="452" height="640" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/7L4/ZRL/7L4ZRLUZIL5ZRLGZSLOH8HVHHLUZ7L1ZMLYHGLUZ4L2ZSL2ZKLOHMH1H8HLR4LWZMLFHMLYHGL6ZHLDH.jpg" width="515" /></a></div>
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Check out those spines!<br />
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You can see more images <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1383798" target="_blank">here</a> (scroll down for clickable thumbnails). That Bugguide post grabbed the attention of some researchers at NYU who are studying eye development in flies -- and now Fleur, Claude, and I, along with Keith, an amateur entomologist in Illinois, have teamed up in an effort to better understand where to find these flies as larvae. (My <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1465262" target="_blank">recent finding</a> of <i>Thrypticus</i> in culms of Virginia wild rye, <i>Elymus virginicus</i>, at Chattahoochie Park in Decorah adds to the local list of known host plants.)<br />
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Speaking of which...since Canada wild rye, <i>Elymus canadensis</i>, grows in abundance at the Community Prairie, I thought I'd check that for <i>Thrypticus</i>, too. In this grass I didn't find any little yellow grubs, sadly...but I did find a little whitish one:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPFmROTRygzTeWp1c1tlvNou2spGw8xamTgXIQcYte3_XqO_Wr15sWn12KAHvJVALMPsawQKvbBnm9RmgM1Zs_anBQUxaRNgaHNDY6SNSqjiu1tEw24V5pn0KjcIXpFOVkMGwnluHwcw56/s1600/cpw4.1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="883" data-original-width="1600" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPFmROTRygzTeWp1c1tlvNou2spGw8xamTgXIQcYte3_XqO_Wr15sWn12KAHvJVALMPsawQKvbBnm9RmgM1Zs_anBQUxaRNgaHNDY6SNSqjiu1tEw24V5pn0KjcIXpFOVkMGwnluHwcw56/s400/cpw4.1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY6nzRB-JG1VweWnQ59FXCyWXyOHCFmXem5V0jVfShmozPCHXN1EZpTcorbb09NbDxkaGXrGZ56yy1LBwgaYXJCjbwfY4sJVndMpeIeUqE42o60AjLPhalaEN3y-a_izvo1NTTyn5EiMPj/s1600/cpw4.2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="867" data-original-width="829" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY6nzRB-JG1VweWnQ59FXCyWXyOHCFmXem5V0jVfShmozPCHXN1EZpTcorbb09NbDxkaGXrGZ56yy1LBwgaYXJCjbwfY4sJVndMpeIeUqE42o60AjLPhalaEN3y-a_izvo1NTTyn5EiMPj/s320/cpw4.2.JPG" width="305" /></a></div>
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This looks somewhat similar to a <i>Thrypticus</i> larva, but there are noticeable differences -- especially the mouthparts. You can clearly see this creature's two opposing mandibles in the second photo above; <i>Thrypticus</i> <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1465273" target="_blank">wouldn't have this</a>. Our little whitish grub is probably a larval beetle or wasp -- and I'm leaning toward wasp, since I can't see any legs (Bugguide <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/59" target="_blank">notes</a> that "most [larvae of wasps and their relatives] are grub-like, lacking legs"). Its exact identity will likely remain a mystery until someone is able to rear it to adulthood.<br />
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Walking further into the prairie, I came upon seedheads of ironweed, <i>Vernonia fasciculata</i>. This tall composite adds rich hues of golden brown to the winter prairiescape.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp-giZK-B4D1J0fJZyhHijzuD0rnn7rF2eoPD_aLmnsLwAHDRXJ7NPP-jrSL6RVr9dDfM4PrwDMaoCT2FE7oFy3xoFq34YQm3Wp1w8Epm6RzwsvnGyoXi2ZUZz_IIiseHc550kZwIGbH2c/s1600/cpw5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp-giZK-B4D1J0fJZyhHijzuD0rnn7rF2eoPD_aLmnsLwAHDRXJ7NPP-jrSL6RVr9dDfM4PrwDMaoCT2FE7oFy3xoFq34YQm3Wp1w8Epm6RzwsvnGyoXi2ZUZz_IIiseHc550kZwIGbH2c/s640/cpw5.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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One ironweed stem hosted a short row of closely-spaced holes:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggx41u2KefANohz8Hd8fvf2y5Uv9V31ZNW52qAYdt8P-0qtlEzYyljZk6VV0WBfruxuojDsHLoNz0ABXGYhInOkA6-mBTbIKXAMowd4bvfItPNtJMIj5AnUVyH5OB4OpNaQgoHjIvhrY3Y/s1600/cpw7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="785" data-original-width="1286" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggx41u2KefANohz8Hd8fvf2y5Uv9V31ZNW52qAYdt8P-0qtlEzYyljZk6VV0WBfruxuojDsHLoNz0ABXGYhInOkA6-mBTbIKXAMowd4bvfItPNtJMIj5AnUVyH5OB4OpNaQgoHjIvhrY3Y/s640/cpw7.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is where a female insect, probably a <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/158769" target="_blank">tree cricket</a>, inserted her ovipositor in order to lay a series of eggs in the stem. When you break open an affected stem in such a place, you can see the eggs inside:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Il-E8gQqSJGNnwUEhsHS2OPbyKfyxxm5Qu9blgcyzLrtiIq_kCMK3QnenIxcKs6k-5S3PRtTHgQVfVS600yObn5Rj3rW687-glPkr70B_rQIuVu8Fud3U9RC5fcopqIJI65xt-TM7bFn/s1600/cpw8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="965" data-original-width="1273" height="484" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Il-E8gQqSJGNnwUEhsHS2OPbyKfyxxm5Qu9blgcyzLrtiIq_kCMK3QnenIxcKs6k-5S3PRtTHgQVfVS600yObn5Rj3rW687-glPkr70B_rQIuVu8Fud3U9RC5fcopqIJI65xt-TM7bFn/s640/cpw8.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/195398" target="_blank">Follow this link</a> for a rare and intimate portrait of a hatchling tree cricket in the process of emerging from its egg.<br />
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Next stop: Cup-plant! Also known as <i>Silphium perfoliatum</i>. There are patches of this plant scattered throughout the Community Prairie, their pale dead stems all splayed out:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk8_PbGIXkgSey5SnJV39NFwLGTnkzdDuw17hDWDP3WZbo6rTrqo-NAIYXYmnxBKrb6UPMAhLe2r6mjSRmtabhZ4-kOuOvu1Q_47Vzr5cJnPReXnTG-e1zpSBd4P_odWfxCW3GKHDEagIr/s1600/cpw9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk8_PbGIXkgSey5SnJV39NFwLGTnkzdDuw17hDWDP3WZbo6rTrqo-NAIYXYmnxBKrb6UPMAhLe2r6mjSRmtabhZ4-kOuOvu1Q_47Vzr5cJnPReXnTG-e1zpSBd4P_odWfxCW3GKHDEagIr/s400/cpw9.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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And guess what? My eye caught a sign on this plant that you readers may recognize:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1zVMhCVc98GlduTCdhjd2E_llDRbmQ8yQy3sx6aohEU37KVFSCy6qsSSh4FYiHIyaZOmTRVMumqoQTVF2rG1gUOteh-vMMvXnfV7-rZBUh_y_kSzkxB_vz51aHN7p6l1fezMmDdozh-dL/s1600/cpw11.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="446" data-original-width="1600" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1zVMhCVc98GlduTCdhjd2E_llDRbmQ8yQy3sx6aohEU37KVFSCy6qsSSh4FYiHIyaZOmTRVMumqoQTVF2rG1gUOteh-vMMvXnfV7-rZBUh_y_kSzkxB_vz51aHN7p6l1fezMmDdozh-dL/s640/cpw11.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi53fj9SHjlJcuL21d8PVo3fLuobRUnYM3GxiidX2NS6UTY9heIcHQskORJQUqEvJ09XhRLUPJJecYKzqclh31NM1zeTeE9ryh1RPqvn2m2XPBigD30hLSXMgdtLH_0t3fzpca7OKHEohIJ/s1600/cpw12.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="911" data-original-width="1494" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi53fj9SHjlJcuL21d8PVo3fLuobRUnYM3GxiidX2NS6UTY9heIcHQskORJQUqEvJ09XhRLUPJJecYKzqclh31NM1zeTeE9ryh1RPqvn2m2XPBigD30hLSXMgdtLH_0t3fzpca7OKHEohIJ/s400/cpw12.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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That's right...here, as in "<a href="https://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/01/a-smart-bunch-part-1.html" target="_blank">A smart bunch, part 1</a>" and <a href="https://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/01/a-smart-bunch-part-2.html" target="_blank">part 2</a>, an enterprising bird has been hunting and pecking (so to speak) for something overwintering inside the stem. Not sure what that "something" might be, I started breaking open stems to investigate. Right away, in another cup-plant stem other than the one shown above, I found an insect you may find familiar:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMjBZE4wmxlSMcU3mcEcUdF4gF0x6ozPqs6K3WFL6_fqX6jAZtuvbN1JchNzeeMWqr-d6mhiMRl2asPYVzJ9pd5VwpAvG33QTmy4apvW__QDbJ0ew54dJI9wauhGRVMQN_kd95j-_V-8KT/s1600/cpw13.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="716" data-original-width="1600" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMjBZE4wmxlSMcU3mcEcUdF4gF0x6ozPqs6K3WFL6_fqX6jAZtuvbN1JchNzeeMWqr-d6mhiMRl2asPYVzJ9pd5VwpAvG33QTmy4apvW__QDbJ0ew54dJI9wauhGRVMQN_kd95j-_V-8KT/s640/cpw13.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Little chambers in the pith, each with a grub inside...just as in wild lettuce:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWOvGS0fmMD8YVijI8qwiyNGI9tdpHbJojaZEMSKGZKZOuNc0orcYTfMJZ3tz4cXCll0ureJPs7K86cbOaoy4En7Z9BVpcal_fUQZ1c1bGz8Q5_3z8kCpd20qYEu9RPh0wZjdrctS2Cnjd/s1600/lettuce9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="670" data-original-width="566" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWOvGS0fmMD8YVijI8qwiyNGI9tdpHbJojaZEMSKGZKZOuNc0orcYTfMJZ3tz4cXCll0ureJPs7K86cbOaoy4En7Z9BVpcal_fUQZ1c1bGz8Q5_3z8kCpd20qYEu9RPh0wZjdrctS2Cnjd/s320/lettuce9.jpg" width="270" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Aulacidea</i> sp. gall wasp in stem of <i>Lactuca biennis</i>, wild lettuce</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The chamber-grubs in wild lettuce and in cup-plant are closely related. They are both gall wasps -- just different species, each one adapted to life in its particular host plant. Actually, I hear there are <i>multiple species</i> of gall wasp known from plants in the genus <i>Silphium</i>; here's <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1329824" target="_blank">MJ's Bugguide series</a> showing adults she reared from this host.<br />
