northeast-flora-and-fauna

Last November I spotted 2 American Kestrels . Or did I spot 1 American Kestrel twice? It's difficult to say. Butterflies sometimes have wing damage that can differentiate them. With birds though a damaged wing is more likely to be fatal. Sometimes a bird will have unusual plumage that can be used to differentiate them, but on an overcast day and quite a bit of distance between me and the bird(s) I can't really tell you if these are pictures of the same bird or not. My impression is that this is a popular area for American Kestrels - I've seen them here before and know that they nest in the area - so seeing multiple kestrels wouldn't be surprising. If they were uncommon I would be more inclined to think they were the same bird. The sightings were in somewhat different locations since I was walking, so it's not like the birds were in virtually the same spot. The sightings were 17 minutes apart; a kestrel could easily have flown from the 1st spot to the 2nd. Ultimatel

For Throwback Thursday I thought I'd (attempt to) briefly discuss the long, complicated history of our Rock Pigeons (aka Rock Doves).  First off, there are considered to be 12 subspecies of Rock Pigeon kicking around today, suggesting that these birds were adapting to a widespread number of environments well before human civilization emerged. Once human/pigeon relationships emerged, things only got more complicated: The Rock Pigeon is native to Eurasia and North Africa, but not to the Americas. There used to be a wildly common pigeon native to the US called the Passenger Pigeon , but massive hunting and habitat loss by Europeans led to their extinction. By at least 5000 years ago, ancient Mesopotamians domesticated (formerly) wild Rock Pigeons; they're considered to be the 1st bird that humans tamed. They may have initially domesticated them for food but also used them to send messages. Around the same time Ancient Egyptians were using them both as message-carriers and in ritu

I recently looked up what a group of Wild Turkeys is called. Besides the extremely-generic-but-acceptable term "flock", a set of Wild Turkeys can be called a " rafter ". There were at least 6 turkeys in this particular rafter foraging in a small grassy area adjacent to some woods. There are a bunch of collective terms for animals ; it sounds like many of these were intended to be clever witticisms .  November 3, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 251083899, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) November 3, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 251083909, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here's an American Goldfinch I met last November. Some people think they migrate because they don't see tiny flamboyantly yellow birds bopping around during the winter. They might be surprised to learn that American Goldfinch don't "dress" like that all year round; the males have their bright yellow plumage only during breeding season, then go back to a much more subdued plumage (which also provides better camouflage to hide from predators) during the cold weather months. Females are also more colorful during breeding season, though the difference between their summer/winter plumage is a lot more subtle. Most birds have a preference for eating bugs but will switch to seeds in the winter when arthropods are difficult to find. Goldfinches on the other hand are fairly committed vegetarians; they're happy eating seeds all year round. I'm sure the type of seeds they eat varies depending on what's available during a season, but if you're at a dinner par

Here's someone I met last October that ought to be familiar to almost everyone, a Bald Eagle . This is also perhaps the closest I've been to a wild Bald Eagle [1] (though this pair was also fairly close). While I didn't consider myself especially close, the eagle did fly off after a few minutes; it's possible my presence instigated the departure [2]. This eagle was near water, and thus near fish. Behind the eagle was Duke Farms' Vista Lake, where herons, cormorants, and Ospreys get their fish procurement done. Still, I don't often see Bald Eagles on the property; my guess is they prefer fishing in the Raritan River instead. Duke Farms has Bald Eagles that nest on the property ; I don't know if this was either of them.  November 2, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 250356447, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) [1] You can certainly get closer to them at The Raptor Trust , and the Delaware Valley Raptor Center used to give presentations where eagles woul

Here's a Common Drone Fly . As the most widespread syrphid in the world -and- as a bee mimic, it's been suggested that they've been misidentified in photographs as bees more than any other species. And they are very widespread, being pretty much everywhere with the (not uncommon) exception of Antarctica [1] [2]. The males are very territorial, and not just against rival males of their species. They apparently dart after and attempt to chase away bees, wasps, butterflies, and (presumably) other types of flies. Since they can't sting and they're a lot smaller than many butterflies, it's unclear they'd win a fight against any of these guys [3]. Perhaps it's a bluff that frequently works because the other insects don't want to risk a fight against a foe they don't understand? It sounds like defending their territory is so ingrained in them that when they need a break from all that darting around, they actually leave their own territory for some R&am

