NestWatch starts

Six nestboxes are up, ready for the NestWatch citizen science project.  We monitor nests in these boxes and look for nests in the trees or shrubs on our property. http://nestwatch.org/   For several weeks, we've seen Eastern Bluebirds, Tree Swallows, Black-capped Chickadees, Northern Cardinals, American Robins, and Red-bellied Woodpeckers acting like it is nesting season.

The bluebirds selected box number 4 for their nest.  It faces an open expanse of grass where the adults will hunt grasshoppers, crickets, spiders, caterpillers, and dragonflies to feed the young birds once they hatch.

Chickadees had lined the floor with moss,
but the Bluebirds took over and added a grass cup above the moss.

swallowtail

This beauty was in my studio this morning!
I collect plant specimens in the autumn and keep them to draw or paint indoors during the cold months.  I recall pulling this chrysalis off the deck umbrella a few months ago, and placed it among the interesting things in my art room. 

between garden and woods

In summer, the Agastache blooms blue and provides sweet nectar for bees and butterflies.  Now, the seed heads stand in sunlight, a favorite food for Chickadees and Finches.

gooseberry winter

Walking through the woods in snow.

Some plants display interesting winter personalities, very different from their growing season garb.

The Eastern Prickly Gooseberry Ribes cynosbati reaches out its long curving canes to call my attention to their defense of juicy berries this coming summer.

sparkly snow on seedhead

photo by Julie Pritschet

red bellies

 























A pair of Red-bellied Woodpeckers live in the wild wild woods.  This winter, they come to the feeder tray one at a time, so observers might think there is only one.  But they give themselves away when they call to one another from different trees.  The male has more red feathers on his head, extending from his lores all the way to the nape of his neck.  And yes, they do have a patch of red or orange feathers on their bellies.

ground camouflage

Camouflage of brown and gray and buff.  The outfit allows a sparrow to blend in among the leaves and litter while hunting for seeds, fruits, and insects on the ground.  But the pure white throat, striped head, and yellow lores gives away this White Throated Sparrow.  They've come south for the winter from Canada where they breed and raise young in nests on the ground.  

nuthatch

White-breasted Nuthatches forage up, down, and sideways on tree trunks and around large branches.
They often start high in a tree and move down head first, probing into bark crevices or chipping away at wood to find food while moving quickly at odd angles.  On a vertical surface like a suet cage, they turn upside down, pausing to crane their necks up and back for a look around.  

reflections on a rock

Wandering in the woods, I came upon this rock.  It has been there a long while and I've walked by it before.  But today it looked more interesting with a pool of rainwater in the depression, reflecting the tree trunks above.

bird feeder garden

The veggie garden has been transitioned to a feeder garden for birds and pollinators.  This year --  among the tomatoes, beans, peas, and squash -- I planted more native flowering plants.  We watched as the nesting birds nearby brought their juveniles to the feeders and taught them how to feed themselves rather than gaping and begging.  Now, with seed feeders and suet cages loaded, we'll start FeederWatch in a few weeks; we'll enjoy watching the birds that gather here and report our counts for ornithology research.

chipmunks and sparrows

Stripes in the grass!  The chipmunks Tamias striatus often hang out beneath the feeder tray.  They can hide among the raspberry canes and safely dart out to gather seeds that the birds fling over the edge.  The stripes on the chipmunks' backs give them away when they think they are being stealthy.
(They love tomato juice -- in the summer, they chew holes in my garden tomatoes and suck the juice.)
This week migrating White-throated Sparrows Zonotrichia albicollis joined the chipmunks gathering a meal, kicking among the grass to find each seed.  Both species display stripes as part of their camouflage outfit.

Eastern Chipmunk

White-throated Sparrow

autumn harvest

female Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis on birch

The winter "guild" of feeder birds is forming.  The adult birds in the wild wild woods have molted into their new feathers; their offspring juveniles have learned to fly and hunt on their own.  As the leaves change color and insects are less abundant, birds instead harvest the ripe fruits and seeds on shrubs and trees.

travel ready

The hummingbirds have been filling up on nectar for their migration south in coming days.  This is the latest date I've seen Ruby-throated Hummingbirds still in Minnesota.  But then, the climate has allowed flowers to bloom later than usual too.

milkweed munchers

One leaf of Common Milkweed was being devoured by both a caterpillar and a beetle.  I wonder if either knew the other was there?

