HollerPhenology

Mayflies in the holler

My walks through the holler have multiple aims -- to see what's out there, to walk with my dog and visit with my neighbor, and to check on numerous plant and animal species that I observe for Nature's Notebook. Almost everyday, though, I see or hear or smell at least one thing I didn't expect. On Mother's Day this year, it was this mayfly, a species I had never seen before:

Female imago, Green Drake mayfly (Ephemera guttulata) and exuvia (below), May 8, 2016 [Image credit: Cathie Bird]

I had no clue about what species this was or what the silvery-looking thing was just below it on the stem of grass. I submitted an ID request at BugGuide right away, and got a fairly quick response, from someone who knows mayflies, that he believed this to be a female imago (adult form) of Ephemera guttulata, commonly known as a Green Drake. I did further research based on this identification and happened to find a Wikipedia page that pictured the "exuvia" of Ephemera danica, a mayfly also known, in some parts of the British Isles, as a Green Drake:

Exuvia of Ephemera danica. Genoa, Italy [Photo credit: Hectonichus]

This solved the mystery of the other mayfly-looking-thing in the photo I took. I felt very fortunate to have found both the adult and its exoskeletal remains! I'm guessing it hadn't been out long and let me get several photos while it adjusted to its emergence. Later in the day, both imago and exuvia were gone.

If my Grandpa -- a great fly fisherman -- was still around, I'm sure he could have told me a lot about Green Drakes and other mayflies. When I did a search for Green Drakes, a lot of fishing websites popped up.

In 2014, I found this mayfly, which I'm guessing is some form of Hexegenia limbata, near the door of the Pioneer post Office:

Possibly Hexagenia limbata, June 23, 2014 [Image credit: Cathie Bird]

I believe this is one of the genus Leptophlebia. I came across this one on a fallen sycamore tree during a holler walk in 2012:

Leptophlebia intermedia, maybe? March 10, 2012 [Image credit: Cathie Bird]

This was the first mayfly I was able to observe and photograph here in the holler. I think it's likely another of the genus, Leptophlebia:

Leptophlebia nebulosa? March 31, 2010 [Image credit: Cathie Bird]

Mayfly communities have been of interest to me since I found out they were vulnerable to drastic surface mining operations such as mountaintop removal mining. Before I ever saw one here in the holler I had read some of the research and often mentioned them when I testified at public hearings to oppose destruction of headwater streams by coal mining.

Last year the Office of Surface Mining released a draft of its new Stream Protection Rule. When finalized, some of its provisions may protect mayflies and other species from further damage. However, the coal industry is trying to delay a final version of the rule until President Obama leaves office, hoping they will have a shot at killing stronger protections for Appalachian headwaters. Appalachian Voices has issued an action alert through which citizens can tell OSM that we need a final rule now.

Also, some of the research on mayflies and surface mining is available online if you're interested. For example:

Patterns of Ephemeroptera taxa loss in Appalachian headwater streams (Kentucky, USA)

Elevated major ion concentrations inhibit larval mayfly growth and development

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Who Sings What in the Holler

Last spring as the holler filled back up with bird calls, I decided to make an extra effort to identify more of my winged neighbors by sound. Once leaf out gets underway, it becomes increasingly difficult to spot birds around here, especially the smaller ones. This project had a slow start as I tried to figure out the best way to start matching up vocalizations to the scores of species that breed here, live here year round, or just pass through.

Fortunately actual sound recordings are easily accessible on the Internet. I was online using Cornell's Lab of Ornithology's All About Birds site almost daily last summer.

There was one song in particular whose maker had eluded me for at least 3 years. I was determined this was the year I was going to figure it out. Whoever it was came in large numbers (compared to other species), arrived fairly early in the spring and stayed all summer. I heard the songs most often at the forest edge along the flood plain of Hudson Branch, a headwater stream that flows through the holler.

I guessed it might be a warbler, so started there. I reviewed all warbler species likely to breed in this area and then started through typical calls one by one at the Cornell site. In the meantime, I kept an eye out for any bird movement during my holler walks. If I heard any call I didn't recognize, I tried extra hard to locate the singer.