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Interestingly, although the wild lettuce gall wasps are clearly targeted by hungry birds, I didn't see any evidence that the cup-plant gall wasps at the Community Prairie are being similarly targeted. Instead, the birds seem to be looking for another quarry. That stem with the bird-holes I showed you a minute ago? It had a total of 14 such holes in it, spread out over quite a distance. The most thorough pecking seemed to be concentrated on a portion of stem that had been hollowed out by some kind of stem borer. Here, you can see the bird-holes, opening into the tunnel made by the mystery borer.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDPd2ToDE3P0tpuUXIInxxsl90TqVV_rZnP1U0XxSSPcAvPj6Cq16va7DNWVRe1cqGiHAaZmARk8eN2VIk6SAdtYz9pQJVYcWrcVMs9nzlBp6ht-24qbEzaU9dkR59j-sJD4KapalKIlIf/s1600/cpw14.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="447" data-original-width="1600" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDPd2ToDE3P0tpuUXIInxxsl90TqVV_rZnP1U0XxSSPcAvPj6Cq16va7DNWVRe1cqGiHAaZmARk8eN2VIk6SAdtYz9pQJVYcWrcVMs9nzlBp6ht-24qbEzaU9dkR59j-sJD4KapalKIlIf/s640/cpw14.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I should pause to say that not all hollow or hollow-ish cup-plant stems have been hollowed out by an insect. Cup-plant's winter stems seem to be variably solid by nature: some are filled with pith, others are mostly hollow...and this can vary even in different parts of a single stem. Here's a cross-section of a mostly hollow stem that's just naturally that way:<br />
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Distinguishing a "natural" hollow from a borer tunnel isn't always easy. In this case, I found that the borer tunnels could be identified by discoloration and especially by the presence of crumbly poop (<i>frass</i>):<br />
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Now cup-plant stems are pretty thick, and this tunnel is wide and crammed with LOTS of frass -- so I deduced that the borer must be pretty large (for a stem-dwelling insect). Of course, in this case the bird had found its prey, extricated it from its tunnel, and eaten it, so I was out of luck...but not for long. A neighboring stem was similarly tunneled, and the birds hadn't gotten to it yet -- and I was fortunate enough to open it up next, and find this inside:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia4NLeigFMFPo5TZ4nioqL7wGL857uSfPu0XVe3gm2Fe1waPaAX3n-DLFfESqwR24ysEoImDyr2nPqF41MluUx0Ok288xWoJ2Crza1evf3hLTgEFjFMIFXWwJov_cZSQDviltMX5G3d87f/s1600/cpw17.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1087" data-original-width="1600" height="434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia4NLeigFMFPo5TZ4nioqL7wGL857uSfPu0XVe3gm2Fe1waPaAX3n-DLFfESqwR24ysEoImDyr2nPqF41MluUx0Ok288xWoJ2Crza1evf3hLTgEFjFMIFXWwJov_cZSQDviltMX5G3d87f/s640/cpw17.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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How's THAT for a tasty bird-morsel?<br />
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Judging by the slightly swollen thorax, well-defined head, and lack of obvious prolegs, I think this is a beetle larva, but I'm not sure. Its color seems "off" to me, suspicious, like the larva might be unwell...so I'm not particularly optimistic about getting an adult. But I did reintroduce it to a cup plant stem and bring it home for rearing. We'll see what happens.<br />
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After finding this, I spent a while hunting other nearby patches of cup-plant for bird-holes and borer tunnels. In the end I found only three or four stems that had clearly been pecked up by birds, and I wasn't able to find any more intact stems with borer larvae still inside. So it's not clear to me how widespread the bird sign or the insect prey may be. However, you can bet I'll be watching the next patch of cup-plant I come across -- and I hope you do too!<br />
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On my way back to the car, as darkness arrived, I scored one last insect sighting:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPXh6zddkKugzetw-OKxv8U6f8ogjZpRHX7tAPA1D8lEZkpTRzlt73W6Puulouu7uLa9jJRtWWZ3tZVdXZS2MsBkqikQxn13iv6BVI3RhXVYKhQJN4HIOptnoBz19qTLzP3xQKBwhs-mAJ/s1600/cpw20.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPXh6zddkKugzetw-OKxv8U6f8ogjZpRHX7tAPA1D8lEZkpTRzlt73W6Puulouu7uLa9jJRtWWZ3tZVdXZS2MsBkqikQxn13iv6BVI3RhXVYKhQJN4HIOptnoBz19qTLzP3xQKBwhs-mAJ/s640/cpw20.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is a stem gall on indigo bush (<i>Amorpha fruticosa</i>), a native shrub. In past visits to the Community Prairie, I'd looked for this gall to no avail -- so I was surprised and pleased to find it this time. If you cut it open you would find a sizable larva overwintering inside -- a moth larva, specifically, belonging to the genus <i>Walshia</i>. You can also find <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/488380" target="_blank">similar galls</a> on indigo bush's congener, leadplant (<i>Amorpha canescens</i>). As with most other larval insects found in stems at this time of year, <i>Walshia</i> caterpillars will pupate sometime in the spring and emerge as adults shortly thereafter.<br />
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Incidentally, the foliage of indigo bush can be easily confused with that of black locust, a thorny tree that has been attempting to establish itself in the Community Prairie. Volunteers have spent a lot of time removing locust from this site -- and they are to be commended for recognizing indigo bush as a different (and less aggressive) plant and letting it be.<br />
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All for now!<br />
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-47852762748363081742018-01-22T15:48:00.002-08:002018-01-22T16:17:59.733-08:00Nooks and crannies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Meadow Farm, an off-the-grid neo-homestead and locally beloved place, has long hosted a wild bird feeding station in one form or another. When two housemates and I lived there for several months in 2016, I enjoyed building a few feeders, filling them with black oil sunflower seed, and watching the ensuing "bird TV." At that time, a curious quirk in some of the birds' feeding habits caught my attention. I recently returned to find out if it was still "a thing."<br />
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Much of the bird activity there centers around a small tree just outside the bank of dining room windows. It's a convenient place to hang feeders and a comfortable staging area for hungry feeder visitors. Here's the tree just the other day, with my friend Klaus, who's currently living at the farm:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdjYmcoim8etD8fG2XvMbau5N888DorBIO_JspOeqV91wSglKrm2em3ZLaOg5n_L4HhJ55N5bzP32OXNO4YtU2_t_OWuCWdOQNx5RpL4zwA_kHTYwIb8p-BwB2YBZ_FIyVx_7rgZB6Mach/s1600/nanny1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1147" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdjYmcoim8etD8fG2XvMbau5N888DorBIO_JspOeqV91wSglKrm2em3ZLaOg5n_L4HhJ55N5bzP32OXNO4YtU2_t_OWuCWdOQNx5RpL4zwA_kHTYwIb8p-BwB2YBZ_FIyVx_7rgZB6Mach/s400/nanny1.JPG" width="286" /></a></div>
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Before heading outside to take the photos in this post, Klaus and I sat inside and watched the feeders for a little while. Sure enough, we saw a downy woodpecker and a white-breasted nuthatch doing just what I remembered these species doing at the feeders in 2016. They had a special relationship with the feeder tree -- one that enabled them easily and fully to exploit the sunflower seed resource being offered to them.</div>
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If you look closely at the trunk of the tree, you'll see a little hollow in the bark:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihRVPcykLQQUpk_0DVT5dTv4PybR5o4hcna_QMqIHQJfOPIOEV9WeL4zCshPY-1chpNrR07b6q8ThuojLcWWY-IahHeSvB3ylUjAMWBEW6ZtaAuy18X3bcO9pHl59SuBBogTFN0EFO_WYy/s1600/nanny2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="734" data-original-width="1000" height="468" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihRVPcykLQQUpk_0DVT5dTv4PybR5o4hcna_QMqIHQJfOPIOEV9WeL4zCshPY-1chpNrR07b6q8ThuojLcWWY-IahHeSvB3ylUjAMWBEW6ZtaAuy18X3bcO9pHl59SuBBogTFN0EFO_WYy/s640/nanny2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Now look closer:</div>
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Yep, that's the hull of a sunflower seed. You might also notice little whitish bits of debris -- crumbs of sunflower seed left behind from many a meal eaten here.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXTgpBYFZwHyaeqTrLKbJtyxIXGEcb8Cz_BqRhIrI5veke-8OExRPf8u2WMZGN4638xtbAj-9w-B0Tfi_fB9u4KbtBrmxggPAfWCFdps1Ag3k_F1NS4-ufeDLPOslQKbYSLnWFo_oPeJ60/s1600/nanny4.0.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1235" data-original-width="1106" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXTgpBYFZwHyaeqTrLKbJtyxIXGEcb8Cz_BqRhIrI5veke-8OExRPf8u2WMZGN4638xtbAj-9w-B0Tfi_fB9u4KbtBrmxggPAfWCFdps1Ag3k_F1NS4-ufeDLPOslQKbYSLnWFo_oPeJ60/s400/nanny4.0.JPG" width="357" /></a></div>
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As Klaus and I watched from inside, a downy woodpecker collected a seed from one of the feeders, flew to the trunk of the tree, and promptly scooted over to this little hollow. It deposited the seed here, then proceeded to whack away at it with its bill until the seed hull cracked open, revealing the good stuff within. The downy gobbled up the tasty "meat" and then returned to the feeder for another seed.</div>
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We saw this woodpecker make similar use of another little divet in the bark, a little higher on the tree, above where the trunk forks. At this place on the tree, our clever woodpecker actually had its choice of three or four such spots:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwq1HaD93q4_dKSj_njA4JA330hEiqTGcJ19cXkNvBJ6fF96kTBftnvkfFWsVBBHWKchica3L-0_Y-9xjJ_8ukkbRiu9yb8swboNXXrLDrH2anQZTCDMKAlpeXKzceMFo1Ipb9GqfhA0eJ/s1600/nanny5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1176" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwq1HaD93q4_dKSj_njA4JA330hEiqTGcJ19cXkNvBJ6fF96kTBftnvkfFWsVBBHWKchica3L-0_Y-9xjJ_8ukkbRiu9yb8swboNXXrLDrH2anQZTCDMKAlpeXKzceMFo1Ipb9GqfhA0eJ/s400/nanny5.JPG" width="293" /></a></div>
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Here's a closeup of one of them, littered with seed crumbs and pieces of hull:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPedOLSAx6-_OWtqxDkt9WbdU6TWdZCwmw1K8THwP36ibyGFY26D8cEovfH1eIDotoJ2ROYHNh_lwkAXYR45p4BHNeEhDUlEQkcUpEm3lwsOBfrvDm66XsrZMcIgczabjPpv-JpOvtwDOA/s1600/nanny6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="515" data-original-width="409" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPedOLSAx6-_OWtqxDkt9WbdU6TWdZCwmw1K8THwP36ibyGFY26D8cEovfH1eIDotoJ2ROYHNh_lwkAXYR45p4BHNeEhDUlEQkcUpEm3lwsOBfrvDm66XsrZMcIgczabjPpv-JpOvtwDOA/s400/nanny6.JPG" width="317" /></a></div>