Indianpipe

Indianpipe Monotropa uniflora is white because it contains no chlorophyll;  it derives water and other nutrients by tapping into the thread-like cells of the vegetative part of soilborne mycorrhizal fungi.

It appears in forests, scattered, and uncommon.  It will grow near a narrow range of mushrooms in the Russulaceae family.  We saw this on a field sketching day in a nearby remnant of Big Woods.

Indianpipe is also called Ghost Plant or Corpse Plant.

sunflowers

I always try to grow sunflowers as food for the birds.


This big one was gorgeous before it fully bloomed, as well as after it opened!










However, as usual, the seeds are enjoyed by more than just the birds. 

resident Hummingbirds

This year, we put a dry branch up as a perch extending from one of the feeder poles.  It is the favorite spot for the hummingbirds to sit and survey their flower garden.

feathered nest

Tree Swallows Tachycineta bicolor, who line their nests with found feathers, fledged their five young out of the nestbox a few days ago.  This is what I found when clearing out the box.  I clean and save such feathers, then put them out again in Springtime for the next nesting season. Some birds place colored or shiny items in their nest . . . wire, yarn, ribbons, etc.

This collection included a little blue sparkly hair pin! 

baneberry

  

Red Baneberry, also known as Toadroot and Chinaberry, grows in shady damp areas.  The white flowers grow in spikes that bloom during May in the wild wild woods.  Through the summer months, Baneberry Actaea rubra  ripens its fruits, which are egg-shaped berries, one-half inch long, shiny, containing several seeds.  In late summer, the berries turn bright red with a black dot on them. The berries are bitter and very poisonous, except to birds that disperse the seeds.

Downy woodpeckers and squirrel

The Downy Woodpecker parents are busy feeding the young birds in their tree cavity nest.  Every few minutes, one of them brings a worm or bug to the young.  At least one is now strong enough to climb up the inside wall of the cavity and beg for more food.  Here, the male gives a worm to the hatchling.

 When the adult birds are away, a red squirrel comes by to see if he can peek in.

 

Downy Woodpeckers feeding young

The pair of Downy Woodpeckers, seen on May 15 excavating a nest cavity in the wild wild woods, have successfully hatched their clutch of 6 eggs.  For the last several days, they spent many hours hunting for small insects and worms to feed their young.  Sometimes hunting is good; they have to line up and take turns delivering the meals.  For protection from intruders, these small birds purposely create a cozy cavity with an opening just big enough for them to squeeze through.

Worms? Monsters?

Worms?  Monsters? These are “finger galls”.

Insects or mites feeding on a leaf, or laying eggs on or injecting eggs into part of a plant, cause galls to form. The leaf tissue reacts by increased production of normal plant hormones and localized plant growth.  The outcome is an abnormal plant structure called a gall.  These look like tiny wiggly "fingers" protruding from elm leaves.

Gall formation usually occurs in late spring during the accelerated growth period of new leaves, shoots, and flowers.  This is when insects might be feeding on plant tissue, or emerging in their life cycle to lay eggs.  The gall-making insect develops inside the gall and the gall continues to grow as the organism feeds and matures.  In autumn and winter, some birds feast on the insects they find inside galls, especially on goldenrod.

peek inside a nest

A pair of Tree Swallows Tachycineta bicolor are nesting in one of several nest boxes near the wild wild woods.  Today she laid the third egg.  She is not yet incubating them, but keeps guard at the box opening all day. 

feeding baby birds

In a corner of the woods, hidden in one of several nest boxes, a mother Black-capped Chickadee Poecile atrcapillus feeds her young nestlings.  As soon as they hear her land at the opening, each "gapes" as wide as possible to get fed the most.  What is she feeding them?  Mostly insects and small worms . . . for protein to grow fast.  They need to be able to fly in just a week or so!

furnishing a nestbox: House Wren

 

A House Wren Troglodytes aedon carries twigs, one at a time, to a nest box.

The male works until he fills the box with twigs, leaving a small cup or cavity. 

The female adds soft grasses, fur, feathers, and junk to line the cup where she will lay her eggs.

 Below, we peek inside another nest box containing a cozy nest for seven wren eggs.

The female will incubate the eggs for about 2 weeks.