What’s that? Who made those methodical carvings in the bark of a consumption weed bush? These are one type of hole made by a yellow-bellied sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius). The bird will lick sap from these shallow holes. Yellow-bellied sapsuckers also make neat rows of round, deep holes to find some sap. You might hear the… Continue reading What’s That? February 10, 2025
Category: Animals
What’s That? February 8, 2024
I was walking in Bond Park the other day and noticed something peculiar. It looked like a piece of shredded wheat cereal tied to a vine. I had no idea what it was, but I knew it wasn’t a piece of cereal. After doing some research, I learned that this is an egg case from… Continue reading What’s That? February 8, 2024
What’s That? July 10, 2025
Oh my goodness! What a sight first thing in the morning! I saw something out of the corner of my eye as I walked by this tree. I thought it might be a cicada, until I got closer. What is that? It is a giant stag beetle (Lucanus elaphus). The males have these large mandibles,… Continue reading What’s That? July 10, 2025
What’s That? July 8, 2024
Is that snow? We’re in the middle of a heat wave in July, it can’t be snow! What is that? That is woolly pine scale. It’s a bug that produces a white, waxy mass on pine trees. The bug sucks the sap and nutrients out of the tree. Can you see the tiny bug under… Continue reading What’s That? July 8, 2024
What’s That? March 10, 2025
While walking on the Crabtree Creek Greenway this weekend, we happened to look up as we were walking under the Route 54 bridge. What is that? It looks like organ pipes made out of mud. That is the nest of the Organ Pipe Mud-dauber wasp (Trypoxylon politum).
What’s That? May 14, 2024
What’s that? What is making those piles of tunnels in the dirt hills along the trails? Miner bees! Miner bees look like bumble bees. They are fuzzy and yellow on the top half of their back, and black on the bottom half. Miner bees are ground nesting bees. Each one of those tunnels is a… Continue reading What’s That? May 14, 2024
What’s That? May 20, 2025
What are these purple and white spots on the goldenrod leaves? They are caused by a bug, a goldenrod gall midge called Asteromyia carbonifera. The bugs carry a fungus (Botryosphaeria dothidea) that protect their larvae from parasitoids. The female Asteromyia lay eggs and deposit the fungus along with the eggs on the goldenrod leaves. The… Continue reading What’s That? May 20, 2025
What’s That? November 25, 2025
What happened to that blackberry branch? The leaves are shriveled and curled up, and there’s white wax on the stem and leaves. This is damage from blackberry psyllid (Trioza tripunctata). Blackberry psyllids are bugs that look like small cicadas. They feed only on blackberry plants. They pierce the stem and suck out the sap. The… Continue reading What’s That? November 25, 2025
What’s That? September 10, 2025
What’s happening with that oak tree? Take a closer look and you will see a family of yellownecked caterpillars (Datana ministra) devouring the leaves.
White-throated Sparrows
White-throated sparrows (Zonotrichia albicollis) are a common sight in my backyard in the winter. They’re always hopping around the yard, kicking up leaves. At 8:30 one morning, I looked out the window and saw three of them. I stopped to observe them and realized they weren’t moving. I watched them for several minutes before I… Continue reading White-throated Sparrows