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And another, this one with a leftover hull that someone pecked open just enough to extract the meat:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSu1j6aspRurP591ELLW0DJAMlAbNLosbcGfJDHWzVZZ4WUF4rD9ueVdXtE8T8R7xEHAVyv_AWXpFK40lILbebdt0zb5OI0aXnq7-G7umB4x7-5LDFvHPYm6Ul7ZfoMoJbQJe_2GniXTyp/s1600/nanny7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="649" data-original-width="590" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSu1j6aspRurP591ELLW0DJAMlAbNLosbcGfJDHWzVZZ4WUF4rD9ueVdXtE8T8R7xEHAVyv_AWXpFK40lILbebdt0zb5OI0aXnq7-G7umB4x7-5LDFvHPYm6Ul7ZfoMoJbQJe_2GniXTyp/s400/nanny7.JPG" width="362" /></a></div>
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On a different limb of the tree, a white-breasted nuthatch found a similar hollow.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjx_McrRpMTN9CP32J417zC9UXaoXBeVpLD_1GuMPVJtrGGh0ZgLKFnlhVqRfr4RFknzABRgPJ2h7Mx9Tp8fGm1y0T4aifdyuOV851GSGWKfgkGTgpHIQAiStONFj8AM9EATfDn7S-mKMF/s1600/nanny4.2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1052" data-original-width="899" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjx_McrRpMTN9CP32J417zC9UXaoXBeVpLD_1GuMPVJtrGGh0ZgLKFnlhVqRfr4RFknzABRgPJ2h7Mx9Tp8fGm1y0T4aifdyuOV851GSGWKfgkGTgpHIQAiStONFj8AM9EATfDn7S-mKMF/s320/nanny4.2.JPG" width="273" /></a></div>
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Because of the shape of this cavity, and the way the bird placed the seed in it, the bird was able to open the seed by pecking at it from two different sides, positioning itself first to the right of the cavity, then to the left, and so on, <i>wham</i>-<i>wham</i>-<i>wham</i>ming until the task was accomplished.</div>
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We human observers were impressed. It was fun then to go out to the tree and inspect these nooks, noticing the details that indicated how well they were used. You know the look and feel of a well-used piece of wood? Polished by the touch and grip of thousands of hands?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDdzNYerMrMyAxdyaaXEvxuWjArB6iCDEE6lC4wO8gFJ5LQ7C45M3cdv5i5BtWMeU-1vN_YdfywBUmvGc2enjP016z_39o-Ud-e8Xkl78mcbPPjgbu6VKYVNmdbhplpgkehQc4Lf0s59bj/s1600/nanny8-posts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="509" data-original-width="1200" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDdzNYerMrMyAxdyaaXEvxuWjArB6iCDEE6lC4wO8gFJ5LQ7C45M3cdv5i5BtWMeU-1vN_YdfywBUmvGc2enjP016z_39o-Ud-e8Xkl78mcbPPjgbu6VKYVNmdbhplpgkehQc4Lf0s59bj/s640/nanny8-posts.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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(The less used post, at right, just isn't the same). Well, the birds' bark-hollows had a similar look. It seemed to me they'd been used this way for a long time.</div>
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Birds employ different strategies for opening seeds. Grosbeaks and finches, with their thick, powerful beaks, simply crush the hulls -- as we do with our molars, when feasting on those salty jumbo sunflower seeds. (If you closely watch a cardinal, for instance, you can even see it manipulate the crushed seed with its tongue to separate the meat from the hull.) Chickadees and titmice place a seed snugly between their feet on a perch, and hammer at it there until the hull splits open. But woodpeckers and nuthatches aren't equipped for either of these methods. As we saw at Meadow Farm, they do something else -- and certainly it doesn't <i>always</i> involve a favorite divet used over and over. Presumably, just about any crevice will do. But next time you're watching these birds at your feeder, try to see where they go with their seeds. I'd be interested to know if your downies and nuthatches, too, have particular places they like to eat!</div>
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And if they do -- if this is a widespread practice -- we might be tempted to label it <i>tool use</i>. Since <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2017/10/becoming-jane-goodall/" target="_blank">Jane Goodall's 1960 discovery</a> that chimpanzees "fish" for termites with twigs and blades of grass, biologists have known that humans aren't the only tool users. Many animals are now <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982210011607" target="_blank">recognized</a> for their ability to manipulate objects from their environment to gather food or accomplish other tasks. May we call a bark-hollow such a tool? It's not really something you can grasp, or wield, or move. But there's something special about it. The birds have a relationship with it. They go to it. They use it repeatedly. They appear to have shaped it -- by smoothing it, and perhaps, over time, by widening or deepening it. And without them, it would not be used in the way it is.</div>
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To me, there is a sense that, in a small way, the downies and nuthatches have sanctified that Meadow Farm feeder tree with their habits. They have made it unique, and that uniqueness is relational: defined in and by community, where, we might argue, sacredness always dwells. Life is always inspiring us and challenging us with its depth and breadth of relationship. It touches everything -- and everything is changed forever as a result.</div>
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I pray that we may feel with our hearts these changes, big and small -- and know them as signposts of the Spirit in things.</div>
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NOTES</div>
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Credit is due to friends Lee and Lindy for introducing to me the phrase "bird TV."</div>
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-89174104976664258712018-01-16T19:44:00.001-08:002018-01-16T20:28:40.586-08:00A smart bunch, part 2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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A thought inspired by the loveliness of this blue-sky January day: <br />
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What I lack is a context for beauty.<br />
What does it mean, that the world is this beautiful?<br />
What do we do, given that the world is this beautiful?<br />
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In <a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/01/a-smart-bunch-part-1.html" target="_blank">part 1</a> of this post, we considered a few examples of bird sign on dead wood and on stems of two herbaceous plants, figwort and jewelweed. Here we'll see examples from the stems of two other herbs.<br />
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<b>COW PARSNIP</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgussJwIe-PZ3aJC9RFkuBmluy5p4ytCVg6gvxZG0nzc5COCnXIwP8rYYAbQ2UDACiXBIKlt2cmF5ED3PqqQcwmSOsyLZjcLBOow1DZsn9dqKqKjmDlng8YnFeG3tXZhmSFwYh055ftAmzm/s1600/cow2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1288" data-original-width="1600" height="514" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgussJwIe-PZ3aJC9RFkuBmluy5p4ytCVg6gvxZG0nzc5COCnXIwP8rYYAbQ2UDACiXBIKlt2cmF5ED3PqqQcwmSOsyLZjcLBOow1DZsn9dqKqKjmDlng8YnFeG3tXZhmSFwYh055ftAmzm/s640/cow2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<i><a href="http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/woodland/plants/cow_parsnip.html" target="_blank">Heracleum maximum</a> </i>is a sort of coarser, jollier, more badass cousin to the ubiquitous wild parsnip (<span class="st"><i>Pastinaca sativa</i>). Cow parsnip and wild parsnip are easier to tell apart during the growing season, but there are obvious differences between their dead stems in the dormant season too. Above, you can see a dead stem of wild parsnip on the left, and one of cow parsnip on the right. Below, fruits: wild parsnip at left, cow parsnip at right.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg91aTCrY7dO8e7rC9FJ97dF3ZNbK0uzZh2jBQVono9Kz-DQoIbrGjpOF9KRB2NX2C1afvuBaJ9n2BRypuLf4v7i4z-Tno-iVr7ZehPPunAtezKhHOOu-sJEs8VZdtXa0EOSKaYeYJqAqro/s1600/cow3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="961" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg91aTCrY7dO8e7rC9FJ97dF3ZNbK0uzZh2jBQVono9Kz-DQoIbrGjpOF9KRB2NX2C1afvuBaJ9n2BRypuLf4v7i4z-Tno-iVr7ZehPPunAtezKhHOOu-sJEs8VZdtXa0EOSKaYeYJqAqro/s400/cow3.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span class="st">While visiting some friends early this past summer, I noticed that stems of the cow parsnip growing in their yard had been attacked heavily by some critter trying to get in. It wasn't until many months and two seasons later that I finally returned to Lindy and Lee's in order to document this damage. The plant stems, long since dead and dried, had broken off and fallen to the ground, and some were buried by snow, but I gathered what I could. The attackers' work was still evident.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDYslixGx31dLzCSZUtraAju428XEYv8OukgvcuZAtpGjQOYzGTOJcn52Owpd2c8R0pFgCbujj0z67rqTgcSrsx1RT1nfRncp2oYF1H5BTGRHe5sjwa7Ifk4yT9NQDcCQOWu-a3aCSy-yS/s1600/cow4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1458" data-original-width="1600" height="582" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDYslixGx31dLzCSZUtraAju428XEYv8OukgvcuZAtpGjQOYzGTOJcn52Owpd2c8R0pFgCbujj0z67rqTgcSrsx1RT1nfRncp2oYF1H5BTGRHe5sjwa7Ifk4yT9NQDcCQOWu-a3aCSy-yS/s640/cow4.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7VVhPPijehINjxkm7Q36OVBv7ooUUXjjmeufdmYguxN3dDfvdT9RLh1XnatQIlgz2WSg4lb3JLGq_jqO2GEEAeUSiUEa219SGpilWiXVcGorzHjSULu19au4tLD5kUypFg7OTY1JJ1He1/s1600/cow5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1222" data-original-width="1600" height="488" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7VVhPPijehINjxkm7Q36OVBv7ooUUXjjmeufdmYguxN3dDfvdT9RLh1XnatQIlgz2WSg4lb3JLGq_jqO2GEEAeUSiUEa219SGpilWiXVcGorzHjSULu19au4tLD5kUypFg7OTY1JJ1He1/s640/cow5.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="st">Now, as with jewelweed, the scientist in me insists on mentioning that I have not directly observed the animal responsible for this. However, based mostly on the form and appearance of the holes, I assert here that a bird is responsible. Someday one of us will catch the culprit in the act!</span><br />