Photo credits: Wikipedia, originally posted to Flickr as Blue-headed Vireo by Dominic Sherony

My first success was not with my mystery bird, nor even a warbler. One day I happened to see a small bird with a slate blue head, white eye ring and wing bars, with white and yellowish feathers on its undersides. While I still had it in view, it started to sing. Yay! I raced home, found a likely candidate in my go-to bird guide (an updated 1983 version of this one) and went online to check the song out. I confirmed it was a blue-headed vireo: a first for me and a new addition for my holler bird list.

I think the next bird-to-sound match I made was that of a Kentucky Warbler. Again I lucked out and saw one very low to the ground on a small bush just before it started to sing.

Interestingly, one of the species that came to mind to rule out was the Hooded Warbler. A few weeks later I finally identified this species as my mystery bird. I had been mimicking its song mentally for several years, but recognition among the many recordings I heard just never clicked. One day, after spending some extra time listening to all the varieties of it being sung in the holler, I made an audio match at All About Birds. To date, I have only seen a female for sure and had brief sightings of what I thought were males. Still, it was exciting to be 99% sure of an ID by song, and I added Hooded Warblers to my observation list at Nature's Notebook.

Male hooded warbler. [Photo credits: Wikimedia and Mike's Birds]

Another warbler I had seen but not heard for sure was the Yellow-throated Warbler. For a couple of years, a pair has been nesting in the woods close to my house. I often see the male(s) hunting for insects around my porch and driveway. One year I saw the parents and some fledglings. Last summer I was able to connect this bird with its song.

While I sit here waiting for spring and all the new sounds it brings to the holler, I have been getting to know the White-throated Sparrows a little better. I usually see them in groups in the thicker brush along Hudson Branch which made them hard to identify at first. On several cold and snowy days this winter I've seen them picking around the patches of dried out Leafy Elephant's Foot (Elephantopus carolinianus) just outside my study window. Their distinctive markings, including the yellow lores on a couple of the males, were very clear at closer range. Here's the best photo I've gotten so far -- a little grainy because I took it through a grubby window on a gray day, but satisfying to get even this view when much of the holler is still sleeping, waiting for the eruption of life that is now only weeks away.

Male White-throated Sparrow on February 9, 2016. Other searchers around the Elephantopus this year have been Tufted Titmice, Cardinals and American Goldfinches. [Photo credit: Cathie Bird]

 

The latest holler awesomeness: butterflies, moths and a little red eft

After I saw the rare and local Golden-banded Skipper on May 6th, I wondered what I could see here in the holler that could be anymore exciting. This week I found out that the joy of rarity can be topped by multiple unusualnesses.

I took this photo of Eastern Tiger Swallowtails this morning, and assumed (from a distance) that the black ones were dark phase females of that species. However, I had seen butterflies earlier in the week that I thought were either Pipevine or Spicebush swallowtails. When I took some time to study this picture today, I realized the dark ones were Papilio troilus, the Spicebush species:

Eastern Tiger Swallowtails (yellow) and Spicebush Swallowtails (black), May 16, 2015  [Photo: Cathie Bird]

Out in the yard this week, a large butterfly circled my head a couple of times. My first thought was "Monarch" even though I have never seen one here. A day or two later I thought I saw one feeding with some other butterflies, but I didn't have my glasses or a camera to catch a good image. I checked out my butterfly guide to narrow down the possibilities so that, if I saw it again, I could look for details that would help me identify it. The two possibilities seemed to be a Monarch or Viceroy. Just by its size, I suspected it was a Viceroy.

Today I solved the mystery when this cooperative Viceroy let me get close enough for a bunch of pictures:

Lemenitis archippus, May 16, 2015 [Photo: Cathie Bird]

 

Monarchs and Viceroys are in different families. Viceroys share a lineage with Red-spotted Purple butterflies that showed up about 10 days before I saw the Viceroy.

