What was happening at the FWG in May 2007

30 May — photos and notes from Christine Hanrahan Certainly lots of activity in the garden today and yesterday. Earlier, I mentioned the Monarch Butterfly I saw yesterday. Today, I looked in vain for it. However, I did see my first Hobomok Skipper of the year, right about on schedule (photo at left). It was May 27, last year when I saw one, and, interestingly enough, June 5, for my first Monarch sighting of 2006. Another dragonfly species hung around just long enough for a quick photo (right): a Dot-tailed Whiteface. A few years ago at about this time, I saw Dance Flies clustered on DSV leaves. Today I saw two, also on DSV. Not sure which species this little Empidid is. Most of this family are carnivores, although a few do feed on pollen. I don't know about the black and red one of today. Last fall in Larose Forest, we saw big swarms of Dance Flies, different species, however. If I get a better photo I'll send it along, but the ones from today are dismal. I tried to get a decent photo of this soldier beetle (left), but as you can see from his turning and glaring at me, he wasn't impressed. Yesterday evening, a gorgeous Green Lacewing (Chrysoperla sp.) was pretty cooperative(right), and sat for a photo on the amur maples, south of the Old Field. These are one of the more familiar nerve-winged insects. Lacewings, as gardeners know, have a hearty appetite for aphids! Also yesterday, I saw several very pretty flies hanging around the goldenrods. I suspected they were goldenrod gall flies (Eurosta solidaginis). These are the ones that lay their eggs in the stems of goldenrods at the time (now) when goldenrods are growing very quickly. When the eggs hatch, the larvae burrow, or more correctly I suppose, eat their way into the stem. This causes the plant to develop a unusual growth, the gall. Inside this cosy little chamber, the fly larvae spends the winter, unless unfortunate enough to be broken into by red squirrels or downy or hairy woodpeckers, or various other creatures all looking for a tasty winter snack. I found four pretty caterpillars feeding on Hound's Tongue (Cynoglossum). While they look familiar, I'm not sure which species they are. Perhaps Diane can help.

25 May — photos and notes from Christine Hanrahan The heat doesn't agree with me, so I didn't spend as much time as I might have at FWG. However, even the hour or so that I was there yielded a few interesting observations that I'd like to share. First of all, I finally tracked down and had a good look at the butterfly in the BYG, first spotted by Sandy and Connie. It was indeed an American Lady, not a Painted Lady (as I'd hoped), differentiated by the two large eye spots, rather than four small ones. But no photo! Silvery Blue Eastern Tailed Blue Nomada bee I did manage to get a photo (not great) of a Silvery Blue, my first at the FWG this year. I've recently seen them in other areas so was looking for them at the garden. Right now we have both Spring Azure and Silvery Blue flying, so it pays to look carefully at them before making an ID. I also attach a photo taken earlier this week on Morningside Lane (on the farm), of an Eastern Tailed Blue, yet another of the 'blues' we have in this area. At one time, this was a very rare species, but in recent years it appears to have become well established. It should also be at FWG, so keep your eyes peeled. I was delighted to find a group of minute Publilia treehoppers (probably P. concava). They were being very carefully tended by ants (Formica sp??), who will protect the treehoppers from predators in return for a chance to feed on the honeydew secreted by the bugs. This is a perfect example of mutualism in the animal kingdom. Some studies have shown that when ants are removed from the Publilia colonies, the rate of predation on the treehoppers increases substantially. In the attached photos you can see the ants tending the Publilia and also a cluster of Publilia together. In the Ash Woods I came across a beautiful little White-striped Black moth, but was unable to get a photo in the few seconds I saw it. But I can show you a photo of the same species taken a few days ago in Larose Forest. Finally, and still on the insect front, another shot of a lovely red nomada bee on yellow rocket (Barbarea vulgaris). (Photo above.) As always, lots to see and all this in the middle of the city. Even after 14 years working around FWG, this STILL amazes me.