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<span class="st">Unlike jewelweed and figwort, the target insect does not overwinter in the stem. Rather, its stem-dwelling stage -- the larva and pupa -- occurs in the late spring and early summer, when cow parsnip is maturing (and right around the time I first saw damage to these stems at Lindy and Lee's). This insect is the parsnip webworm, <i>Depressaria radiella</i>. Though named, and thus clearly known, for its habit of <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/746795/bgimage" target="_blank">spinning webs in the flower heads</a> of cow parsnip and wild parsnip, some larvae of the parsnip webworm enter their host plant's <i>stems</i>, which, for cow parsnip at least, are naturally hollow. (Presumably the larvae cut holes in the stems in order to get in and out; this could account for a few of the stem holes evident in the first stem-damage photo above.) Furthermore, some of the larvae will actually <i>pupate </i>inside the stems -- and I suspect it's this pupal stage that the predators were after in the plants at Lindy and Lee's.</span><br />
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<span class="st">Before pupating inside its dark and hollow stem-home, a parsnip webworm larva apparently first etches an oval scrape on the inside of the stem. The larva either eats this excavated material, converting it to frass (caterpillar poop), or simply shaves it off the stem, resulting in an accumulation of sawdust. Either way, it collects the granular byproduct and incorporates it into a domelike cocoon, which it spins over itself just prior to pupating. The results (but with the culprits long gone) are shown below.</span><br />
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<span class="st">First, a piece of stem interior on which four larvae pupated. The most obvious oval scraped areas are on the far left and far right; two more are clustered at center. I've removed the domed cocoons that were spun over three of the scraped areas; the fourth cocoon (at far left) has been flipped over to reveal the scraping underneath it.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghgSKOs0OfunnL4CBPwwcBb7Qnjjy38LN3NmkBMyCqKjtOBpImh5f-ownP6jcXW6lp55_QDdJ5rQuku6wU8z4v-4yCnpHEGEB-luGN40hHzVRS8wLuA6fnn8E10NSJ_-X78f3KBKI_ln_H/s1600/cow10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="427" data-original-width="1600" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghgSKOs0OfunnL4CBPwwcBb7Qnjjy38LN3NmkBMyCqKjtOBpImh5f-ownP6jcXW6lp55_QDdJ5rQuku6wU8z4v-4yCnpHEGEB-luGN40hHzVRS8wLuA6fnn8E10NSJ_-X78f3KBKI_ln_H/s640/cow10.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh24wBqDbcLt9mgJ-NKMD3vKth4q1YDO1rzqk8QntgbUgNrGZUBJPDKdFcZqlxdwxztVaHS6XbdWkoxRN0w43rBJC5chuW2Dcdc6QGPp9_OQKOtvYS0IGqc0rsNtaP4TzHvrqZPepQUSquW/s1600/cow8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1156" data-original-width="1535" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh24wBqDbcLt9mgJ-NKMD3vKth4q1YDO1rzqk8QntgbUgNrGZUBJPDKdFcZqlxdwxztVaHS6XbdWkoxRN0w43rBJC5chuW2Dcdc6QGPp9_OQKOtvYS0IGqc0rsNtaP4TzHvrqZPepQUSquW/s640/cow8.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Two cocoons, one in the top stem, one in the bottom stem (and part of a third cocoon, I think, at upper right). Larvae scraped the stem underneath these cocoons, processed it into "sawdust" or frass, and finally incorporated it into the cocoons.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitPi88N6yaozkLEbq2ddONx1RBivSOl5EW90jrt1UiMJ0K4AjnXx4gxP4mt80ohmhGvyCdCBQOy9vho_f4K9OeFuMAOzbc7aR_gIVN6OR4N8MYO03xc8dbSUPK6d9RzPQATR_gm-y2qvBe/s1600/cow9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="851" data-original-width="1465" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitPi88N6yaozkLEbq2ddONx1RBivSOl5EW90jrt1UiMJ0K4AjnXx4gxP4mt80ohmhGvyCdCBQOy9vho_f4K9OeFuMAOzbc7aR_gIVN6OR4N8MYO03xc8dbSUPK6d9RzPQATR_gm-y2qvBe/s640/cow9.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Cocoon</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS5Woiiye2P1kMQnUi6Gdbgo784FfKUNKysmB7hE_gbUG46rgtGVQVF6n9f6L27xLI9UNEoH8vBQzmqFk3MGPBIkKDS0fSuvnn_FUdOO5qd4LkH3Qdw37SxXRbXZ2akgpcoZpWYJcqhOVw/s1600/cow11.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="477" data-original-width="650" height="468" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS5Woiiye2P1kMQnUi6Gdbgo784FfKUNKysmB7hE_gbUG46rgtGVQVF6n9f6L27xLI9UNEoH8vBQzmqFk3MGPBIkKDS0fSuvnn_FUdOO5qd4LkH3Qdw37SxXRbXZ2akgpcoZpWYJcqhOVw/s640/cow11.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Wall of cocoon flipped over, revealing shed skins of larva and pupa, indicating successful emergence of an adult moth</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM3wydF2D7NuSb55L-I8VTsYitS1z3aTmbVsnoLo8adkg0LQW-P00U5B_EIW_HxhvhIts6lA4m4g89iayVgp-RjwGvf7_qwvFel9v1RcrR5ZWgk3CXcofGf1VqxFP9q0ntjt7bhQ9M7Zai/s1600/cow12.5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="900" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM3wydF2D7NuSb55L-I8VTsYitS1z3aTmbVsnoLo8adkg0LQW-P00U5B_EIW_HxhvhIts6lA4m4g89iayVgp-RjwGvf7_qwvFel9v1RcrR5ZWgk3CXcofGf1VqxFP9q0ntjt7bhQ9M7Zai/s640/cow12.5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Detail from inside the above cocoon, taken with my "bug scope." After spinning the cocoon (top), the larva sheds its skin (right) to become a pupa. When the adult eventually emerges from the pupa, it leaves the pupal skin behind (left). (And by "skin," I mean <i>exoskeleton</i>.)</div>
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Here's a sequence showing another cocoon, its leftover (spent) contents, and the adult that emerged from it:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC8lFLc9OWEaoSlMY_9xSGYbFbw4ksiYI8mK-eih7ljRARexf5yRqO7BhNE4LAR-_lkc235Zr0ZnZOCVfKSJiReoXpVjbV4k4qb1OnmEuvufefz4OsfxlehNuyMk6fxw-Cu2aEW8q4Fwqk/s1600/cow15.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="994" data-original-width="1600" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC8lFLc9OWEaoSlMY_9xSGYbFbw4ksiYI8mK-eih7ljRARexf5yRqO7BhNE4LAR-_lkc235Zr0ZnZOCVfKSJiReoXpVjbV4k4qb1OnmEuvufefz4OsfxlehNuyMk6fxw-Cu2aEW8q4Fwqk/s640/cow15.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgygZS2xVBcUrvyc2aldvEd6mMNmnECdpRanlid0WYsDW10SjQy2B6-nr8k0gF2cLhQ50R_OJtut-IqZ09tgiLidH84atdbvsnILGmNK3D3pXyN6JW7dpajPeNbFuAOMLFYEX0Qc-FePIMB/s1600/cow16.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="971" data-original-width="1600" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgygZS2xVBcUrvyc2aldvEd6mMNmnECdpRanlid0WYsDW10SjQy2B6-nr8k0gF2cLhQ50R_OJtut-IqZ09tgiLidH84atdbvsnILGmNK3D3pXyN6JW7dpajPeNbFuAOMLFYEX0Qc-FePIMB/s640/cow16.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMWdXJQreg9XG2RgsuLjEELmLdL52j2BAM02I3SSxsqR5qzprA3cZq9YXAbh3EKQJvDX7wsKSxgyqlXbmfuzjpqhJxXl4Dfw6CYIXh-zMW5e6IESszxAISeTNrPeDrDHKHxqxlryj3xwO5/s1600/cow17.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="453" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMWdXJQreg9XG2RgsuLjEELmLdL52j2BAM02I3SSxsqR5qzprA3cZq9YXAbh3EKQJvDX7wsKSxgyqlXbmfuzjpqhJxXl4Dfw6CYIXh-zMW5e6IESszxAISeTNrPeDrDHKHxqxlryj3xwO5/s400/cow17.JPG" width="322" /></a></div>
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The adult's wings are improperly formed in this case.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiguF3mQh5SL_ppksSAz4cVVmuPUrhiZlTRbdkhhriiOTCFmdoJ8vWB1A3NfNkY6YGBlNAJ9PFtGTNZdvgA_MPKae_ZtdH64emv7xzRfVQJ9TuMhVdCwDRyuD605Dm6qOM8VDRsszqbv5Zp/s1600/cow19.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="522" data-original-width="560" height="372" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiguF3mQh5SL_ppksSAz4cVVmuPUrhiZlTRbdkhhriiOTCFmdoJ8vWB1A3NfNkY6YGBlNAJ9PFtGTNZdvgA_MPKae_ZtdH64emv7xzRfVQJ9TuMhVdCwDRyuD605Dm6qOM8VDRsszqbv5Zp/s400/cow19.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span class="st">If this moth looks vaguely familiar, it may be because you've seen it in your house! I saw one in my bathroom last week. And, under her image of a <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1338922/bgimage" target="_blank">nice adult specimen on Bugguide</a>, my friend and collaborator MJ Hatfield writes, "</span><span class="st">Yes, there is a lot of parsnip in the neighborhood. But still, why do more of these show up in the house than any other moth? Perhaps under bark of firewood? I don't know." Neither do I, MJ!</span><br />
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<span class="st"><b>WILD LETTUCE</b></span><br />
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<span class="st">One winter day, while visiting friends John and Jana, I heard someone a-tap-tap-tapping away in the yard over by the guest cabin. It was unquestionably a woodpecker, but the tapping had a sort of treble quality to it that suggested the bird was tapping on something other than wood. Walking over to investigate, I frightened a downy woodpecker from a dead stem of a tall, weedy herb. The stem belonged to a wild lettuce, <i>Lactuca biennis</i>. Here's a different stem of the same plant species, also from John and Jana's, with the author attempting to provide scale but mainly just looking like a super dork. As you can see, this herb gets to be quite tall!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwImeje1sSqwA9DQ3NvacSl46jNdqZwLYMuVPR9DPl0C5c-SIxApVti9tB39b_qayLsU_fdpgj712XMHwmZC8A-bpXGHInehU6otW3V5ybKIKEVySZAFlaUEQrub-pcD5GAq1qnm30chA6/s1600/lettuce2.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwImeje1sSqwA9DQ3NvacSl46jNdqZwLYMuVPR9DPl0C5c-SIxApVti9tB39b_qayLsU_fdpgj712XMHwmZC8A-bpXGHInehU6otW3V5ybKIKEVySZAFlaUEQrub-pcD5GAq1qnm30chA6/s400/lettuce2.2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Seedhead of <i>Lactuca</i> <i>biennis</i>, with most of the seeds already gone </div>
