Late April to Early July 2014 - Wonders of Nature Outside My Door

The Earth abounds with natural treasures. 

 It doesn't take long to find a few of them if we are just a little observant.

The past couple months have zoomed by with only a lengthy post (Brown-headed Nuthatches) for my friend Judy who passed away last week after battling pancreatic cancer for several months.  But I was seeing lots of other things, too.  So here is my attempt to catch up.

4-26-2014 

In a nest box in the backyard I found these six newly hatched Carolina Chickadee babies in a nest of moist green moss that was lined with soft, soft fur from perhaps a neighborhood dog.

5-1-2014

This male Crane Fly (Tipula species) was hanging out on the back door of the lab, seemingly all leggy and clumsy like I was in junior high school.  Well, now, too, except a lot fatter!

5-2-2014

The baby Carolina Chickadees are about 7 days old and are starting to get their black caps.  Maybe they are dreaming of graduating from the nest  in 10 days or so and going on to flight school.

5-2-2014

A nest of five baby Eastern Bluebirds at the lab (Box #2) are piled on top of each other and just two days from flying.

5-4-2014

I found this dried out, flattened, and tailless Ground Skink in the Bluebird nest the day after the young birds had fledged.  Later in the month I found another skink in a second bluebird nest (Box #5) on the other side of the laboratory campus.  Never thought of sweet, gentle bluebirds as reptile hunters. 
 (see link)

5-7-2014

Peggy found this Copperhead hanging out beside the house late one afternoon.  It definitely blends in with its surroundings.  It got moved down the road to a more secluded area.  Many safety precautions were taken!
(see link)

5-9-2014

The six little Carolina Chickadees are looking like adults now.  They stayed in the nest a few more days and fledged on 5-12-2014.  They're off to flight school!

5-11-2014

This little Eastern Worm Snake turned up in a pile of wheat straw.  Notice its two tone brownish gray above and pink below.  This is quite a gentle snake and never offers to bite.

But it will drag the pointy end of its tail across your hand as a defense mechanism.  It rather tickles!
(see link)

5-14-2014

A pitcher plant's mouth reminds me of Kermit the Frog.  They both eat bugs!

5-15-2014

This very small long-horned beetle showed up this morning on the back door of the State Lab.  The body is about 1/4" long and the antennae are nearly twice that.  The species name is Hyperplatys aspersa. 
(see link)

5-16-2014

I found this male Yellow-bellied Pond Slider crossing the road between the Fairgrounds and Carter-Finley Stadium. Check out his very long toenails!  I like the beautiful yellow striping and his very pretty eye!

5-27-2014

A mud dauber decided to nest in one of the bluebird nest boxes I put up at the lab.  Above it a paper wasp started her nest which hangs from the ceiling.  The mud dauber builds one chamber at a time.  It catches and paralyzes a spider which it puts in the chamber.  It lays its egg on the spider and then closes up the chamber before beginning to shape another cylinder.   

5-27-2014

In another nest box at the lab a family of Carolina Chickadees built their mossy nest.  I provided many of the boxes with peat cups to make it easier to observe the growing babies.  The female Chickadee laid five eggs but only these three hatched.

5-30-2014

Another moth visitor to the back door of the State Lab is this delicate looking Banded Tussock Moth also known as the Pale Tiger Moth.
(see link)
and
(see link to caterpillar)

5-30-2014

This Virginian Tiger Moth is difficult to distinguish from the Agreeable Tiger Moth.  The third picture in this series shows the orange markings on the top of its abdomen that are characteristic of the Virginian.

This is a view of the Virginian Tiger Moth's underside.  It is also called the Yellow Woolybear Moth.
(see Yellow Woolybear)

This view of the Virginian Tiger Moth shows the yellow-orange markings on top of its abdomen.  

