Fungus on oak tree
Sandy photographed this large cluster of fungi at the base of a red oak in the ash woods. It is probably Hen-of-the-woods (Grifola frondosa).
24-SEP-2013
Turkey vulture
This vulture circled over the ravine and the centre several times, coming lower with each turn around, but eventually flew across the Arboretum. It is difficult to believe that not all that long ago, this species was so rare in the area that if you wanted to see one you had to make a trek out toward Lanark Co. which had one of the only reliable spots for observing a few of these birds. Now they are everywhere.
Also at the garden today, small flocks of chipping sparrows and yellow-rumped warblers, large flocks of american goldfinches, some catbirds, chickadees, cardinals, crows, song sparrows, and white-breasted nuthatches.
24-SEP-2013
Question mark butterfly
In addition to the usual clouded sulphurs and cabbage whites, I saw this question mark when it briefly stopped in the spruce. It was so windy out that it is a wonder there was anything flying at all. First one of these I've seen at FWG this year.
23-SEP-2013
Spotted lady beetle (Coleomagilla maculata)
Good numbers of this native lady beetle around today, as is usually the case in autumn. Spring is the other season when they are seen in large quantities. Other than this species, not a lot of insects found, but it is getting to that downtime of the year. Noted were spittlebugs, Coelidia leafhoppers, plenty of grasshoppers and crickets, a few hover flies (probably Sphaerophoria but didn't get a good look), Muscids and greenbottle flies, a few midges, an orange fruit fly that eluded my camera, a few honey bees and sweat bees, and scads of bumble bees, in fact, hundreds and hundreds of bumble bees, most on the new england asters.
23-SEP-2013
New England asters
This year the asters are present in abundance and make quite the sight. They are alive with bumble bees, hundreds of them, as well as various other insects.
23 Sept. 2013
Freeing the shrubs
Today we were very lucky to host Dr. Sander-Regier's environmental studies class from Carleton University. Almost 80 students helped FWG volunteers with a variety of tasks in the Butterfly Meadow, Old Field, and north of the Ash Woodlot.
One group planted common milkweeds in an open area north of the Ash Woodlot and removed dog-strangling vine from nearby trees and shrubs.
23 Sept. 2013
Preparing to plant
The marked area shows where we planted milkweeds this spring. Today, we expanded by planting seedlings and donated plants all the way around the outside of the ribbon.
23 Sept. 2013
Planting milkweeds
Iola Price, in the blue jacket, donated a number of milkweed plants from her own garden and supervised their planting.
23 Sept. 2013
Checking progress
In addition to the donated plants, the students planted 36 milkweed seedlings. Great job!! And a great addition to our monarch waystation.
23 Sept. 2013
Picking up seed pods
Other Carleton students pulled DSV out of trees, making sure they bagged seed pods to prevent DSV from spreading into the milkweed area.
23 Sept. 2013
Bagging the "garbage"
By the end of the morning, the students had filled 6 giant garbage bags with DSV. Thanks so much for all the hard work!
18 September 2013
Clouded Sulphur
Sandy photographed this white clouded sulphur, a are very common species, introduced from Europe. There are many around right now. Sandy comments: "I thought this was a Cabbage White - it looked very white flying around among the New England asters. Luckily, I took a closer look and realized from the markings that it was a sulphur."
17-SEP-2013
Dogwood calligrapha (Calligrapha philadelphica)
These beetles are present for most of the summer on dogwood shrubs, usually red-osier dogwood. We have a variety of calligraphic beetles around the region, but have only found a couple of species at FWG thus far. This is one of the very common ones at the garden. They are in the Chrysomelidae family, the leaf-eating beetles, a group that contains some of the most beautiful of all beetles.
17-SEPT-2013
Insect hotel
Sandy created this bee hotel over the last month, and it is now quite ready for bees, bugs, beetles and whichever other creatures would like to use it. Sandy photographed the 'hotel' after adding a few more items to it - a bundle of hollow daylily stems, pieces of cattail, weeping tile tubes, and a rolled up plastic blind. Although we think natural materials are best, the latter two components are a bit of an experiment - just to see what happens. For example, we have previously found praying mantis egg cases inside these black weeping tile tubes. They may also shelter a toad next summer.
17-SEPT-2013
Bee in bindweed flower
You'll often find bees curled up in flowers like this of the bindweed, which afford some protection on cool days. Other times, bees will cling to the undersides of leaves, or on flower stems underneath flowerheads. Sandy photographed this bee at the garden.
18 September 2013
Bracket fungi on elm
Sandy took this photo was taken only a day later than the next image. She notes: "I was astonished to see how much this fungus had grown in such a short time." And indeed, these fungi can grow phenomenally fast, seeming to double in size in a day.
17-SEPT-2013
Bracket fungi on elm
A close-up view of the bracket fungi on the elm tree.