I also had an an unusual encounter with a Luna moth this morning. Most often I see them outside around my porch light. On occasion a Luna moth has followed my dogs in through the pet door. I spotted this one clinging to the underside of some poison ivy:

Actias luna, May 6, 2015 [Photo: Cathie Bird]

 

To determine whether it was dead or alive, I carefully lifted the leaves with my walking stick; it remained motionless, but I'm pretty sure it was alive:

Luna moth, top view, May 6, 2015 [Photo: Cathie Bird]

The other moth I identified this week is the Mournful Thyris. The first image I got of it has a carpenter bee and two unidentified green worms/caterpillars:

Thyris sepulchralis, et. al, May 10, 2015 [Photo: Cathie Bird]

 

Here's a second photo that zeros in on the moth:

Mournful Thyris, May 10, 2015  [Photo: Cathie Bird]

 

Now for something totally different, here's the little Red Eft -- the land-dwelling juvenile form of the Eastern Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) -- that I found this morning, probably on its way to the creek:

Red Eft, May 16, 2015 [Photo: Cathie Bird]

 

It's been a great week for birding in the holler, too, but I'll save story that for another post.

Unexpected Sightings: Gray Tree Frog, Appalachian Silvery Blue and Yellow-throated Warbler

Gray Tree Frog (Hyla versicolor or Hyla chrysoscelis) on April 11, 2015. [Photo: Cathie Bird]

Sometimes while I'm observing one species, I'm surprised -- and delighted -- by the unexpected discovery of another. That happened three times last week.

The little Gray Tree Frog above hopped out of a patch of wood anemones that I was photographing. She or he stopped long enough for me to get a good photo. I often hear tree and chorus frogs in the holler, but this is the first one I've seen. They spend most of their time up in the trees, but come down during their breeding season -- that's going on now, and probably why I got a chance to see one.

The whitish spot below the eye that is characteristic of both gray tree frogs shows up pretty well in the photo. Distinguishing between Hyla versicolor and Hyla chrysoscelis, however, is a matter of counting chromosomes, which I don't do. Their calls also differ (check out H. versicolor sounds here, and H. chrysoscelis sounds here).

The Cope's recording (H. chrysoscelis) sounded more familiar, and most of the Cope's images I found online looked more like the one I found. At this point, I'm just happy to know it's one or the other.

The tree frog was near this Anemone cinquefolia group, April 11, 2015. [Photo: Cathie Bird]

A few days later I was using binoculars to scan the flower and leaf situation on an eastern redbud. The branch I happened to focus on had an eastern phoebe sitting on it. As I watched the phoebe, I caught a flash of yellow on another branch. Switching my focus, I saw a male yellow-throated warbler that had a beak full of vegetable matter. I have suspected that these warblers nest close by every year; now I have a little more evidence.

I can report one other surprise last week: I was scanning a congregation of butterflies -- mostly Horace's Dusky Wings -- and saw what I thought might be a Spring Azure. I took a photo of it and discovered later that it was an Appalachian Silvery Blue -- the first of this species that I had identified among the many blues that fly in the holler:

Glaucopsyche lygdamus, Appalachian Silvery Blue, April 11, 2015. [Photo: Cathie Bird]

 

Horace's Dusky Wing, Erynnis horatius, April 11, 2015. [Photo: Cathie Bird]

 

Monsanto crops continue to threaten extinction of monarch butterflies

A monarch butterfly on butterflyweed, a type of milkweed, at the Lenoir Preserve Nature Center in Yonkers, New York. (Photo: Don Sutherland/flickr/cc)

 

Herbicide-resistant genetically modified crops have brought the iconic monarch butterfly to the brink of extinction, according to a new report presented by the Center for Food Safety to Congress on Thursday.

The report, Monarchs in Peril (pdf), is the most comprehensive look yet at how Monsanto's 'Roundup Ready' crops have helped decimate the monarch population, which has declined by 90 percent in the past 20 years.

Monsanto Crops Pushing Monarch Butterfly to 'Verge of Extinction' at www.commondreams.org

 

The report linked above [Monarchs in Peril: Herbicide Resistant Crops and the Decline of Monarch Butterflies in North America] summarizes some of the  recommendations for federal agencies, Congress and state governments that have been put forward by scientists and public interest groups concerned about the monarch's future. These include listing the monarch under the Endangered Species Act, and reopening past assessments of herbicide-resistant crops by the USDA pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

Monarch Breeding Map/Center for Food Safety

In August of 2014, the Center for Food Safety, the Center for Biological Diversity and several other organizations filed a legal petition to protect the Monarch Butterfly under the endangered species act. The USFWS responded by opening a review of the the monarch's status.

In December, the USFWS published their 90-day findings on the monarch in the Federal register. The public comment period is open through March 2, 2015 on whether to list the monarch butterfly under the ESA.