(see link)

6-2-2014
It took me a while to figure out this insect.  I searched through crickets and grasshoppers and their kin, and discovered that this is an American Shieldback Katydid.  The long ovipositor indicates that this is a female.
(see link)

6-3-2014
In Box #6 at the State Lab the first two of five Eastern Bluebirds hatched this morning.  Ultimately only one more would hatch.  The three young Bluebirds flew from the nest seventeen days later on 6-20-2014.  At the State Lab we have had five Eastern Bluebird nestings and a Carolina Chickadee nesting.  At home we've had two Eastern Bluebird nestings, a Carolina Chickadee nesting, a Carolina Wren nesting, a Brown-headed Nuthatch nesting, and a failed nest of Tufted Titmice.

6-5-2014

In State Lab Box # 2 Eastern Bluebirds have laid their second clutch of five eggs.

6-5-2014

Just behind Box #2 a Killdeer has laid her four eggs right on the ground in the mulch that was piled there after clearing the ground for the State Lab.

6-5-2014 

The third Eastern Bluebird nestling has hatched in Box #6.

6-9-2014

 The four Eastern Bluebird nestlings in Box #2 have hatched.

6-9-2014 

Back to Box #6 the three Eastern Bluebird nestlings are six days old and showing their wing feather sheaths.

6-12-2014

A female Eastern Box Turtle ambled across the area behind the State Lab's loading dock.  Angela Truelove pointed her out to me, and we admired her beautiful colors.

6-13-2014

After a light sprinkling of rain, the mother Killdeer's outline can be seen in the mulch where she had left her nest for a moment to distract me with her broken wing act.

(see video of "broken wing" act)

6-23-2014

A Killdeer egg with a very pointy end.

 6-24-2014

This male Common True Katydid sat for a picture on my dusty shoe this morning.

(see link)

6-25-2014

A young Tulip Poplar sapling has leaves made lacy by a horde of hungry Japanese Beetles.  A growing flock of juvenile Starlings that have fledged from the cavities in the security lights towering above the State Lab parking lot have been seen feasting on the beetles as they chase the metallic green morsels across the grassy areas and sidewalks.  Perhaps we will be audience to a murmuration of Starlings this autumn.

(watch video of a murmuration of Starlings)

6-26-2014

The four Eastern Bluebirds in Box #2 have been dining on Wild Black Cherries as evidenced by the numerous cherry pits in the nest.  Today is their last full day in the nest as they will fledge tomorrow.

6-26-2014

In Box #5 Eastern Bluebirds have made their second nest and three of their four eggs have hatched.  The two fuzzy chicks hatched on 6-25-2014 and the "wet" one hatched today.

6-27-2014

Randall helped me identify this flower that showed up in our front yard for the first time this year.  This is a Carolina Wild Petunia.  I had never seen or heard of it before.

6-29-2014

Peggy found another treasure today and called me to take pictures.  This is probably a Cork-lid Trapdoor Spider, or a Ummidia species per BugGuide.net

 (see link)

Trapdoor spiders build an underground burrow that is lined with silk.  The spiders fit the burrow with a cork-like "trapdoor" constructed of silk, soil, and vegetation.  They lie in wait for an insect to pass by.  Click the link below to see what happens.

(see video of a trapdoor spider catching its prey)

Also interesting is that though this spider appears to have five pairs of legs (ten), the front pair are actually modified mouth-parts called pedipalps.  The size of these pedipalps indicated that this is a male spider.  The male spider uses these structures to transfer sperm from himself to his mate.

The spider's cephalothorax is shaped a bit like Darth Vader's head.  I have read that these spiders are harmless (that is, not venomous), but others say they can deliver a painful bite if handled roughly.  Fortunately, I must have been gentle enough.

7-1-2014

A male Eastern Bluebird stands guard on top of Box #2 at the State Lab.  His four young fledged a few days ago and they are in the woods nearby.  This box was home to two nests of five eggs each.  All five babies fledged from the first nesting.  Only four eggs hatched of the second clutch and all four babies fledged.

7-2-2014

A Carolina Wren has recently built her nest in an old pottery birdhouse jug from Seagrove.  She has four eggs so far and lots of plastic lining the interior of the nest.

