The Monarch caterpillar (Danaus plexippus) that I’ve been monitoring on the Butterfly Weed in Catch the Wind has disappeared. The larva was last seen on 25 September. The next opportunity that I had to check the caterpillar’s whereabouts was the twenty-eighth, three days later. The caterpillar has apparently gone off to pupate. I searched, and searched, [...] Read the rest of this entry »
Archive for September, 2010
Groundhogs!
September 23rd, 2010It may be in the mid 90s on this fine September day, but despite the heat it’s once again time for Groundhogs to begin fattening up for their winter slumber. Groundhogs look cute and cuddly, and the six or so groundhogs that reside here at the Museum are no exception, but I’m compelled to remind [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are no comments on this journal entry. Start the conversation.
Busted Hearts on the Dino Trail
September 23rd, 2010What ever you call it, Strawberry Bush, Hearts-a-bustin’, or Bursting Heart, this small, wiry shrub is unmistakable and spectacular when it goes to fruit. It usually goes unnoticed on the understory of the forest until its strawberry-like husks burst open to reveal bright red fruit in the fall. The scientific name is Euonymus americanus. You [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are no comments on this journal entry. Start the conversation.
A Lep Emerges!
September 22nd, 2010Eleven days after a Cloudless Sulphur caterpillar was first noticed preparing to pupate on a Partridge Pea pod in Catch the Wind, it has emerged as an adult male butterfly. A Monarch caterpillar was pointed out to me on Butterfly Weed in Catch the Wind. I’ll have to keep an eye on that one too! Read the rest of this entry »
There are no comments on this journal entry. Start the conversation.
RCKI Award
September 22nd, 2010And the RCKI* (pronounced, rick´e) goes to…Nathan Swick for spotting the first Ruby-crowned Kinglet of the season on 21 September, a day before the first official day of fall. The kinglet was seen by Nathan while he was birding out on the Explore the Wild/Catch the Wind Trail during Senior Day here at the Museum. [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are no comments on this journal entry. Start the conversation.
Pupae Plus
September 17th, 2010I’ve been casually checking for Cloudless Sulphur pupae out in Catch the Wind for the past two years. I’d not found one until now! On September 11 as I walked past the patch of Partridge Pea in Catch the Wind I noticed that a Cloudless Sulphur caterpillar had attached itself to a pea pod on [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are 2 comments on this journal entry. Join the conversation.
Some Early September Sights
September 16th, 2010As you well know (if you’ve been following this blog) caterpillars tend to show up more frequently from late summer into fall. It’s not so much that there are more of them, but that the larger species are maturing, their frass more visible on the ground beneath the trees and shrubs that they’re feeding on, and [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are no comments on this journal entry. Start the conversation.
Turning the Corner
September 4th, 2010Although it’s September, it was more than two weeks ago that I began to feel the change. Something was different. Oh sure, the temperatures were in the eighties for a few days and it felt really, really nice, but that’s not what I mean. We’ve crossed a line, internal triggers have been tripped, a biological [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are no comments on this journal entry. Start the conversation.
There are no comments on this journal entry. Start the conversation.