18 September 2013
Bracket fungi on elm
Again, this is the same fungus as in the next photo, but a day later.
17-SEPT-2013
Bracket fungi on elm
These fungi have recently appeared on this big old elm snag, dead these last few years. Sandy photographed these, giving a good overall view of the multiple fungi.
17-SEP-2013
Locust borer beetle (Megacyllene robiniae)
These beautiful big long-horned beetles (Cerambycidae) are closely associated with black locusts. In areas where the locust trees are native, these insects are considered a pest, but here where the locust is considered invasive, one would hope that the borers would help control them. But that doesn't appear to be the case! These insects are common on goldenrod from mid-August through September.
17-SEP-2013
Twenty-spotted ladybeetle (Psyllobora vigintimaculata)
This is a very tiny lady beetle, usually less than 2 mm, sometimes up to 3 mm. It is unusual in being a fungus and mildew feeder. Indeed, though you can't tell here, the leaf it is on had quite a bit of mildew and nearby were other leaves more mildewed, and with more of these little insects. In my own garden, I have found a large number of these lady beetles in all stages, larva, nymph, and adult, on mildewed leaves of sunflowers. At first glance they look like very tiny versions of the fourteen-spotted lady beetle.
17-SEP-2013
Twenty-spotted lady beetle (Psyllobora vigintimaculata)
Another shot of this minute lady beetle.
17-SEP-2013
Eastern phoebe
Whether this is one of the nesting eastern phoebes at the garden, who can say, as birds are definitely moving through at great speed these days. In addition to this species, there was a red-tailed hawk in the ash woods (flew to a tree just south of there), lots of chipping sparrows and goldfinches feeding on the coneflower seeds in the butterfly meadow. Catbirds still vigorously calling, along with chickadees and cardinals.
17-SEP-2013
Assassin bug nymph (Zelus sp.)
Although a bit cryptic against the pale green of the leaf, this bug does at least have a bright red eye to help pinpoint its presence. Note the tiny prey. These insects are considered one of the beneficial ones for the garden as they prey on an array of many of the "pests". This is one of the most common of all the assassin bugs in the area, and can be found anywhere. I found half a dozen or so just by stopping to peer at leaves here and there.
17-SEP-2013
Stink bug (Brochymena sp.)
Found on the nannyberry shrubs that support the colony of Enchenopa treehoppers. This is a very common, and very large stinkbug, which is nearly invisible when perched against the trunk of a tree, as they so often are.
17-SEP-2013
Stinkbug (Banasa sp.)
I frequently find this species on dogwood fruit, as here. Bug Guide notes that there are 11 species of Banasa, all looking somewhat similar and that ID based on photos "should be provisional", so I'm playing safe and leaving all Banasa stinkbugs as just that.
17-SEP-2013
Enchenopa treehopper exuviae on nannyberry
There is a flourishing colony of the odd-looking little Enchenopa treehoppers (looking like mini-dinosaurs) on the nannyberry shrubs. Here you can see a tiny shed skin of one of the nymphs. According to Bug Guide, the species of Enchenopa that feeds on nannyberry is an undescribed species. A page on their site shows exactly what I have found on the nannyberries here, including the eggs, nymphs and adults.
17-SEP-2013
Nannyberry fruit (Viburnum lentago)
Autumn is when fruit is usually abundant, ready to feed hungry birds and animals. The nannyberry fruit is just ripening and when fully mature all clusters will be the rich indigo blue you can see here on a few of the fruits.
15-SEP-2013
Sweat bee (Agaposteman splendens
Sweat bees are numerous and common and there are many species. This is Agapostemon, probably splendens. Diane photographed this in the BYG on Sunday.
15-SEP-2013
Privet leafhopper (Fieberiella florii)
A new insect species for the FWG list, found by Diane in the Backyard Garden. This is a non-native species which, according to Bug Guide, has been in NA since about 1918.
15-SEP-2013
Striped Cucumber Beetle (Acalymma vittata)
Diane photographed this small Chrysomelidae in the Backyard Garden. It is a species closely associated with plants in the Cucurbitaceae family, such as the abundant wild cucumber.
07-SEP-2013
Egg sac of Argiope aurantia)
Found on the Bug Day walk at the Fletcher Wildlife Garden, and photographed by Diane. These egg sacs are always a neat find, and are common right now, as are the big black and yellow orbweaving spiders who make them. Look amongst goldenrods especially, for these large egg sacs.
07-SEP-2013
Bug Day walk at the garden
Diane took this photo of insect enthusiasts heading down the Bill Holland Trail to the pond.
04-SEP-2013
Two-striped grasshopper (Melanoplus bivittatus)
Diane photographed this beautiful grasshopper during the Bug Day event at the garden. This is a common species, particularly right now when it, and many other species can be found throughout our area.
04-SEP-2013
Tinkling Ground Cricket (Allonemobius tinnulus), female
Found during the Bug Day walk at the FWG, and photographed by Diane.
