Another Wren Update

The eggs have hatched and the wrens are feeding young. We couldn't get a really good look at the chicks without disturbing them too much, but they are in there waiting to be fed.

Banded Net-wing Beetle

Banded Net-wing Beetle (Calopteron reticulatum)

Food: Larvae and adults predaceous, according to some references. Others state that adults take plant juices, nectar, and larvae prey on small insects and mites under bark.

Life Cycle: Eggs laid on bark of dead or injured trees. Larvae feed on other insects under bark and pupate there. Moths, such as Lycomorpha, mimic these (apparently distasteful) beetles.

Source: BugGuide

Sooty Crane Fly -- Male

Sooty Crane Fly (Tipula fuliginosa) -- Male

The male and female sooty crane flies are appear very different. (They are sexually dimorphic.)
In fact, for many years they were thought to be different species, before someone figured out they were actually male and female of the same species.

One characteristic that clearly defines the male sooty crane fly is its characteristic asymmetrical male genitalia.



See also:
BugGuide
Crane Flies of Pennsylvania

Sooty Crane Fly -- Female

Sooty Crane Fly (Tipula fuliginosa) -- Female

The female Sooty Crane Fly had a much heavier and darker body than does the male.

Additional resources:
BugGuide
Crane Flies of Pennsylvania

Wren Update

The wren got her nest built in the birdfeeder and is now sitting on eggs -- and doesn't particularly care for having her picture taken.

Garden Update

The cauliflower and broccoli are doing fine. We should be picking within a couple of weeks.



Jo got the sweet potatoes planted and covered with wire.



The new potatoes made it back up through the mulch and are still growing.


The green beans should be blooming soon.



The tomatoes are in the garden and caged. Believe it or not, a few of them are already blooming, even as small as they are.

Black Snake

Looks as if there's enough black snake here for a couple of good meals -- if you're into eating black snake.

Mason Wasp

Mason Wasp (Ancistrocerus catskill)

Mason Wasps construct nests of mud, or nest in burrows, cavities in twigs, or the abandoned nests of other wasps. Most provision with caterpillars. Adults are commonly seen on the ground in open areas or at flowers. This particular species usually nests in the ground. They are solitary.

Additional images:




Additional information:
BugGuide
University of Texas
Insects of Cedar Creek

Syrphid Fly

Syrphid Fly (Toxomerus geminatus)

These small (1/4" or so) flies are sometimes called flower or hover flies and are generally considered beneficial. Adults serve as pollinators. (The one above is helping to pollinate an ox-eye daisy.) Larvae consume aphids.

Additional information:
BugGuide
Texas A&M University

Gum Tree Art Festival

From Gum Tree Festival

The second weekend in May, we were in Tupelo, Mississippi, for the Gum Tree Festival. (Click on "Gum Tree Festival" under the photo for more pix.)

Artfest on Walnut Street

From Artfest, Springfield

The first weekend in May we were in Springfield, Missouri, for Artfest on Walnut Street. (Click on "Artfest, Springfield" under the photo if you want to see more pictures from that trip.)

Carolina Cranesbill

Carolina Cranesbill (Geranium carolinianum)

Some might call this variety of wild geranium a weed, and it does come close to qualifying for that description. It will grow well virtually everywhere and usually does. Fields, gardens, vacant lots and idle land are among its favorite locations. But weed or not it does have a pretty little (1/4 - 3/8 of an inch) purple flower and its seeds furnish food for quail, turkeys and doves.

See also:
Wildflowers of Western Kentucky
Missouri Plants
Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses

Cicada Skin

I've neither heard nor seen any cicadas yet, but obviously they're around. This one chose to shed its skin on an old wasps nest.

Waved Light Fly

Waved Light Fly (Pyrgota undata)

It may look like a wasp, but it isn't. It's a fly -- a good fly. Its larvae are internal parasites of adult Scarab beetle (like June bugs). The female waved light fly lays a single egg in each beetle. The larva that hatches consumes the beetle from the inside out, killing it within two weeks.

See also:
BugGuide Post
BugGuide Info

Bear Track

Jo found black bear tracks on her morning walk up the road with the dogs.

Oak Besma Moth

Oak Besma - Hodges#6885 (Besma quercivoraria)

Range: Found throughout eastern US/Canada.

Food: Oak, elm, poplar, willows, and white spruce.

See Also:
BugGuide Post
BugGuide Info
Moth Photographers Group Photos
USGS Caterpillar Photo

Spiderwort

Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana L.)

I'm not 100% sure of species. As Neartica says: There are a number of other species of Tradescantia in eastern North America. These species can be difficult to separate from T. virginiana.

Growing on the bluff at the base of the trail off Jerry Joe's north pasture. Also alongside the trail as you enter the woods.

See also: Missouri Plants

Hairy Phacelia

Hairy Phacelia (Phacelia hirsuta)

Another wildflower found down in the woods on our walk. According to Missouri Plants it should grow just about anywhere: Rocky fields and prairies, moist soils of valleys, glades, bluffs, open woods and roadsides. However, the site does warn that the flower will fade quickly in full sun.

Large Paectes Moth

Large Paectes - Hodges#8962 (Paectes abrostoloides)

Common name: Sweetgum destroyer.

Range: Eastern and Central United States ... wherever sweetgum trees grow.

We certainly have enough sweetgum trees around here to support a large population.

Additional Resources:
BugGuide Post
BugGuide Info

Small-eyed Sphinx Moth

Small-eyed Sphinx - Hodges#7825 (Paonias myops)

Range: Common throughout North America.

Food: Birches, hawthorns, poplars, willows.

Additional Resources:
BugGuide Post
BugGuide Info

Wren's Nest

We were a little slow in getting our birdfeeders down for the summer. Now, I reckon we'll need to leave this one up for a while longer as a Carolina wren is in the midst of building a nest. By day's end, she had all the nesting material inside and organized better, although neatness doesn't really count when it comes to a wren's nest.

Pink-shaded Fern Moth

Pink-Shaded Fern Moth (Callopistria mollissima)

The caterpillars of this moth are fern eaters.

Additional Resources:
BugGuide Post
Moths of Connecticut

Blackberry Bloom

The blackberries seem to be blooming heavily this year. This particular one happens to be on the hill in the garden.