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Well, w<span class="st">hen I got close to examine the downy woodpecker's wild lettuce<i> </i>stem, I was astonished and delighted at what I found. A significant portion of the plant stem had been stripped or pecked away. (I stripped away more as I investigated, then took the photo below.) This activity had exposed the pale inner pith of the hollow stem, and this exposed pith, all up and down the stem, had been thoroughly pecked over by birds. Below, the whole dead stem is shown (at left), along with two details of affected portions (at right).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw4YOTAWHuLuNhY-lpM0J3PXCweS5NMGE3Jx_rGfxfm-AxwQwVEhGIj_KRUwFnyC7Ovk3zZPCRqx8-9jWdNxnHfHDNnRyIl2ZN7iHrrVpRrddHsqMPJJPQMtq_8awx7Yh-2lnc5zWmgvmA/s1600/lettuce3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="759" data-original-width="862" height="562" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw4YOTAWHuLuNhY-lpM0J3PXCweS5NMGE3Jx_rGfxfm-AxwQwVEhGIj_KRUwFnyC7Ovk3zZPCRqx8-9jWdNxnHfHDNnRyIl2ZN7iHrrVpRrddHsqMPJJPQMtq_8awx7Yh-2lnc5zWmgvmA/s640/lettuce3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="st">Here's a detail of an affected area near the base of the stem: </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEh-TL0NZdjqDzPU9E_Z4ujGvsu5WDOnvIUES75kyAc4jyQIf-NqoHyxWBI7ARv2Y3BPUFT6z5IQtWxYu80yyy_VIPeiWx_vgCrnHsEkPkptgAGFU2HAneqafPJuaEm9AgLn5kbU4y4fFS/s1600/lettuce4.1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="718" data-original-width="1600" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEh-TL0NZdjqDzPU9E_Z4ujGvsu5WDOnvIUES75kyAc4jyQIf-NqoHyxWBI7ARv2Y3BPUFT6z5IQtWxYu80yyy_VIPeiWx_vgCrnHsEkPkptgAGFU2HAneqafPJuaEm9AgLn5kbU4y4fFS/s640/lettuce4.1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="st">At first, I thought all those brown specks were simply peck marks left by birds. As I looked closer, I noted that the birds had indeed excavated the pith in these areas. But their pecking hadn't caused the brown specks. In fact, the "specks" were little round <i>chambers</i> in the pith, hundreds of them, each one emptied by the birds of whatever had been inside it.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAVQasH1_lGwbYYdNzVatMMQQiZsfpZGnq2nNOFRuYA9H09bnrh9ke1nXNoPG2ztUa-W_JEzukwpnn-mpx2zMxq6HejpNyKEO2qPw0WY4Atl-TX1Q3vmOqL94DFE3kg7o5K2gf_5qpN3B2/s1600/lettuce4.0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAVQasH1_lGwbYYdNzVatMMQQiZsfpZGnq2nNOFRuYA9H09bnrh9ke1nXNoPG2ztUa-W_JEzukwpnn-mpx2zMxq6HejpNyKEO2qPw0WY4Atl-TX1Q3vmOqL94DFE3kg7o5K2gf_5qpN3B2/s640/lettuce4.0.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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To illustrate what I mean, here's another dead stem of a wild lettuce plant attacked by hungry birds. I found this one on a property in Clayton County, IA where friends Joe, Conor, and I spent some time last year.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizpHRajlscoAw7J2ccNwbPbsKIxbU3mtsd13p3w5xSHPwm611DalNz2ksipdMldk9rKPzy_bEkpqbCY2U5OsfOr4HKL0Es2Ah5RxMhz3RMrUSlA5LHUS51ULiYzhMJPfUhS0TgyD-8_A_Y/s1600/lettuce10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="738" data-original-width="1000" height="472" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizpHRajlscoAw7J2ccNwbPbsKIxbU3mtsd13p3w5xSHPwm611DalNz2ksipdMldk9rKPzy_bEkpqbCY2U5OsfOr4HKL0Es2Ah5RxMhz3RMrUSlA5LHUS51ULiYzhMJPfUhS0TgyD-8_A_Y/s640/lettuce10.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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As they peck and probe the pith, the birds' bills leave small indentations (labeled, at center of inset). However, this sign is quite distinct from the brown "specks" -- more clearly identifiable here as chambers (see label at upper right of inset) -- that are constructed in the pith by the insect that the birds are harvesting. As it turns out, before it gets raided by a bird, each of these little brownish chambers contains a single cream-colored insect larva:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh493OHD9DcjoUhJEiZ0ESraGNT0DbYd2LGlDfoYohO3NE22R1e0QROBtH3_qUqpnHv8299hG42BN1iq1Z5SnHCzCrAKzJwK7T5KRbthk9ebHsY8kA8jrpDaJ2RUGtZpSGqIzrn_B0gGvwq/s1600/lettuce11.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1243" data-original-width="1600" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh493OHD9DcjoUhJEiZ0ESraGNT0DbYd2LGlDfoYohO3NE22R1e0QROBtH3_qUqpnHv8299hG42BN1iq1Z5SnHCzCrAKzJwK7T5KRbthk9ebHsY8kA8jrpDaJ2RUGtZpSGqIzrn_B0gGvwq/s400/lettuce11.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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This is the larva of a tiny, black, non-stinging wasp in the family Cynipidae. Animals of this kind are known as "gall wasps" for their habit of growing to maturity inside the swellings they induce in plant tissue. Not all plants affected by gall wasps show obvious swelling; this one didn't. However, the tattered wild lettuce stem at John and Jana's did have some galls on one spot along its length:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCH5eIFBFmXewxqNxNoO5AMfhqkG3n_3bedE2SPz4PPCivAiCwGPTNHTtYE_9Bb34Svt2W74povZOuJqIxcoipqguPGvXWE1SdgepF5j6dus1FrtHEBqka0Wsd6Pa-x2m-opg4TElnAZDg/s1600/lettuce5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="767" data-original-width="1600" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCH5eIFBFmXewxqNxNoO5AMfhqkG3n_3bedE2SPz4PPCivAiCwGPTNHTtYE_9Bb34Svt2W74povZOuJqIxcoipqguPGvXWE1SdgepF5j6dus1FrtHEBqka0Wsd6Pa-x2m-opg4TElnAZDg/s640/lettuce5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The birds, of course, noticed. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSehPDed6vRlW-P6txd-YPX1xQokiutPp8i6ufMZHNfgVNMuGrLxqBXZ-Bo9VwoiC3ZK3wlJwU9tJdM04VtlZU5AGZV_4oE20wab0licqG9VAHYMcDEn_Lb3CqCx_za1HWI5_DDwoCA6iD/s1600/lettuce6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="755" data-original-width="1600" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSehPDed6vRlW-P6txd-YPX1xQokiutPp8i6ufMZHNfgVNMuGrLxqBXZ-Bo9VwoiC3ZK3wlJwU9tJdM04VtlZU5AGZV_4oE20wab0licqG9VAHYMcDEn_Lb3CqCx_za1HWI5_DDwoCA6iD/s640/lettuce6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDw-irFZ0HPY0kvP1EsBxi74rRzgwy3hWh9EgoAeic_lN6iygFTwjcG5fxLS19uTTZyH7zvy2HrNRaWfmFCM9K5V7EUMQxRu5iUgVAX4bTJTgZwgFlIg6i13RZNtkRk2byhmJMZOfd6fhz/s1600/lettuce7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="746" data-original-width="900" height="530" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDw-irFZ0HPY0kvP1EsBxi74rRzgwy3hWh9EgoAeic_lN6iygFTwjcG5fxLS19uTTZyH7zvy2HrNRaWfmFCM9K5V7EUMQxRu5iUgVAX4bTJTgZwgFlIg6i13RZNtkRk2byhmJMZOfd6fhz/s640/lettuce7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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A cross-section of the swollen stem reveals two gall wasp chambers (arrrows). I think the larvae fell out when I cut the stem open, which is why they aren't visible here. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqIo5mys0R4667cO31f4ERQVoLtAP5hdXhUetcK4cxY-IP_yGB9pNu5MCn8Sfp4gjg9V5JQbyuGqsLEOIzbLrc_LcDwN9PK371H9YSybN1o357IIrMBx6tj4V40uL1EwwxyhaKB8aZ2CS/s1600/lettuce8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1021" data-original-width="1166" height="348" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqIo5mys0R4667cO31f4ERQVoLtAP5hdXhUetcK4cxY-IP_yGB9pNu5MCn8Sfp4gjg9V5JQbyuGqsLEOIzbLrc_LcDwN9PK371H9YSybN1o357IIrMBx6tj4V40uL1EwwxyhaKB8aZ2CS/s400/lettuce8.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Another gall on the stem, sectioned, showing larvae in their chambers</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWOvGS0fmMD8YVijI8qwiyNGI9tdpHbJojaZEMSKGZKZOuNc0orcYTfMJZ3tz4cXCll0ureJPs7K86cbOaoy4En7Z9BVpcal_fUQZ1c1bGz8Q5_3z8kCpd20qYEu9RPh0wZjdrctS2Cnjd/s1600/lettuce9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="670" data-original-width="566" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWOvGS0fmMD8YVijI8qwiyNGI9tdpHbJojaZEMSKGZKZOuNc0orcYTfMJZ3tz4cXCll0ureJPs7K86cbOaoy4En7Z9BVpcal_fUQZ1c1bGz8Q5_3z8kCpd20qYEu9RPh0wZjdrctS2Cnjd/s400/lettuce9.jpg" width="337" /></a></div>
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At the time, I didn't know exactly what this insect was, so I collected a few pieces of affected stem from John and Jana's and put them in a jar. That was early April; by late May, adult gall wasps in the genus <i>Aulacidea</i> had <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1186782" target="_blank">begun to emerge</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/2QH/SWQ/2QHSWQHSNQV08QV0ZK9KRK9KHKEK5QY05KBKXKOKMKTKKK2K8Q2KSKT0VQ1K5KJ05QA0SKDKSKB09QDK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="411" data-original-width="555" height="472" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/2QH/SWQ/2QHSWQHSNQV08QV0ZK9KRK9KHKEK5QY05KBKXKOKMKTKKK2K8Q2KSKT0VQ1K5KJ05QA0SKDKSKB09QDK.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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These images, of a point-mounted adult in less than ideal lighting, really don't do it justice, though. This is a lovely creature with which we are fortunate to share this Earth (and, honestly, it's kind of sad to see it dead in these photos I took!). I wouldn't have known about it were it not for that enterprising downy woodpecker, so the bird deserves my gratitude too.<br />
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A final note: When I came across this bird-insect-plant association, it wasn't just the insect I couldn't identify; I wasn't quite sure about the plant, either. As you might expect, identifying plants by their dead stems can be challenging. However, it's been so useful to me as an amateur entomologist that I have spent the last few dormant seasons learning to do it, and it's not only possible, but also satisfying and enlightening. Along the way I've picked up a trick or two. One of these involves the leaves.<br />
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Though many flowering plants shed their leaves in fall, some leaves stay attached, especially on certain herbaceous plants, where they simply shrivel up and hang from the stems. If the dead stem of a mystery herb has any such leaves still hanging on, try collecting a few of them (carefully, as they are quite fragile) and placing them in a shallow, flat-bottomed container of water. The shriveled leaves will gradually rehydrate, and once they're waterlogged, you can (carefully) use a toothpick or other tool to gently pull them open and flatten them out (while they're still in the water, ideally). This will reveal the general shape, veination, and other details of the leaf useful for making an identification.<br />
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I tried this rehydrated leaf method with a few leaves from the then-mystery plant occupied by the then-mystery insect at John and Jana's. Here's the result:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLfHKteVslUktXUdF_UtUje1hWWcwwPANDSonD2xirW7vBImoy1lr4MJMN-k4KgcrtPklKYsoh8FI1TdffZsua1jZCwcfcu7DDQSkCLH_a3q6rjU8L4V81QSLxmFXE7DVYpg3NNCjdZlMw/s1600/lettuce12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="800" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLfHKteVslUktXUdF_UtUje1hWWcwwPANDSonD2xirW7vBImoy1lr4MJMN-k4KgcrtPklKYsoh8FI1TdffZsua1jZCwcfcu7DDQSkCLH_a3q6rjU8L4V81QSLxmFXE7DVYpg3NNCjdZlMw/s400/lettuce12.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Compare with the image <a href="http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/prairie/plantx/wild_lettucex.htm" target="_blank">here</a> of a living leaf of <i>Lactuca biennis</i>. It takes a bit of effort and patience, but this method works!<br />