See also my March 2014 review of work the David Suzuki Foundation is doing to encourage citizen scientists to help protect the monarch.

 

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A rare stonefly may soon be up the creek without a glacier

In 2011, the US Fish and Wildlife Service proposed to list the western glacier stonefly, an insect found only in the upper reaches of Glacier National Park. Listing was later denied, not because the little insect wasn't in need of protection, but because budget constraints prevented its protection in favor of higher priority species.

A spring fed stream in the Two-Medicine drainage of Glacier National Park is one of 2 new locations for the western glacier stonefly (Zapada glacier). [Photo: Joe Giersch, USGS]

 

This week, a USGS press release announced publication of a new study in Freshwater Science that this stonefly may be imperiled by the loss of glaciers and increased stream temperatures due to climate warming in mountain ecosystems.

The study was initiated in 2011, partially to add to skimpy data available for use in the endangered species listing process opened by USFWS. As part of the study, scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey, Bucknell University, and the University of Montana resampled six streams where the western glacier stonefly was known to live. Using species identification and genetic analysis, the researchers found the western glacier stonefly in only one previously occupied stream and in two new locations at higher elevations. 

[Photo: Western glacier stonefly -- Joe Giersch/USGS]

A major problem for the stonefly and other cold water dependent species is that by 2030, the glaciers in the park could be gone. Scientists are concerned about where these species will go as their increasingly fragile habitats disappear.

According to Joe Giersch, project leader and USGS scientist, “Few studies have documented changes in distributions associated with temperature warming and glacial recession, and this is the first to do so for an aquatic species in the Rockies.”

“There are a handful of other coldwater dependent alpine aquatic species here in Glacier that are at risk of extinction due to the loss of permanent snow and ice. Under a warming climate, the biodiversity of unique aquatic alpine species – not just in Glacier, but worldwide – is threatened, and warrants further study,” said Giersch. 

Pickerel Frog

I came across a pickerel frog in the holler today!

Pickerel frog (Rana [Lithobates] pallustris) on 27 September 2014 [Phot credit: Cathie Bird]

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Sights and sounds in the holler: birds, butterflies and bullfrogs

Many different bird species live here in the holler. Usually I hear them more often than I see them.

This week, though, a pair of Carolina wrens poked around in my planters for several minutes -- both of my cameras were in another room, otherwise I could have gotten some good photos. Later, a female ruby-throated hummingbird visited the planter phlox.

That same afternoon I happened to spot a common yellowthroat male in the grass along the driveway, and watched him catch a small green worm. I think I may have seen the female earlier in the day, but couldn't get a positive ID because she stayed in the trees and was partially concealed by foliage the whole time. I think this pair has a nest nearby.

 

Pipevine swallowtail (Battus philinor) feeding on phlox, 4 July 2014 [Photo by Cathie Bird]

And what a great week for butterflies! Now that the Echinacea is flowering and my planter phlox continues to bloom, I can see awesome butterflies almost any time I look out my window. As the week began I saw a great spangled fritillary and a spicebush swallowtail. A few days later, a pair of Diana fritillaries came to feed.  On July 4th I got photos of the first pipevine swallowtail I've seen this year, and one of my favorite skippers, Ancyloxypha numitor, the Least skipper.

Least skipper (Ancyloxypha numitor) on 4 July 2014 [Photo by Cathie Bird]

Here's a short video of the pipevine swallowtail:

 

While I was finishing up this post, I was able to verify who has been pecking on my house lately:

 

I think this female hairy woodpecker is one of a pair nesting nearby in the Frog Pond Hollow drainage. I saw both of them looking for bugs on a tree last week, and suspected they might be the ones responsible for recent (and sometimes annoying) percussion solos. I'm not sure why, but it's somewhat less annoying now that I've made a visual connection with the drummer.

As a finale for this post, here's a video with a mix of holler sounds on June 20, 2014. Since the birds are not visible, I'll hyperlink each species to its sounds page at Cornell Lab of Ornithology's website. This will help distinguish the calls if you are not already familiar with them. In the first minute of the video, songs of the white-eyed vireo followed immediately by a wood thrush are prominent. At about 1:16, the bullfrogs add their voices. A common yellowthroat joins in around 2:47.

  

By the way, for a fun game, check out Bird Song Hero at Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

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The red efts are on the move!