24 May — photos and notes from Christine Hanrahan Today's heat brought out a few butterflies, but they were moving fast, not posing for photos. Within the space of a few minutes I had seen Spring Azure, Red Admiral, Clouded Sulphur and Cabbage White. The red admiral shot is from a week or so ago, but taken at FWG. These butterflies, like many other species, nearly vanish when they close their wings. As you can see, they would melt into the vegetation. It was only that this one was sitting on one of the rocks in the butterfly meadow that it stood out. Red Admiral Underside of Red Admiral 4-Spotted Skimmer Dragonflies and damselflies were also out in small numbers, the most visible being this very cooperative Four-spotted Skimmer. Down by the pond, a couple of male eastern forktails were flying over the water. Various other insects were much in evidence, including lots more of these tiny red Nomada bees. This photo from a few weeks ago. A shield bug was trundling his way through the grass, and refused to present anything but his underbelly to my camera. So I have a lovely shot of his bright green underside, but that is all. Not sure of the species yet. Various Syrphid flies (hover flies, flower flies) are very much in evidence, doing their best to mimic bees. Many of these species are important pollinators. A song sparrow was using one of the bird boxes in the Old Field as a perch from which to sing his little heart out! Inside the box, some potter wasps had an almost completed nest. Speaking of birds, you've probably noticed that the eastern kingbirds are back, along with the great crested flycatchers. A common yellowthroat has been singing from the Old Field thickets for a few days now. Turning from fauna to flora, plants are growing like crazy and all sorts of interesting things are coming up. For fans of grasses, now is the time to catch Orchard Grass when it is just at its prettiest. Also, to test your skills, the Alopecuris pratensis, or Meadow Foxtail, can be found at so many different stages that it looks like 3 or 4 species of grass. Here are just 2 examples. Alopecurus Orchard Grass Interestingly, the regionally significant, Figwort (Scrophularia lanceolata), is spreading quite rapidly at FWG. There are several good populations in the Arboretum, and I'm guessing they are the genesis of our plants. Two years ago I found about 2 plants at FWG, adjacent to the Ash Woods. Last year, there were about 6. This year, there are at least 9, and there may be more, since they are still popping up. They are, of course, more attractive when in flower!

19 May — photos from Désirée Scouts of the 1st Blackburn troop visited the Fletcher Wildlife Garden on Saturday to help us out by weeding Garlic Mustard. Garlic Mustard is an aggressive alien species that invades woodlands in particular. We've been trying to control it at the FWG for many years and were very happy when this great troop of scouts volunteered to help this year. Garlic Mustard grows in shade under shrubs and trees, replacing our native woodland plants. Scouts from the 1st Blackburn troop weeded 2 large patches from the area of the FWG on Saturday. Good job, Scouts!!! A big THANKS from the rest of the volunteers at the FWG!

17 May — photos and notes from Christine Hanrahan Here are a few bird photos from late afternoon today (and yesterday),... Baltimore Oriole Yellow Warbler Downy Woodpecker Red-winged Blackbird Red-winged Blackbird nest White-breasted Nuthatch Viburnum lantana The green heron was in the pond, and the male kestel was being fiercely attacked by a crow, although at times the kestrel would turn the table and go after the crow. as well as one shot of a partially hidden red squirrel. This little guy was biting off the flower heads from the Viburnum lantana and chewing part of them before discarding and selecting another. I'm not sure why he was eating only part of them, but he may have been eating the unopened buds.