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-26925654515359034372018-01-16T17:37:00.000-08:002018-01-16T20:12:39.986-08:00A smart bunch, part 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<i>Some birds find food by opening stems of herbaceous plants.</i><br />
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So much possibility<br />
Yes there is, yes there is... --Anonymous<br />
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It's hard to call it a "dead stem" when it's so full of life. --MJ Hatfield<br />
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Driving along Iowa's state highway 9 a while ago, I found my eye caught by contrast: a little patch of lightness on an otherwise rather dark wooded slope.<br />
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A pileated woodpecker tree -- one of those recently dead snags all
torn up by the Upper Midwest's "Lord God bird" --
is a common enough sight around here...but this one seemed to be on a whole 'nother level.<br />
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That bird wasn't messing around!<br />
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People say pileated woodpeckers eat mostly carpenter ants, which may be true, but I've noticed they also seem to have a penchant for trees inhabited by wood-boring horntail wasps and their parasitoids, the giant ichneumons. Here's my friend and collaborator MJ Hatfield, <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1327686" target="_blank">deftly showing off these and other insects in a pileated woodpecker tree from her backyard.</a><br />
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Smaller woodpeckers leave sign on trees that's less drastic but no less interesting. This "woodpecker flute" has been in my natural-things collection ever since I found it on the campus of my alma mater, St. Olaf College.<br />
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Not long after I collected the "flute" I sawed off a centimeter or so on both ends to make them flat. As you can see, this also emphasized the fact that the twig -- collected from a pine tree -- is hollow all the way through. Presumably an insect (some wood-boring beetle?) hollowed it out or lived inside a pre-existing hollow in the twig. I don't know exactly which type of insect, but clearly -- judging from the amount of effort involved -- the bird <i>really </i>wanted that bug.<br />
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Though it's not as widely recognized, some birds are also adept at locating insects hidden within the stems of <i>herbaceous</i> (non-woody) plants. The classic North American example is a <a href="http://menunkatuck.org/conservation/bio-bits/this-fly-has-gall/" target="_blank">downy woodpecker</a> or <a href="http://emilydamstra.com/portfolio/life-cycle-goldenrod-gall-fly/" target="_blank">black-capped chickadee</a> opening up a goldenrod gall, which contains a fly larva. (Links take you to images of the birds at work on this task.) But there are other examples, too. In this two-part post, we'll explore a handful of obscure but fascinating associations between bird, insect, and herb.<br />
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<b>JEWELWEED</b><br />
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With mesmerizing orange or yellow flowers (depending on species), and droplets of rain or dew beading readily on its leaves, jewelweed (<i>Impatiens </i>spp.) may entrance you. In winter its dead stems are less likely to impress, but their unique pinkish or rusty color and weak knobby "joints" are still distinctive.<br />
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Inspecting such patches, you may find this:<br />
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Note the ragged, rough appearance of these holes, suggesting they were made after the plant had dried down to its currently brittle state (rather than while the plant was still succulent and green). It took me only a few minutes of searching this jewelweed colony on my friends' property (thanks, Lindy and Lee!) to find several more examples. Look carefully, and you'll see at least one hole gouged in each stem piece in these images.<br />
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Though I've not yet had the privilege of watching it happen, I believe these stems were raided by birds -- for the purpose of harvesting a particular type of insect. A mouse or other rodent could perhaps have left this sign, but to me, the small size and splintered appearance of the holes indicate they were made by a sharp, narrow object (a bird's bill or beak). A predatory wasp might hypothetically chew into a stem to harvest insects inside, but its tiny mandibles should leave a much more delicately fashioned opening.<br />
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Assuming for now that this is a bird, what exactly is it looking for? In my experience, herbaceous stems are <i>not</i> indiscriminately opened by birds hoping by dumb luck to find tasty things inside. Rather, <b>birds -- being the smart bunch that they are -- have learned to recognize and exploit specific associations between plants and insects</b>. In this case, the target is a caterpillar -- the larva of a certain species of moth (order Lepidoptera). Larvae of this moth species overwinter in dead stems of jewelweed, apparently emerging as adult moths sometime in spring. (I've tried to rear them to adulthood but haven't succeeded, so the species is unidentified as yet.)<br />
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These larvae are actually rather easy to find inside jewelweed stems at this time of year. Try finding them yourself! (Caveat: I haven't yet learned to tell the jewelweed species apart from their dead stems, so I'm unsure if it's both of our commonly encountered <i>Impatiens </i>species, or just one of them, that plays host to the larvae.) <br />
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<b>FIGWORT</b><br />
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Plants in the genus <i>Scrophularia</i>, commonly called figworts, are related to garden snapdragons. In fact, their plant family is known as <i>Scrophulariaceae </i>(say it with me! Skroff - you - lair - ee - AY - cee - ee), which, while cumbersome, shows the importance figwort held to the people who named the family. It's a surprise, then, that figwort is not better known. I'll leave it to a couple of North America's great wildflower websites -- both Midwestern, by the way -- to help you recognize <i><a href="http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/woodland/plants/late_figwort.htm" target="_blank">Scrophularia marilandica</a> </i>and <i><a href="https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/flower/lance-leaf-figwort" target="_blank">S. lanceolata</a>, </i>which (I think) can both be found here in northeastern Iowa. Let's get to the bird damage!<br />
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And, inside a figwort stem* not yet raided by birds: <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHdkzfpcHEP_RZRVJ_6NoxHBlYfyTqNnAEkrGi0Wp5-4mz1yP8-2KEPCwE1yDq5RsKrcMhAEx-hpJJZt49Rzjn-xRHONw2sGoqLP_GPD6IkhQH0i54E1SBBmMP-HvKzrtnvKcv2T7k6IoW/s1600/fig4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1135" data-original-width="1600" height="451" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHdkzfpcHEP_RZRVJ_6NoxHBlYfyTqNnAEkrGi0Wp5-4mz1yP8-2KEPCwE1yDq5RsKrcMhAEx-hpJJZt49Rzjn-xRHONw2sGoqLP_GPD6IkhQH0i54E1SBBmMP-HvKzrtnvKcv2T7k6IoW/s640/fig4.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This insect species, once again in the form of a caterpillar that will one day be an adult moth, has been dubbed the "verbena bud moth" (scientific name: <i>Endothenia hebesana</i>). It's an extreme generalist, known to feed on many different plant species.** Biologists refer to this habit as <i>polyphagy</i>, loosely translated as "many eater" or "varied eater."<br />
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However, just because this bug is flexitarian does <i>not </i>mean its relationships with plants are haphazard. You can reliably find its larvae in stems of certain species of plants (and not others) at certain times of year -- which means the birds can, too. That deserves emphasis: <b>Even polyphagous insects may establish patterns of association with particular plant hosts -- and birds, humans, and anyone else who's interested can learn to recognize these patterns</b>.<br />
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Consider a human analogy. You may be willing to visit just about any c-store, diner, or coffee shop to get your daily caffeine buzz, but you probably have just a few places you prefer to go, and you probably go there at certain times and order certain drinks. An undercover cop trailing you to document your nefarious coffee-drinking could learn your top haunts and favorite brews easily enough. Same idea with our ecological example: Figwort stems in winter are one of this insect's preferred places...and the birds have found out!<br />
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If you're a caterpillar of the verbena bud moth who makes it safely through the winter inside a figwort stem, you'll most likely make a cocoon there, in which you will shed your final larval "skin" (<i>exoskeleton</i>) and become a pupa. In the pupal stage, you wear a unique skin that looks a bit like a caterpillar, a bit like an adult, but not exactly like either. Beneath this skin, much of your body is more or less dissolved and rearranged into a nearly-adult moth-to-be. When you're ready, you thrust yourself out of the stem, break your pupal skin, and emerge as a newly minted, scale-winged flying creature. (Lepidoptera, or "scale wing," refers to the microscopic scales that slough off the wings like dust when you handle an adult moth or butterfly.)<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/A04/Q30/A04Q30BQD0EQD06QT04QWKKKTKBQHS8KF01QHSUQVKAQ307K6K6QD0EQEKLK2K5Q6K4Q9K0KV04QF0BQ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="560" height="335" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/A04/Q30/A04Q30BQD0EQD06QT04QWKKKTKBQHS8KF01QHSUQVKAQ307K6K6QD0EQEKLK2K5Q6K4Q9K0KV04QF0BQ.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/ARX/QAR/ARXQARFKDRQQDR0QR0XQARFKVRX0JQX03QX0JQ70DQI03QG0OQX0WRRQNRX0YQYKVRG0JQ50K0U03RN0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="223" data-original-width="560" height="252" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/ARX/QAR/ARXQARFKDRQQDR0QR0XQARFKVRX0JQX03QX0JQ70DQI03QG0OQX0WRRQNRX0YQYKVRG0JQ50K0U03RN0.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Finally an adult, you now get to wear a sort of gray-green camo on your brand new wings, and two little fireburst ornaments of rusty orange on your back. Pretty cool!<br />