Coming across a red eft on my holler walks makes me happy. They are so small that finding one can seem almost magical or mystical. Today I saw two!

The first was smaller and moving through a darker part of the holler, so catching a photo while simultaneously trying to keep my almost-blind Walker hound from stepping on it was an extra challenge:

First red eft, 14 May 2014 [Photo credit: Cathie Bird]

I found the second one further up the lane, closer to the house. It was larger and not quite as skittery as the first one:

Second red eft, 14 May 2014 [Photo credit: Cathie Bird]

Red efts are the juvenile, terrestrial form of the eastern newt (Notophthalmus viridescens). They live in places like my holler that have wet forests and aquatic environments such as ponds, lakes or streams. Red efts are known to travel great distances beyond the areas where they came into being. This strengthens the species as a whole because it leads to greater genetic diversity.

I've never seen the larval or adult stages of this newt, but this is what they look like:

Larval phase of Notophthalmus viridescens [Photo credit: USGS via Wikipedia]

 

Adult aquatic life stage of the eastern newt [Photocredit: Brian Gratwicke via Wikipedia]

Within the past two weeks I've also seen a broadheaded skink and a  young eastern 5-lined skink here at the house. They like to hang out around my herb and flower planters.

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Out in the holler: blooming, leafing, chirping, croaking

It's happened again...spring is moving fast through the holler but I have not kept up with it on this blog. Fortunately, I have photos to remind me what's come out so far.

Three of the flowering plants I observe for Nature's Notebook have bloomed (see photos below). The cutleaf toothwort, echinacea, and both orange jewelweed plants have leaves. Last year I missed the emergence of the wingstem. It was the first year I'd observed phenophases for this species, and it was up before I knew what I was looking at.

Rue Anemone (Thalictrum thalictroides) on April 18, 2014 [Photo credit: Cathie Bird]

This week, the center flower of the rue anemone (above) dropped its petals and now has some fruits forming. The dogtooth violet's fruit has already come and dried. The trillium still had a flower yesterday when I looked.

Trillium grandiflorum, April 17, 2014 [Photo credit: Cathie Bird]

All the tree species I observe -- forsythia, redbud, American beech, red maples, white oak, hophornbeam and 2 cloned dogwoods -- have flowered or have open leaf buds, and most of them now have leaves that are clearly increasing in size everyday. Yesterday when the wind came up the air was filled for a short time with beech bud parts and red maple fruits whirling down to the ground.

I'm still planning a separate post on the cloned dogwoods, and hope to get photos today.

Dogtooth Violet (Erythronium americanum), April 6, 2014 [Photo credit: Cathie Bird]

I think a big plant story in the holler this year will be the apple tree. This is the first time in about 3 years that its flowers have not been frosted to death. So far. In the last few days many of the petals have dropped and fruits are forming from some of the earliest flowers to emerge. This is good news for the deer, turkeys and other wildlife that drop by for a bite of the apple. I really felt bad for them last year -- the apple tree and the wildlife -- I only saw one apple make it all the way, and it looked like it had come through a war zone.

Apple blossoms on April 17, 2014 [Photo credit: Cathie Bird]

After my March 11 post on all the bird activity, increased sightings and hearings continued. So far, the male phoebe that has been chattering near last year's nest site does not seem to have attracted a partner. At least one phoebe pair is nesting in my neighbors' barn further down the holler. I'm not sure if I'll have a nesting pair here, though I haven't given up on that phoebe-guy. He's pretty energetic.

I'm routinely hearing male cardinal and chickadee calls on my holler walks now. This week I heard common yellowthroats for the first time this year, and saw a blue-gray gnatcatcher and black and white warbler just outside my study window. The blue jays are still around, too. A couple of weeks ago I made a positive ID of a ruby-crowned kinglet. I think I may have seen some around here before, but I saw the little red crown on this one.

No bull frog sounds yet, but I've heard other frogs. No spring peepers up here either this year. I heard them at lower elevations earlier this spring. I'm wondering what's happening with them, as I used to hear them a lot. Like other amphibian admirers, I have concerns that their absence may be a not-so-good sign.

Okay. Now I'll see if I can do a better job keeping up with the rest of the spring, summer and fall life cycles manifesting in the holler.

 

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