Purple Martins

I’ve been derelict in my duty. I usually start reporting on the arrival in the States of Purple Martins by January or February at the latest. It’s March, and I haven’t mentioned the big purple swallows once. The birds have been steadily trekking back from their winter stay in South America for some time now. You’ll be glad to know that they have been seen throughout our fair state with the first sighting being February 3 in Four Oaks NC. Here’sRead more
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Smartweed

Last week I tweeted about a Canada Goose apparently eating smartweed in the Wetlands. I also mentioned that not many creatures will eat the pungent weed. Other then a few caterpillars, the Smartweed Caterpillar (Acronicta oblinita) and the Tobacco budworm (Heliothis virescens), I personally haven’t witnessed much in the way of smartweed consumption among our fauna (there seems to be a caterpillar adapted to eating just about every plant in existence). There’s little doubt that many creatures use smartweed for cover, shelterRead more