I heard a little commotion on my patio last autumn; an old iced coffee can I had rinsed out and let drain out there was knocked over. My guess was that a squirrel or bird was the culprit, but when I looked outside I saw a Virginia Opossum waddling off my patio.  I scrambled to dig out my camera and scurried outside to see if I could get a picture, but the little fella wasn't in sight. I was suspicious that an opossum wouldn't be able to get very far with that small head start, so I looked at some of the cedar-like trees outside my apartment. And sure enough, the opossum was up in one of them. Opossum apparently means "white animal" in Algonquian . (That doesn't sound like a perfect description of them, but perhaps "gray-bodied animal with a white face" doesn't roll off the tongue in Algonquian any better than it does in English.) They've leant their name to other similar-looking marsupials in Australia that are called possums  [1]. Slightly con

It's Throwback Thursday again. Here's a picture of what was IDed as a Big Water Crayfish . Despite the "big" in their name, they're not what I'd consider big, topping out around 2 inches long. Their small size and preference for residing in flowing water means I've probably overlooked them since seeing this one 7+ years ago. Although I didn't find a lot about this particular species, it sounds like their genus is mostly omnivorous, eating primarily plants but snacking on very small aquatic animals on occasion. As you might suspect from their overall appearance, crayfish are pretty closely related to lobsters .  This looks like it was taken with my small point-and-shoot camera; perhaps I could have gotten a slightly better picture from my Lumix. On the other hand, the little fella was underwater (albeit not deep water), so there are limitations on how good a picture I can take. August 1, 2015 in Bridgewater Photo 5502811, (c) jpviolette, some rights re

Here's an Eastern Chipmunk I met last autumn. Chipmunks are probably our smallest ground squirrels around here. It probably helps them scan for danger by standing on their hind legs once in a while, mitigating their small size. (Climbing on a log or rock probably works too.) I haven't seen a chipmunk yet this season, but they ought to be out and about soon. October 21, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 250355793, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Though Green Herons will spend the summers here raising their families, they prefer warmer climes during our colder months. I had pretty much stopped seeing them this season until I stumbled upon this fella. As Green Herons are wont to do, this one had its neck in "retraction mode", giving it an un-heron-like appearance. (My guess is that this is the primary reason they're sometimes misidentified.) The heron is also less colorful than most Green Herons I encounter. I wonder if this could be a juvenile that hasn't quite gotten to its adult plumage. (I also wonder if an inexperienced juvenile might be a little late in picking up on the cues to migrate.) October 20, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 250355422, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here's a Common Green Darner I met last autumn. Though this is considered to be one of the most common/abundant dragonflies in NJ and the rest of North America, I've rarely gotten pictures of them. (This suggests I should probably be expanding the locations I tend to visit. Different places can have different fauna. FWIW the only other kind of darner I've photographed was a Fawn Darner .) You should be able to see a small black dot on the front of the face that's almost completely surrounded by a blue circle. This is considered a good field mark for IDing the Common Green Darner. It looks like the sides of this dragonfly are turning bluish; I believe that means this is a nearly mature male. October 20, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 250355089, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Just because I got an iNaturalist ID on this moth today, I'm going to show you a Laurel Sphinx moth from a mothing program 6+ years ago. As moth afficionados have no doubt guessed, the Laurel Sphinx is a type of sphinx moth , a family that includes popular moths like the Virginia Creeper , the Hummingbird Clearwing , and the Snowberry Clearwing .  As immature, adolescent caterpillars, these moths generally eat lilac and ash tree leaves. (I'm not sure whether they eat any other parts of these plants, though I'm skeptical that they can eat both soft leaves and also hard/woody parts of the plants. Perhaps flowers are fair game too?) As you might have guessed from the moth's diet, this does suggest a relationship between ash trees and lilacs ; they're both in the olive family . August 26, 2017 at Duke Farms Photo 10126742, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here's a Song Sparrow from last autumn. I suspect I saw the bird fly into those bushes since it was reasonably well hidden (any probably a fair distance away). And although it was hidden pretty well, I'm suspicious that this location was chosen for the food, most likely those red berries. Though many birds prefer eating insects and other invertebrates, cooler weather eliminates many invertebrates and leaves most of the others hunkering down for the winter. In response, many birds that winter in my area go primarily vegetarian as winter nears, and seeds and berries loom as alternative food sources. If it's winter and you see a patch rich in berries, it's usually worth looking around to see if the local birds are taking advantage of the pantry. More about Song Sparrows is in this video . October 16, 2022 at Negri Nepote Native Grassland Preserve Photo 250354688, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Two days ago was Buzzard Day , and despite the different nomenclature that holiday celebrates the (approximate) return date of Turkey Vultures to an Ohio town. It seems appropriate to show one of our local Turkey Vultures this week, especially since I get so many pictures of them. (I've toyed with doing a "Vulture of the Week" and/or a "Heron of the Week" just to work through all the pictures I've gotten of these birds.) Though here in the Western Hemisphere the name "buzzard" refers to our vultures (including the Black Vulture here in the US), in Europe the name "buzzard" refers to hawks, especially buteos . In most of the world, buzzards tend to be "hunters who sometimes scavenge" rather than "scavengers who rarely hunt". So if you're talking about buzzards with someone from another part of the world, you may not be talking about the same type of bird. October 14, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 250352683, (c) jpviole