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In part 2 we'll examine two bird-plant-insect connections involving the plants cow parsnip (<i>Heracleum maximum</i>) and wild lettuce (<i>Lactuca</i> spp.).<br />
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<a href="http://fraxinus-nathist.blogspot.com/2018/01/a-smart-bunch-part-2.html" target="_blank">A smart bunch, part 2 </a><br />
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NOTES<br />
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* You may notice that, aside from the color differences, there's at least a passing resemblance between the larvae in jewelweed and figwort. Indeed, it's possible the jewelweed moth larva may turn out to be <i>Endothenia hebesana, </i>too.<i> </i>The easiest way to tell is to raise the larva to adulthood.<br />
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** If you go checking figwort stems for evidence of bird
damage, you should know that verbena bud moth larvae actually make holes
in figwort stems too. However, they do this as part of their routine
stem-dwelling activities, and their holes are quite different from those
made by birds. I've documented a larva-made stem hole and its
architect <a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1342455" target="_blank">here, on Bugguide</a>.<br />
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7934642897703664344.post-39060984575451489152018-01-09T20:22:00.003-08:002018-01-16T20:36:08.387-08:00Chickadee chow<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<i>The berries of eastern redcedar </i>(Juniperus virginiana) <i>provide a significant source of nourishment for black-capped chickadees in winter.</i><br />
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"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." --Michael Pollan<br />
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<i> </i><br />
<i> </i>Eastern redcedar, <i>Juniperus virginiana</i>, is a common native <i>conifer</i> (Latin for "cone-bearing") in northeastern Iowa. Though there's actually more than one species of <i>Juniperus </i>here, many of us locals refer to this one simply as "cedar," as I will from now on. Driving through our Driftless area, you may see it dotting old pastures, or clustering on steep, rocky slopes, where, in many cases, it has replaced native prairie grasses and wildflowers. Here it is as I encountered it on Sunday at the Pulpit Rock overlook, part of the City of Decorah's Will Baker Park.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizQijOKtJsDxb1hEbuhBfXF4ZlG5CKtg-T0WUrER-4H4-gX2v8MLYNr49CX9epSYSJ0MRafHV0laarmFp5VMP6GqNoWUrPkYsQ6vE5y42ak6HaVMfoMXH6KRN_xTxuVDV0ZNH0kB6yto2N/s1600/1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizQijOKtJsDxb1hEbuhBfXF4ZlG5CKtg-T0WUrER-4H4-gX2v8MLYNr49CX9epSYSJ0MRafHV0laarmFp5VMP6GqNoWUrPkYsQ6vE5y42ak6HaVMfoMXH6KRN_xTxuVDV0ZNH0kB6yto2N/s640/1.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Being a conifer, cedar produces cones. Have you seen them? While on my walk, I overheard an observant young girl on the trail behind me exclaim to her family, "I found a blueberry!" That's not a bad description for a cedar tree's seed cone; here's several on a bough:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6eiJFwSC47xk1IrCrz8nkoq9IJ-eDLy5G_ACTBW8PjttWdyMIcHBRd6kmlpVXKFBkA7bkO0DVR_SV1RtcUdFuCdmZbj2v13CSW-Ym-D-Xy2M1BdBNBcgE412kAG7QDpoRgzmOKx5jbBZA/s1600/4.0.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6eiJFwSC47xk1IrCrz8nkoq9IJ-eDLy5G_ACTBW8PjttWdyMIcHBRd6kmlpVXKFBkA7bkO0DVR_SV1RtcUdFuCdmZbj2v13CSW-Ym-D-Xy2M1BdBNBcgE412kAG7QDpoRgzmOKx5jbBZA/s640/4.0.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Yes, those are cones...botanically speaking. Produced only by female trees, each one contains a few seeds with a surprisingly thick, hard outer layer surrounding the meaty stuff inside.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDKzaAb19deVH16rh1_s2Xi5_6oy_05d7Ekkpc6wFvyRS0XrzNiO0DKYtwV_31zx1KYu3wiuDCy3Eej3nmm4obslfrmNJnZ8R_00heQISS6Z5FnfPQE1Sl_lv_X-ctiJurtuTTQG8CFDa5/s1600/4.1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="976" data-original-width="1600" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDKzaAb19deVH16rh1_s2Xi5_6oy_05d7Ekkpc6wFvyRS0XrzNiO0DKYtwV_31zx1KYu3wiuDCy3Eej3nmm4obslfrmNJnZ8R_00heQISS6Z5FnfPQE1Sl_lv_X-ctiJurtuTTQG8CFDa5/s400/4.1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0gcwPjjLMhhc6acEfEMnDkEqLABCADiwSutMvEOMTGtD4GHwicPEPNd0EAkdGclrUz6YFCqXkMsne0qW015YlFj_kHOCl6dOK0Vdzb7R6tz5WL5dDksSMFj6Aj7n6w4RhLpkMfmra4fhX/s1600/21.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0gcwPjjLMhhc6acEfEMnDkEqLABCADiwSutMvEOMTGtD4GHwicPEPNd0EAkdGclrUz6YFCqXkMsne0qW015YlFj_kHOCl6dOK0Vdzb7R6tz5WL5dDksSMFj6Aj7n6w4RhLpkMfmra4fhX/s400/21.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfFDQY6oq4xjLWE7czCKoBSj6Fxy9B2XLOcHn2jwkD8iul5pg-J8xQndKbADrMHDEng7yqFnDzluY0DPt_36tcV5JsqmWDqw9zvISK-mGgv6fO6C08VoYLdiW1o0GYyLCXnKpR0uBI1Eo6/s1600/4.2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1288" data-original-width="1600" height="257" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfFDQY6oq4xjLWE7czCKoBSj6Fxy9B2XLOcHn2jwkD8iul5pg-J8xQndKbADrMHDEng7yqFnDzluY0DPt_36tcV5JsqmWDqw9zvISK-mGgv6fO6C08VoYLdiW1o0GYyLCXnKpR0uBI1Eo6/s320/4.2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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That second image is a seed cut in half hot dog style, on my finger for scale; the third image shows a close-up of another seed cut open similarly.</div>
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When you think about it, it's fascinating that junipers, despite being quite unrelated to the flowering plants that produce "true" berries, would evolve such a berry-like form for their seed cones. Whom can you think of who would appreciate this evolutionary quirk? What kinds of critters like berries?<br />
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If you're a bird brain like me, our feathered pals come to mind. Certainly cedar waxwings appreciate these nutritious offerings from their namesake tree; perhaps you've seen these elegant birds hanging out together in a juniper, tumbling, stretching, gulping down "cedar berries" by the beakful. And usually...at least from what I remember...they pluck the berries from the tree and swallow them whole. So, at Will Baker park, when I found cedar berries still attached to the tree, but with their seeds mysteriously gone, I doubted that cedar waxwings were responsible.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbVhPt8AZwBFWhv4tLirrxHekCB2N1z8DWoeRPtT4JNBLvFNbFYAJ_cxxB5P1mCJbjrM0sKtMBDIf7tjEweAGqGFhZSSMwx5Q9AYR-to-UOtg5vndCXR6EYsltQBm0_Ipe2TrxGi6TEOgU/s1600/5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1247" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbVhPt8AZwBFWhv4tLirrxHekCB2N1z8DWoeRPtT4JNBLvFNbFYAJ_cxxB5P1mCJbjrM0sKtMBDIf7tjEweAGqGFhZSSMwx5Q9AYR-to-UOtg5vndCXR6EYsltQBm0_Ipe2TrxGi6TEOgU/s640/5.JPG" width="498" /></a></div>
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I can't say for sure who did this; can you? I do have a guess, though (we're getting there).<br />
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Under another cedar along the trail, the snow is strewn with debris. (I added that elm leaf for scale.) <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlmGS7O86kaeLbuI6ZRgYRn4yLfq_WiMMFFiMbjM5q6v6gisMkvwBVrehdxR7qaFjZJFM4jQdfpvlpCnQvdKzzbyN0QDDDSp_wciEFwutgrefceDqiRNyUS1vHdwvXF0oXkLfdl_INI3f3/s1600/7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlmGS7O86kaeLbuI6ZRgYRn4yLfq_WiMMFFiMbjM5q6v6gisMkvwBVrehdxR7qaFjZJFM4jQdfpvlpCnQvdKzzbyN0QDDDSp_wciEFwutgrefceDqiRNyUS1vHdwvXF0oXkLfdl_INI3f3/s640/7.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzZ8whQZVG2td8rTwsFz1HWLfRkHp17htjIhqd5G8t4e-Cy-Yx2e-KWtVq9_c4PbHquJ0-vFG0hk7T_XST9VCMMFLbAS70IdS3W-zqti_wtAT_iHglSpMpxegX-BZ1xmZD8aI_jMzz7dZS/s1600/8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="994" data-original-width="1600" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzZ8whQZVG2td8rTwsFz1HWLfRkHp17htjIhqd5G8t4e-Cy-Yx2e-KWtVq9_c4PbHquJ0-vFG0hk7T_XST9VCMMFLbAS70IdS3W-zqti_wtAT_iHglSpMpxegX-BZ1xmZD8aI_jMzz7dZS/s640/8.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Nearly all of the little particles you see atop the snow here are bits of torn-up cedar berries. There are pieces of the berries' fleshy outer layers here, and pieces of the seeds. That's right -- <i>pieces </i>of the seeds:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivJfJpgZG9a1U6ymz4-xEFu8vxOgfA8rhIDlqWYVa3Sre0UoUkJbPlbs6VNajgYdJZyPUqjbKsg3HF5DOIyedoCD_45LitRZPw9I8qZbKw7DT0W2-5xZ0tRz3yMMXmQNpXclTJFZ4wp4zr/s1600/9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivJfJpgZG9a1U6ymz4-xEFu8vxOgfA8rhIDlqWYVa3Sre0UoUkJbPlbs6VNajgYdJZyPUqjbKsg3HF5DOIyedoCD_45LitRZPw9I8qZbKw7DT0W2-5xZ0tRz3yMMXmQNpXclTJFZ4wp4zr/s640/9.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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If you find a cedar tree with berries, and look in the snow beneath it, you just may find seed pieces like this. The outer layer of the seed hasn't been pulverized; and it doesn't look to me like it's been chewed open, either. Here's a bunch more, which I'd gathered a few days before, in the snow beneath a couple cedar trees at Van Peenan park:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUd7gabkmyPHydqYlumeEtt3p4_y4PgF2M7BLfqfiusdE77Un-2JQJ-JdfbKxBfH3XK1pzgvqLRjyoafjjSaWRL1XxiJJUEPtVbSYMeF8n7k1xpUVxIFP5Lo8kDPIR5frvmIBFoTHYIwwI/s1600/14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="754" data-original-width="800" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUd7gabkmyPHydqYlumeEtt3p4_y4PgF2M7BLfqfiusdE77Un-2JQJ-JdfbKxBfH3XK1pzgvqLRjyoafjjSaWRL1XxiJJUEPtVbSYMeF8n7k1xpUVxIFP5Lo8kDPIR5frvmIBFoTHYIwwI/s320/14.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvX2uZPQRzNf964d9C2d9Wxabnm4Fs8VURw3i2-hX3FT96d_yLqpxlJy-bFWjFIxTOeVElaKRNZpqhCLSWwnchCf8C0Ba89qt50cyeLWUpNKluezvT8Wy3VbZHz-aVFrBFYwO7iMPVbOnM/s1600/15.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1122" data-original-width="1600" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvX2uZPQRzNf964d9C2d9Wxabnm4Fs8VURw3i2-hX3FT96d_yLqpxlJy-bFWjFIxTOeVElaKRNZpqhCLSWwnchCf8C0Ba89qt50cyeLWUpNKluezvT8Wy3VbZHz-aVFrBFYwO7iMPVbOnM/s320/15.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxbpWkcoOBzIp6gdEGoPXHDp-GGFCSk3j_Kmf6-i9Y5wCdJzxbpfQLcLPxdiKHePlkp08RzJ2J3wWln7BbYG6GFF2tWli1MKaKuRdIJYiABqCWIOBwcAbTDze45e7WBj1ooBzLyoVLlRx5/s1600/16.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1104" data-original-width="1600" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxbpWkcoOBzIp6gdEGoPXHDp-GGFCSk3j_Kmf6-i9Y5wCdJzxbpfQLcLPxdiKHePlkp08RzJ2J3wWln7BbYG6GFF2tWli1MKaKuRdIJYiABqCWIOBwcAbTDze45e7WBj1ooBzLyoVLlRx5/s320/16.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Now, I'm not going to rule out a rodent or some other unidentified creature, but I believe most, if not all, of these seeds have been <i>broken</i> open...by birds. And in particular, by black-capped chickadees.</div>
