Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. We have one empty nest box, one with a nest sans eggs (chickadees), two with 1 egg each (chickadee and bluebird) and a total of eleven nestlings (4 chickadees and 7 bluebirds. — After having been raided by a house wren and emptied of its five eggs, the bluebird pair has apparently rallied and started a new nest. The Cow Pasture nest box has come back to life and so far holds one bluebird egg.Read more
Posts filed in: Uncategorized
Nest Box Season Begins
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs from previous season. Though the season hasn’t officially started, at least two of our six nest boxes have seen some sort of activity. One had a pipe organ mud dauber’s nests within. Another has the very beginnings of a bluebird nest. It’s important to remember that it’s early and things can change quickly. If the weather remains good and the birds get an early start with few storms and cold, it’s definitely in their favor.Read more
Nest ox Update 6.6.23
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. There is currently only one active nest. House wrens have fledged and bluebirds have hatched. ————————— The four house wrens that had been in the nest box at the Cow Pasture have fledged. I could hear the family warbling away in the woods behind the nest box as I confirmed their departure by peaking into the nest. It was empty. The Explore the Wild and Into the Mist nest boxes are empty. The nest boxRead more
Nest Box Update 6.1.22
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird eggs. There are now 6 bluebird eggs and 6 house wren nestlings occupying our nest boxes. The 6 bluebird eggs in the nest box at the Cow Pasture have yet to hatch. I saw no adults in the vicinity so I can’t determine whether the eggs are being incubated. If they are, we should see hatchlings by nest week’s inspection. As always, the nest in the box at Explore the Wild is unoccupied. There’s been noRead more
Pickerel Frogs in the Water
Top Photo: Male pickerel frog on his way to pond to seek a mate. Besides spring peepers and chorus frogs, pickerel frogs are one of the earliest breeding frogs here in central North Carolina. Starting in February you can hear their rolling, snore-like call coming from low wet areas including ephemeral and permanent bodies of water. They’re calling right now here at the museum. I’ve already spotted eggs. Adult pickerel frogs are about 2 – 3.5 inches. Females average largerRead more
Nest Box Update for June 2021
We have six nest boxes on our bluebird trail. I inspect the nest boxes once per week following the same sequence each week; Cow Pasture, Explore the Wild, Into the Mist, Parking Deck East, Parking Deck West, and Butterfly House. This is a compilation of the nest box inspections for the month of June. June 9 There are two active nest, one with incubating house wrens and the other with hatchling bluebirds. The Cow Pasture nest box contains a houseRead more
The Results
Top Photo: A very fresh narrow-mouthed toad. Back in July when rainy days and nights reigned over the wetlands I would hear the bleating, lamb-like call of narrow-mouthed toads calling from in and around the wet areas of our campus. The toads were here to mate. The results are in. Ranger Tim, on duty in Hideaway Woods, spotted a freshly morphed narrow-mouthed toad along the path there. They are very small. Newly morphed toads are about 10 mm, give orRead more
In Disguise
Top Photo: Camouflage looper on right side of seed head. It’s time to start looking for camouflaged loopers. If you’re not familair with camouflaged loopers, they’re the small larvae of the small green moths in the family of moths known as Geometridae, geometrids or geometer moths. The adult moth of the camouflaged looper is called a wavy-lined emerald (Picture Here). These caterpillars (about 1/2” – 5/8”) are well known for covering themselves with the plant they feed on. The caterpillarRead more
Bald-faced Hornet
Smack in the middle of the photo above is a hornet’s nest, a bald-faced hornet hive. It’s in a small red maple just off the end of the boardwalk in Explore the Wild. The hive’s dimensions are approximately 12″ x 8″ (H x W). Bald faced hornets are part of a sub-family of wasps known as yellowjackets. Their markings are white instead of yellow as in the local eastern yellowjacket. They’re also larger than the more familiar yellowjackets. While easternRead more