For Throwback Thursday here's a Common Yellowthroat I met about 5 1/2 years ago. Despite the "common" part of the name, I don't actually encounter these birds a whole lot; this picture was taken back when I was working at Alcatel-Lucent and going on my after-lunch walk. I suspect this is an immature female; you can contrast her with an adult male here . I don't think there's enough yellow for this to be an adult female, and I see no hint of the black mask that should be starting to form if this was an immature male.  Yellowthroats are a type of a much larger group of birds, the warblers . Though the males are pretty distinctive looking, the females are harder to recognize. September 18, 2017 at Murray Hill Photo 10808625, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

I think this is a Yellow-rumped Warbler that was entering its 1st winter. I say that because the lower half of the bird has the white and dark markings of an adult but has the light brown plumage on the head going down the back. Presumably it'll have adult plumage after its next molt. By the time you get to the Rocky Mountains, Yellow-rumped Warblers have a different look since they've got a different subspecies of Yellow-rumped Warblers; more on those complications are here . And this video has a few more factoids on our yellow-rumped friends. October 16, 2022 at the Negri Nepote Native Grassland Preserve Photo 250354374, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

For the 2nd year in a row I met a Bold Jumping Spider at Duke Farms' Outdoor Education table. It's probably not the same spider though; it sounds like they only live about 1 year , and only an immature spider from the preceding year should be around the following year. I've got a couple theories why this table is popular with them: Perhaps us humans attract flies or other small prey for them to eat. Or our presence deters obvious predators like mantises or larger spiders. They are considered a fairly abundant spider, so maybe they'd turn up in a careful survey of most outdoor spots. It's a long shot, but maybe they're looking to learn about whatever topic was being covered on this day. 😃 Jumping spiders do have a reputation for braininess . October 15, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 250354260, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Sticking with yesterday's woodpecker theme , here's a Downy Woodpecker I met last autumn. It's hard to see, but I'm pretty sure it's a male since there seems to be a hint of redness on the back of his head which shouldn't be there on a female. Since it's usually hard to judge subtle size differences at a distance I usually differentiate the Downy Woodpeckers from the Hairy Woodpeckers by the Downy's proportionately short beak (at least by woodpecker standards). And here's a theory on why Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers look similar. If you want to see them "in action", here's a video . October 14, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 250353122, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here's a Northern Flicker I met last autumn. She lacks the "black mustache" of the males like this fella , making it pretty easy to ID the sex of the woodpecker. Though this is our most terrestrial woodpecker, sometimes eating ants off the ground, I will say most of my pictures are of them up in trees. Bird enthusiast Lesley the Bird Nerd has both an interesting facts video , an all-about video , and another devoted to their ant-eating tendencies .  October 14, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 250352775, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

After talking about White-throated Sparrows yesterday, today I'm going to talk about a wildly different animal, the White-crowned Sparrow . 😉  Okay, they're not really all that different. At least in my area they can look fairly similar to one another - no doubt partly due to them being in the same genus - with a white patch above/behind the eyes and a dark stripe going through the eyes. Some White-crowned Sparrows have a whitish area on their throats, though it's not as distinct as with the White-throated Sparrow. To our eyes the non-head parts of their bodies look similar, and the White-crowned Sparrow is only slightly larger. If you get a look at the top of the head, you'll see a white stripe there on the White-crowned Sparrow, but this can be difficult to see on a profile view. Geographically the White-crowned Sparrow does a better job spanning the continent, but in my area White-throated Sparrows are spotted quite a bit more. Both winter here and south of here,

For today's Throwback Thursday, let's talk about the  White-throated Sparrow . These sparrows breed as nearby as New York but spend winters in New Jersey on south.  Although Dark-eyed Juncos have the "snowbird" nickname, White-throated Sparrows are also commonly seen winter visitors in my area. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology says they'll sometimes breed successfully with their Dark-eyed Junco coworkers despite not being closely related. (These kinds of remarks make me wonder how well we really know how closely related our sparrows are.) The love lives of White-throated Sparrows have an interesting complication. They come in 2 morphs, 1 with a white stripe on their heads and 1 with a tan stripe there. These morphs are independent of sex; both males and females can be either the white-stripe morph or the tan-stripe morph. (All adults should have white throats.) Here's where it gets complicated. Males of both morphs are attracted to white-stripe morph females, a