7-2-2014

This afternoon, I heard a couple birds behind the lab making fussy chipping sounds.  I went back to the lab for my binoculars so I could see what species of bird was in distress.  To my surprise (and delight) I found it was a male Blue Grosbeak with a juvenile male which was brown like an adult female, but had blue on its head.  As I investigated to see if their nest was nearby, I discovered the source of their agitation.  What appeared to be a Black Rat Snake or the Black Racer I'd seen in the area several weeks ago, turned out to be a convincing edge of an erosion control fabric that was mostly buried at the back edge of the lab's property.  If you look closely, you can see the frayed edge near the middle of the picture.  I'm sorry I didn't have a camera that could capture a picture of the Blue Grosbeaks.

7-2-2014

I have seen two species of Hairstreak Butterflies.  This one is the Red-banded Hairstreak that I found at home.  

 (see link)

7-2-2014

I bought this carnivorous Sundew plant at the State Farmer's Market a month ago and it appears to be adding baby plants already.  Watch out insects!

7-3-2014

Though not a great picture, this leaf-like creature was lying beside a refuse container behind the lab this morning.  It looks to be a Large Maple Spanworm Moth.  Its larva is one of the inchworms or measuring worms.

(see link of adult)

(see link of inch worm)

A Brown-headed Nuthatch Nest

"Rubber Ducky, you're the one!"

If you ever hear the sounds of a rubber ducky squeaking in the trees or bushes in your neighborhood, start looking for the lovable Brown-headed Nuthatch (BHNU).  I often hear their call before I see them.  But these days I have had the joy of watching a pair of these small nuthatches claim ownership of one of the three new "bluebird" nesting boxes we put up last fall.  I hope to get some decent pictures of the adults soon, but for now I'll share with you what is going on inside the nest.

Click here to listen to a recording of a Brown-headed Nuthatch

On the morning of April 14th I found the first egg.  The parents had been working on the nest for a couple weeks already.  They had shown interest in another nesting box in the yard, but a Eastern Bluebird pair had picked that one for themselves and would chase the nuthatches out of the box. You can see that the majority of the nuthatch nest is made from thin strips of wood and inner bark.  There are a few bits of leaves and a piece of moss.  I am not sure where they get the wood material, but some of it could have come from a large mulch pile behind our house. 

I didn't check the nest very often after finding the first egg, but by April 23rd there were five cream colored eggs covered with a multitude of reddish brown speckles.  Around the perimeter of the nest there appeared wads of some sort of fiber that reminds one of polyester.  A chickadee nest in our third nesting box has the cavity in the center of the nest filled with what appears to be the soft under-fur of a long haired dog.  It is curious that the soft material in the nuthatch nest is placed along the edges.  Also added to the nest are what appears to be the membranous "wings" of pine seeds.  As I waited for the mother bird to incubate her eggs, I noticed on several occasions that both adults would be in the nesting box at the same time.  I believe that they roost together at night.  A few times I have seen both adults squeeze through the entrance hole at the same time.  They are a lovely and energetic pair.

On the morning of May 1st I found the first baby nuthatch draped across two of the eggs of its brood-mates.  You can see the two pieces of its eggshell, one just above its head and the other just below its left wing (it sort of "caps" the end of another egg).  The very sparse natal down feathers are wet and look like strings plastered on its otherwise naked head and back. Its eyes seem large in proportion to its head. Its wings and legs look almost pliable.  Baby nuthatches, like most songbirds are altricial, that is, they are not able to feed themselves and must be cared for by their parents. 

Twenty-four hours later on the morning of May 2nd three of the babies have hatched and a fourth has split it eggshell in two.  You can see one of its wet little natal down feathers on its back.  Its nest-mate is "gaping" for a much anticipated meal from one of the parent birds.  The yellow lining of its mouth makes an easy target for the adult bird to find in the shadows of the nesting box.

About 20 minutes later the pieces of broken eggshell are gone, removed by the parent birds, and the newly hatched nuthatch has joined in the gaping with three of its nest-mates.  The fifth egg remains unhatched 24 hours after the first egg hatched.  You can see in this picture how small these babies are compared to my hand.  In this particular nesting box, I inserted a four inch square plastic plant pot that I could remove in order to photograph the babies.  This method helps protect the structure of the nest, and helps prevent the babies from falling out.