15 May — photos and notes from Christine Hanrahan Those of you who turned out for the International Migratory Bird Day event at FWG, highlighted by the guided walk led by Peter Fuller, know that a number of birds were found. Despite the cool temperatures, we were lucky to have sunny conditions, because once the walk ended, the clouds rolled in and the weather became even cooler. Peter just sent me the list of species found on the walk, and I repeat it below. Not everyone would have seen every species, but from what I heard when people assembled back at the centre, they were thrilled with what they did see, particularly the new-to-birding people. Several said they'd see us again next year! New this year was an informal "spring count." The organizing body for IMBD events in North America (www.birdday.org), requested that any organization hosting a bird walk, keep track of the number of species and the number of birds per species. These are then submitted to e-bird's special IMBD page. E-bird is a data gathering tool where people can submit their bird sightings online (www.ebird.org). Peter submitted the results from FWG on our behalf. I think it is rather neat that we are part of a much larger event and contributing our data to it, much as we do with the Great Backyard Bird Count organized by David Hobden each year. Bird list, May 12 ring-billed gull 6 mallard 5 canada goose 3 sharp-shinned hawk 1 tree swallow 36 northern rough-winged swallow 4 ruby-throated hummingbird 1 mourning dove 3 rock pigeon 3 northern flicker 2 white-breasted nuthatch 1 brown thrasher 1 american crow 6 common grackle 2 european starling 30 red-winged blackbird 24 brown-headed cowbird 3 baltimore oriole 3 american robin 10 hermit thrush 1 gray catbird 1 warbling vireo 4 black-throated green warbler 1 yellow-rumped warbler 3 yellow warbler 6 nashville warbler 2 american redstart 1 black-capped chickadee 10 ruby-crowned kinglet 2 northern cardinal 2 american goldfinch 8 house finch 3 white-crowned sparrow 5 white-throated sparrow 5 chipping sparrow 2 song sparrow 8 savannah sparrow 1 house sparrow 1 You'll notice that the green herons stayed away for the duration of the walk! As did the kestrels. Later in the afternoon, I did see the male kestrel fly in and sit near the barn for a few minutes.

11 May — photos and notes from Christine Hanrahan It is a good time to be birding at the garden. Yesterday black-and-white warbler, northern parula, black-throated blue warbler, gray catbird, had all just arrived. With the weather the way it is, and given reports from south of us, tomorrow, International Migratory Bird Day, should be an excellent day for finding birds on the guided birding walk beginning at about 10:30 a.m. Tree swallows are still choosing nest boxes Coleomagilla maculata ladybird beetle on dandelion For those interested in insects, both green darners and american emeralds (both dragonflies) were visible at the pond all day. The beautiful little Coleomagilla beetles, one of our native ladybird beetles was quite common on dandelions, as was a tiny red bee which I think is a Nomada species. Toad activity has decreased, although they are still calling and splashing around. Not to the same degree as the other day, however. On the other hand, treefrog activity has increased considerably! Female Red-winged Blackbirds at bird bath in our Backyard Garden

7 May — photos and notes from Christine Hanrahan A toad with its inflated vocal pouch with which it makes its distinctive trill Exhausted looking toads It was a humid, warm afternoon at FWG, and the toads were clearly having a grand time. One section of the pond was alive with the sound and movement of at least 55 toads (those were only the ones I counted ... there were certainly more calling from out of my sightline). One of the green herons standing over them did nothing to dampen their ardour. They certainly put on an astonishing performance. At one point, they were so frenzied that three of them jumped a turtle slowly cruising by! This is not the turtle of a few days ago, being considerably smaller. After being jumped a couple of times, he (or she) slowly subsided into the debris at the bottom of the pond. Toads are notorious for latching onto just about anything that moves during breeding season, especially if it is the size of a female toad (the turtle, though small, was certainly not THAT small!). Any toad making even the slightest movement was jumped by at least three or four, sometimes five or six others. At one point, the toad on the bottom of one heap, no doubt a female, sank to the bottom and I thought she was dead. But when I had a look through my binoculars, I saw that she was very much alive, still with a smaller toad on her back. I have been told that so many male wood frogs will pile on top of a hapless female that she sometimes dies under the crush. It definitely looked like some of the toads today were in danger! Once these frogs have successfully mated, and it may only take a few days, they'll disperse, back to upland areas. Apart from the frogs, most of the bird species I mentioned a few days ago were present. Additions were a Baltimore Oriole (singing away at the top of the ravine) and a Black-throated Green Warbler. A black swallowtail butterfly was flying around the field north of the Ash Woods, but didn't stay still long enough for even an attempt at a photo. A darner, probably the common green darner (which has a blue abdomen, so that is the colour that dominates one's vision as it zips by in a blur), was patrolling the pond. Tree frogs were calling from several locations in the garden, including the back wall of the centre. But what really amazes me is the sheer speed with which plants grow. I was away from the garden for a day and a half and when I arrived back there this afternoon, I found the serviceberry shrubs in flower, violets springing up all over the place, wild strawberry and barren strawberry flowering, and on and on! Every day brings something new!