04-SEP-2013
Gray treefrog (Hyla versicolor)
A beautiful treefrog, one of many to be found at the FWG, photographed by Diane.
07-SEP-2013
Henri Goulet leading an insect outing at the Fletcher Wildlife Garden
Part of the Bug Day events at the garden.
03-SEP-2013
Solidago ptarmicoides
This crisply white plant grows in the Backyard Garden rockery bed. At one point it was classified as an aster and older field guides may still have it as Aster ptarmicoides. In more recent times it has been shifted over to the Solidago group. But whatever it is called, it is a lovely native plant that grows in the Ottawa region and deserves to have more of a place in gardens too. Bees and other insects are attracted to it as well.
03-SEP-2013
Zigzag goldenrod (Solidago flexicaulis)
There is a great swathe of this lovely native plant in the ash woods at the Fletcher Wildlife Garden. We tend to think of asters and goldenrods as being plants of open, sunny places, but there are many that grow in shaded conditions. For adding vivid colour to a dark corner of a garden, zigzag goldenrod is a good plant to use. Once established it will spread relatively slowly to create the kind of large stand you see here. It, along with the next plant, white snakeroot, is another native species that deserves to be better known.
03-SEP-2013
White snakeroot (Ageratina altissima)
This tall plant of wooded areas is another native species that flowers well in shaded conditions. This plant spreads well and can put on quite the display, brightening up dark corners of a woodland, or of a garden. This was taken in the ash woods and shows the entire plant. The next photo shows a closeup. Until recently, this plant was known as Eupatorium rugosum, and in older field guides will be listed as such.
03-SEP-2013
White snakeroot (Ageratina altissima)
A closer look at the flowers of the snakeroot plant discussed in the previous image.
03-SEP-2013
Striped garden caterpillar (Trichordestra legitima)
This small caterpillar was nestled on a canada thistle leaf. I only noticed it because I was turning over any nettle leaves with holes in them, looking for the green tortoise beetle which feeds on these plants. No beetles, but this caterpillar was a nice find.
03-SEP-2013
Dog-day Cicada exuviae (Tibicen canicularis)
The empty husk or exuviae of a cicada, hanging on a twig of the black maple at the garden. These exuviae are pretty common on trees, and sometimes on other tall structures too! It is surprising how far up the tree the cicada nymphs will crawl. This must have been 7 feet above ground. Some only go a foot or two before they stop. Diane photographed a lovely adult cicada a few days ago and it can be found near the beginning of this blog.
03-SEP-2013
Paper wasp (Polistes dominulus)
This is the European paper wasp, a bit smaller than our native P. fuscatus. They build small round paper nests suspended from a perch such as the side of a bird box, inside a bird box, eaves, sheds, etc. These are amongst the most docile of wasps and it takes a lot of hard work to get yourself stung by one. Over the years I have worked around and next to their small nests and never been stung. Don't confuse these with yellowjackets which are much aggressive to any intruders they perceive to be threatening their nests.
Praying mantis (Mantis religiosa)
A truly beautiful shot by Diane of this quite colourful mantis. In the background you can see the purple flowers of obedient plant. Diane reports that she saw a few interesting insects during her visit to the garden: "A Giant Swallowtail in the BYG, while I was photographing a praying mantis in the buttrfly meadow, a Cicada landed in a obedient plant very close to me. I saw a Summer Azure, Common Ringlets, Cabbage White, Clouded Sulphur and a Green Darner. I was hoping to find the sphinx caterpillar but no such luck. The Goldenrods were full of bumble bees, honey bees and different types of wasps. Also observed: a Systoechus vulgaris, Toxmerus geminatus, Wool carder bee, just to name a few."
31-AUG-2013
Orb-weaver (Neoscona)
A very small orb-weaver, here on the obedient plant. These very pretty spiders are so small that they often go unnoticed. Diane photographed this one.
31-AUG-2013
Hover fly (Toxomerus geminatus)
One of two tiny hover flies, both in the Toxomerus genus, that are common to abundant at the garden, and throughout the region, all summer long. In fact, if you have a garden, you probably have these little hover flies (Syrphidae) as visitors, though due to their size you may not notice them. However, even if you don't see them, their larvae will be hard at work eating aphids in your garden! Hence, these are very beneficial insects.
31-AUG-2013
Dog-day Cicada (Tibicen canicularis)
A gorgeous shot by Diane of a cicada hanging onto to an obedient plant (Physostegia).
31-AUG-2013
Sneezeweed (Helenium)
Diane photographed this fine stand of sneezeweed in the Butterfly Meadow. It attracts many insects, and in this shot you can see a couple of bumble bees.
31-AUG-2013
Bumble bee (Bombus fervidus)
A very pretty photo by Diane of a bumble bee on Monarda fistulosa, our native bee balm.