Top Photo: Wetlands losing water to evaporation. As spring rolls into summer, meteorologically speaking, drought hangs over us, the wetlands are drying up exposing more and more of its muddy substrate. But life goes on. Here are some photos of the past few week’s sights and more. As you can see above and below the wetlands is becoming a mud flat. If rain doesn’t appear soon it’ll become a meadow. You can see numerous tracks in the mud of turtlesRead more
Posts filed in: Butterflies
Fox, and a lot More
Top Photo: Gray fox pup. Things are moving fast out on the outdoor loop through Explore the Wild and Catch the Wind. New life, travelers, and old friends are all making the scene. A gray fox has decided to den in a rocky depression between the Red Wolf Overlook and the Lemur House (the red wolves themselves have put out 5 young this spring). I’ve counted 3 fox pups but may have missed one, confirmation on the three. A coupleRead more
More Spring
Top Photo: Tiny fruit of early spring pawpaw. A few weeks ago we saw the blooming of the pawpaw flowers. Pollination has occurred and we now have fruit growing from the stalks. Green anoles have awakened to the spring. The big males are displaying their rosy dew lap. Fringe tree blossoms have come and gone. Swamp rose has acquired galls initiated by tiny wasps, spiny rose gall wasps (Diplolepis bicolor). The wasps lay eggs in the plant stem which stimulatesRead more
Palamedes
Top Photo: Palamedes swallowtail explores redbay leaves at Museum of Life and Science. Thanks to Richard Stickney, known by most regulars at the Museum of Life and Science as the Lead Conservatory Specialist at the very popular Butterfly House, I got to see an unusual sight here at the museum on the 18th of April. In fact, Richard hadn’t seen another one here since July 14 of 2021 (another sighting was on 16 May, 2010 by a local naturalist atRead more
Tents and Forktails
Top Photo: Tent caterpillar “tent.” Tent caterpillars are actively building “tents” in our cherry trees. They construct the silken, protective predator barrier in the crotch of the tree. Traveling out of the tent to feed on the fresh young leaves of the cherry they retreat back into the tent while resting, enlarging the tent as they grow. Fragile fork tails are tiny, delicate little damselflies. Early each spring they crawl out of their larval freshwater homes, find a grass stemRead more
Swallowtail, Azure, and Orangetip
Top Photo: Eastern tiger swallowtail. Three butterflies known for early season flights have been seen this past week. There are two flight periods when eastern tiger swallowtails can reliably be seen, now, and late summer to fall. There are two separate broods. The butterflies you see now, in spring, have overwintered as pupae and are smaller than the individuals that you’ll see in summer. As caterpillars, they fed on late season, less nutritious foliage in late summer and fall beforeRead more
Nest Box Update 3.21.26
Top Photo: Male eastern bluebird. Our 6 box Bluebird Trail has seen positive activity this past week. We have seven eggs, five bluebird and two chickadee eggs. Additions have been made to another of our chickadee nests, but still no eggs in that one. The Cow Pasture nest box remains empty with no birds showing interest at that site. Explore the Wild is spotless with not a beakful of moss, or grass stems in the case of bluebirds. The sailboatRead more
From Muscadines to Silk Moths
Top Photo: Muscadine grapes ripening on the vine. Muscadine grapes are native to the southeast and are a common and welcomed plant here at the museum. Many birds and mammals including cardinals, robins, and turkeys, groundhogs, gray fox, and humans eat the fruit. There are many vines throughout the museum grounds. If you can reach the grapes as they grow on the vine, it’s worth it to grab a few for yourself before they’re all gone. Cardinal flower is bloomingRead more
Colors
Top Photo: Snowberry clearwing hovers at butterfly bush flower spike in Butterfly House Outdoor Garden. Snowberry clearwing moths are a type of strong flying sphinx moth commonly seen hovering at flowers to sip nectar. They’re diurnal moths and resemble small hummingbirds or bees as they visit the flowers seeking nourishment. They are responsible for pollinating a large number of flowers, especially deep tubular flowers through the action of their long, sturdy, probing proboscis and hairy body which transfers pollen fromRead more