7 May — photos and notes from Christine Hanrahan It was a lovely day at the garden with quite a lot to see. Rather than bore you with long descriptions, for the most part I'll just list what I saw. BIRDS Red-winged Blackbirds 9 (incl. 1 female nest building) Tree Swallows (25+, all checking out nest boxes - photo) Song Sparrow 3 Yellow Warbler 2 American Robin 6 American Goldfinch 10 Black-capped Chickadee 7 Brown-headed Cowbird 1 Northern Flicker 2 Cardinal 2 Red-eyed Vireo 1 White-throated Sparrow 2 House Sparrow 6 Green Heron 2 (photo below) American kestrel 1 (male) Cedar Waxwing 3 Crow 20 Chipping Sparrow 1 (photo right) MAMMALS Chipmunk 3 Red Squirrel 5 (incl, one that had found a cached walnut which was nearly as big as it was. I have a video clip showing the speed with which this little guy tore off the husk to reveal the nut) (photos) Grey (Black) Squirrel 7 Fox, 1, chased from the vicinity of the Butterfly Meadow, into the Ravine, by a flock of 20 crows! HERPS American Toads - many, trilling their little hearts out in the Pond as well as in the stream running west from Hartwell Locks, where the chorus at times was a dull roar! Green Frog 1 (photo) Painted Turtle 1 (photo) INSECTS Mourning Cloak butterfly 1 Spring Azure 1 (photo below left and detail in centre) Bee Flies (quite numerous) - The particular species I saw was Bombylius major, one of the earliest of this family to fly in spring (photo, not great, and not taken at FWG - the ones this morning would not sit still). I don't think it is on my FWG list of insects. Six-spotted Tiger Beetle (very poor photo) Polistes wasps Bumblebees including a Bombus ternarius, which I think is called a red-banded bumblebee Lampyrid species (a firefly) Plus a number of other insects moving so fast that I was lucky to get a half second glance, if that, so no idea what they were. In terms of vegetation, the bloodroot is almost over, white and red trilliums are in full flower, along with bellwort, foamflower is growing, as is solomon seal and false solomon seal, but really, the most significant to me, is the emergence in the last few days of our good and dear friend, dog-strangling vine :-)

6 May — photos from Tony Denton On Sunday morning, our intrepid crew of volunteers managed to clear away the torn tarpaulins that have been festooning the north slope of our Amphibian Pond. Andrew S and Rob spread the largest over a new area of dense Dog-strangling Vine (DSV). Meanwhile, Gretchen, Gillian, Martine, Andrew K, Chris, and Sandy dug out the last few DSV roots from the now-bare spot, which had been covered since fall 2005, and planted it with Wild Raisin (Viburnum cassinoides) shrubs. These shrubs have an extensive system of fine roots, which we hope will prevent erosion on that steep slope. The lovely white flowers and, later, the black berries will attract butterflies and birds. This week saw an improvement in the Backyard Garden as well. Malcolm, Ed, and Tony installed the cedar bench they've been working on that will be dedicated to the memory of our friend and long-time FWG volunteer, Dale Crook.

2 May — photos and notes from Christine Hanrahan I intended to stay only a short time at FWG today, but ended up spending more than 3 hours there. My real reason for going was to re-install in the Old Field, a damaged bird box that Colin had kindly repaired. I had no sooner finished tightening the wire around the post than a tree swallow swooped low above my head and landed in a nearby shrub. Within 30 seconds of my walking away from the box a pair were checking it out. Five minutes later 5 swallows were fighting over it! It was such a lovely day that I decided to build one of the brushpiles I've mentioned before. To digress: I intend making fewer but bigger, wider, longer brushpiles in hidden locations, away from public view, to serve as escape places for wildlife. This one took a lot longer than anticipated and by the time I was finished, it was well past noon. On my way back to the centre, I saw a cheeky little red squirrel in a birch tree. He looked at me for a long second and then very deliberately, I swear, turned and began chewing on the bark. He stopped at one point, looked over his shoulder at me as if to say "So, you want to make something of it?" and nonchalantly went back to his chewing. BTW, the robin is sitting on the nest on the security light, south side of building. Can you let Friday volunteers know to be careful? Ah well, it was still a lovely day. Made even lovelier by the arrival of two green herons this morning.