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In fact, just before I spent fifteen minutes on my belly collecting these seed pieces, I had watched a small group of chickadees in the cedars directly overhead, practicing their craft. A chickadee would pluck a cedar berry from the tip of a bough, then fly deeper into the tree, where it would find a nice hard twig or branch to perch on. Then it would hammer away at its prize, with its woody perch as the mortar, and its bill the pestle, if you will. And I do mean <i>hammer</i> -- I've seldom seen these birds put such force into breaking open anything. If you though that outer layer was the hardness of, say, the mere candy coating on an M&M, think again. I challenge any human to break open a cedar seed with their fingernails. Not gonna happen!</div>
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Inside the seed is the meaty stuff, the good stuff, the...what do you call it?</div>
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Since my botany education is failing me, let's ask George Francis Atkinson! Dr. Atkinson published his textbook <a href="https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/22423#/summary" target="_blank"><u>Botany for High Schoolers</u></a> in 1912, and on page 214 of that text, he wrote, "The cedar "berries," for example, are fleshy and contain several seeds. But the fleshy part of the fruit is formed, not from pericarp, since there is no pericarp, but from the outer portion of the ovule, while the inner portion of the ovule forms <b>the hard stone surrounding the endosperm and embryo</b>." (emphasis added)</div>
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So that's what the chickadee is after: the tasty endosperm and embryo of the cedar seeds.</div>
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As you can imagine, the chickadee's work creates a mess; along with all those seed pieces on the snow under the cedars, I found the fleshy outer parts of the berries, their seeds removed:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpR0WjOLbdr_euRt67G1dvRz-5deIhzhSvoGK8zYqqwN_pUMw8mOjWf9c4Wwno1YGQUHnaIrssU04HshCExu7aug7rFWyxxIY7ug7rAS78D25pcZ1qJBAygCXXs-TZfzM6sT8BrxEUY4jV/s1600/13.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1114" data-original-width="1560" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpR0WjOLbdr_euRt67G1dvRz-5deIhzhSvoGK8zYqqwN_pUMw8mOjWf9c4Wwno1YGQUHnaIrssU04HshCExu7aug7rFWyxxIY7ug7rAS78D25pcZ1qJBAygCXXs-TZfzM6sT8BrxEUY4jV/s400/13.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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In this instance, the bird didn't even bother to remove the last seed from the berry before breaking into the seed:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKeK7tc0T5ioFytRpkUlsZU3tCxmm8NXaau9HxH70BViMi0gNs4UxwF7vsmeRRLj7wHMRwXh0uRKGB00LlfkNdZfzxhsg8K1H6JjHqK2zI_0cVHiEVbeywyBt-S0MYbvDJtBlQYvEi6qqM/s1600/17.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1476" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKeK7tc0T5ioFytRpkUlsZU3tCxmm8NXaau9HxH70BViMi0gNs4UxwF7vsmeRRLj7wHMRwXh0uRKGB00LlfkNdZfzxhsg8K1H6JjHqK2zI_0cVHiEVbeywyBt-S0MYbvDJtBlQYvEi6qqM/s320/17.JPG" width="295" /></a></div>
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I even found a dead wasp (family Vespidae) in the snow with the cedar berry litter, its head contents apparently pecked out.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmRfaXC83i-Qp-sctA1fj2t-sKfiHdcw855LzatdltL75-VeTQF4vNYa9OTSvPttgJMNkduoaGB0HDCOInYTXp4pnQmq9desVs5sVgafjHqeK-vtWvnDNDIqi_Ksv5bPGqo5W9jKgWgzP/s1600/18.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1526" data-original-width="1600" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkmRfaXC83i-Qp-sctA1fj2t-sKfiHdcw855LzatdltL75-VeTQF4vNYa9OTSvPttgJMNkduoaGB0HDCOInYTXp4pnQmq9desVs5sVgafjHqeK-vtWvnDNDIqi_Ksv5bPGqo5W9jKgWgzP/s320/18.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxfGwJIjvhDBkMt8F7NPGvkVXMjMUcOaS97ONAcePXXu_VD2rzJuvxBsqi4ZoZO_0zWxyKD-PzzYOUicKjKtbeCf0LB2OGokW0LyhsBtlYfh8mCdps-o6ZFImd97f9hNrS42w5on5UUQlB/s1600/19.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="904" data-original-width="1321" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxfGwJIjvhDBkMt8F7NPGvkVXMjMUcOaS97ONAcePXXu_VD2rzJuvxBsqi4ZoZO_0zWxyKD-PzzYOUicKjKtbeCf0LB2OGokW0LyhsBtlYfh8mCdps-o6ZFImd97f9hNrS42w5on5UUQlB/s320/19.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Who knows where the bird found <i>that</i> at this time of year?<br />
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I've witnessed chickadees feeding on cedar seeds during winter in a few different places around Decorah, consistently enough for me to believe "it's a thing" - that is, it's a significant and regular food source for some of them. The sheer quantity of berry litter under cedar trees, however -- and that finding of cedar berries still on the tree but with their seeds removed -- leads me to wonder if other birds, or even mammals, might be feeding on the seeds' contents. After all, it's not just chickadees that crack open those black oil sunflower seeds from our bird feeders to get to the meat inside! Can you find evidence of any other creatures feeding on cedar seeds?<br />
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It's not really what I had in mind when I asked that question, but there is at least one animal around here that eats these seeds in a totally different way...instead of getting at them from the outside, it consumes them from the <i>inside</i>. Hint: it's very small!<br />
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If you know me, you probably know I've spent a lot of time over the past couple of years collecting live insects in the Decorah area, rearing them to adulthood, and posting my findings to a crowd-sourced invertebrate natural history website, <a href="http://bugguide.net/">Bugguide.net</a>. An enduring mystery from my studies has been the question of which insect feeds inside cedar seeds and leaves tiny exit holes in the berries when it emerges:<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1353442"><img height="295" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/NK0/K6K/NK0K6K0KWKLK2KHKV0PQ9KZKB0GQO01QT01QCKSKA0SKPKEQLS8K1KMKRSGKDKSK6K6QNK8KNKLK10HK.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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You can click the image to go to my Bugguide page for this mystery, and scroll down for clickable thumbnails that tell more of the story. All I'll say here is that, while the culprit is a mystery (so far), I have reared <i>more than one</i> species of tiny non-stinging wasp from cedar berries (we're talking TINY, a small fraction of the size of one berry). These wasps are apparently parasites (the technical term is <i>parasitoid</i>) of the unknown insect that makes the holes in the berries. Here's one of the wasps<span style="color: #0000ee;">, many times magnified.</span> As you can see, it's a colorful animal:<br />
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<a href="https://bugguide.net/node/view/1371753"><img height="267" src="https://bugguide.net/images/raw/TH4/HAH/TH4HAH8HTH7HVHMHAH4HCHLLOHLLOHWHAZ8LPZ8H6Z5HCHRLVHGHAH8H8ZHL4ZHLDH5HGZ7LHRNHZRML.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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And how about that teardrop-shaped eye? <br />
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I'll leave you with an image reminding us of the very smallness of all this: <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsMbGjarX9O8KwDbfOaUTaJAw15XEOMuQTa0HlQDMuIy9Dr_ua2plkKfu8gjxG11CcehupI_Sa9d7LWq38Bh2tMYyie9QIDAzYldBD9CA84T_WmIF5VdB6fP-6L7cZ8A28hSNvrCVCtPwL/s1600/12.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1176" data-original-width="1600" height="470" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsMbGjarX9O8KwDbfOaUTaJAw15XEOMuQTa0HlQDMuIy9Dr_ua2plkKfu8gjxG11CcehupI_Sa9d7LWq38Bh2tMYyie9QIDAzYldBD9CA84T_WmIF5VdB6fP-6L7cZ8A28hSNvrCVCtPwL/s640/12.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The palm of my hand dwarfs a couple dozen discarded cedar berry "skins"
from under those Van Peenan trees. But between the cedar waxwings,
black-capped chickadees, teensy parasitoid
wasps (we'll say 2 species of them for now), and the unknown
hole-driller, I count <i>five species </i>of wild animals who feed on or live inside cedar berries! If we count humans, too, which we should -- take a gander at <a href="http://juniper-berries.us/" target="_blank">this webpage</a>, for instance -- that makes six. And surely there are more.<br />
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This is the part where I lose words to describe why understanding things like this is important to me. I suppose it's because knowledge like this feeds a certain kind of love or deep respect for my fellow animals, which inspires me to pursue further understanding of them -- and so the heart and mind feed one another, back and forth, leading naturalists like me deeper and deeper into the mysteries of life. The next time you find a cedar tree laden with berries, I hope you too will pause to consider how important these little round cones can be. And if you find any signs of animals feeding on them -- or would like to share the ways you've used cedar berries yourself -- I'd love to hear about it!<br />
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John vdLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01587843968160546454noreply@blogger.com6