Later in the day of May 2nd, the fifth egg hatched.  Mom and Dad Brown-headed Nuthatch will be very busy for the next few weeks rounding up insects and pine seeds for their offspring.

On the morning of day three I watched from the window of my car (my makeshift bird photography blind) as both adult birds ferried morsels of food to their hatchlings.  I observed an adult nuthatch cleaving off pieces of peanut from a cylindrical wire mesh feeder about 30 feet away.  I could not tell if this was food for the parent bird or if it was delivered to the young ones.

Still on the morning of day three, all three babies are resting comfortably.  I had the opportunity to share the view with two elementary school girls who were helping their parents with landscaping at the neighborhood's entrance.  At one point, all five babies had their mouths open at once.  The kids were delighted and smiled a lot!

On day four the little nuthatches are developing a few more down feathers.  You can also see the darkening of strip of wing feather follicles along the wing of the nestling on the right.

The wing feather follicles are lengthening on day five.  The nestlings eyes are still closed.

The two little birds on top show some difference in the width and density of the feather tract down the center of their backs.  I am imagining that the baby bird on the right hatched the day before the little one on the left.  The oldest baby is six days old.  Their ear canals are more apparent.

The primary and secondary (wing) feather sheaths are lengthening.  This is day seven.  They'll be using these future feathers to fly in eleven or twelve days.

On day eight everyone looks comfortable.  The nestling in the lower left has its wings out stretched.

The wing feather sheaths continue to lengthen on day nine. The young birds still beg for food when I open the nest box.

On day ten, the tips of feathers begin to peek from the ends of the feather sheaths. (see close up)

This is a close up of feathers beginning to emerge from their sheaths.   

There is a hint of an eye opening on day eleven.

The wing feathers continue to grow on day twelve as more of the feather extends from each sheath.  At least two birds have their eyes fully open.  As their beaks lengthen, the white flanges at the base seem to be thinning a little.

The wing feathers look like an array of paint brushes, primary, secondary, and tertiary. Natal down is still frizzy on the nestlings crown on day thirteen. 

The wing feathers are more fully formed on day fourteen.

On day fifteen, the young nuthatches' beaks remind me of fossils of sharks teeth my kids and I found many, many years ago in Moseley Creek where it flows under NC Highway 55 at the county-line between Lenoir and Craven Counties in eastern North Carolina.

The young bird at the bottom of this picture must be the youngest as you can still see some of the feather sheaths on day sixteen.

On the morning of day seventeen, all the young nuthatches look fully feathered.  The diagnostic white patch is quite evident at the nape of neck of the birds.  The crown of each bird is still fairly gray and not brown like their parents.

On the left of the picture you can see the long back toe (hallux) with a long curved nail (claw) the will be used to hang upside down from tree bark when these little ones are out on their own.  This is day 18.  I learned tonight that this long back toe is the same toe as our big toe.  If ours was in the back we could perch in trees, but we would have a hard time finding shoes to fit!  (see source)

On the morning of day 19 the young birds are showing more brown in their wings.

Things are getting a bit crowded by the afternoon of day 19.

On the evening of day 20 I am surprised to still see these guys still in the nest.  They are in no danger of leaving the nest too soon. They should have a good chance of making a strong first flight.

The young nuthatches began fledging on the morning of day 21.  Shortly after this picture was taken the first of the five flew from the nestbox.  I added a makeshift "ladder" made from 1/4" hardware cloth to help them climb to the entrance hole since this nest cup was rather slick on the inside.

Even though some of the young had flown from the nest at least one parent was still ferrying food to the nest box.  

and then there were three... 

and an adult bird still kept bringing food...

till there was only one left.




The last little nuthatch flew shortly after this picture was taken and soon the young birds were hanging on the sides of a large Loblolly Pine being fed by a parent bird.  All of the young left the nest within a couple hours.

This is not a crisp picture, but you can see a little better the parent (above) feeding the young bird.

Over the next few weeks I have seen the parents with as many as four young birds.  Now the young ones are coming to peanut and black oil sunflower seed feeders near our front door. I have to say I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to observe up close this family of energetic Brown-Headed Nuthatches.  

And they really do sound like rubber duckies!