As the climate warms, it's possible Palm Warblers may spend winters with us, but right now I usually see them as they migrate through. I've shared springtime Palm Warblers before, but last October I saw several, 2 of them pictured below. Although this isn't a truly tropical bird - they breed north of us - they were first documented over the winter in/near Caribbean Palm Trees , which is how they got the "palm" part of their name. They're comfortable in our forests too though; I can only presume that if they had 1st been spotted in NJ they'd have been named something like Oak Warblers or Maple Warblers. Here's some general warbler information from Leslie the Bird Nerd. October 14, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 250352710, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) October 14, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 250353639, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

I have to admit my title is a little presumptuous. Turtles definitely get together for breeding (though these 2 almost certainly won't) but other than that they're considered solitary without forming actual friendships. Their tendency to be seen in groups is probably better explained by: There are only so many good basking locations in an area, so they're kind of forced to congregate at these locations. Similar to mixed-species flocks of birds, they're probably safer in a crowd where many eyes/ears have the potential to detect a predator. Even if they're not BFFs, this Pond Slider and Painted Turtle are at least tolerant of each other, suggesting more civility that you see amongst other groups (like the US political system). And although this picture is from last October, I'm seeing more and more turtles out as the NJ winter wanes. As long as you're willing to keep a respectful distance, you could probably meet a turtle around here today. October 11, 2022

Here's something that might be showing up in a few weeks; it's a Moss Phlox (aka Creeping Phlox aka Mountain Phlox aka Moss Pink). I got an ID on it recently, inspiring this post. I personally only knew this was a phlox, but the iNaturalist community likes it as the Moss Phlox species. My book Who Named the Daisy? Who Named the Rose? by Mary Durant says this about the name: Apart from a variety that grows in Siberia, phlox are an American flower of some seventy different species. The name was an ancient one that Pliny used in reference to a flame-red Campion, or catchfly, so named because phlox means fire in Greek. It comes from the verb phlegein , to burn, which is also the root word for phlegm, believed in ancient medicine to be the cause, rather than the companion, of inflaming fevers and sore throats, etc. Linnaeus took the old name of phlox away from the Red Campion and gave it to the American flowers, some say because the buds furl to a point like little torches or fla

I got an ID on an older picture today, and to celebrate I'm sharing it. This has been identified as a White-banded Crab Spider . I had assumed it was a Goldenrod Crab Spider , mostly because it looked like a yellow crab spider that was lurking amongst the goldenrods. I don't feel too badly about my misidentification: My spider field guide says they look similar. A white/pale band across the face of the White-banded Crab Spider is considered to be the biggest difference between the 2 species, and I didn't exactly get an unobstructed view of the head of the spider. Although both are considered good-sized by the standards of our crab spiders, they're still pretty small. A big female is still under a half inch, and a big male is a third of that. It's kind of hard to see details on any animal this small. I'm pretty sure the unlucky prey is a Western Honeybee . The bee no doubt failed to see a yellow spider hiding in the yellow flowers, a mistake that proved fatal to

For Throwback Thursday here's a Red Fox I met back in August of 2014 at Great Swamp. (A short video is here .) While I had grown up thinking of foxes as carnivores, this one was having green apples for dinner. Perhaps a squirrel or rabbit would have been a preferable meal, but a fox has to eat. And just like there are occurrences of herbivores eating meat , foxes will eat vegetation on occasion. And whatever taste drawbacks there might have been, the apples were both abundant and easily/safely obtained. (I suspect that most wild animals, while they certainly have their preferences, can't afford to be picky eaters.) It looked to me like the fox ate several of the apples before more people arriving inspired it to retreat into the woods.  August 10, 2014 at Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge Photo 258672992, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) August 10, 2014 at Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge Photo 258672978, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here's a picture of an American Kestrel I met early last autumn. Based on the blueness, I'm pretty sure this is a male kestrel. And this kestrel seems to be eating breakfast up in its tree. It's pretty hard to say what breakfast is composed of, though it seems bigger than the insects and other invertebrates that kestrels frequently eat. Though Northern Flickers and American Red Squirrels have been reported as kestrel prey, the American Kestrel is a pretty small predator (America's smallest falcon) and those are probably outliers. The best candidates are probably mice/voles/shrews or one of our small birds. And it's probably something that, before its encounter with the kestrel, would have been considered cute. October 8, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 249885122, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)