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Posts Tagged "garden"

Festive Song Sparrow

Posted on Dec 1, 2016

Festive Song Sparrow

This is one festive Song Sparrow…even though it didn’t know it. The reds and greens in the background are Pineapple Sage (Salvia elegans) that can linger through the fall and into the winter, providing very late nectar for anything that needs it.

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Monarch Butterfly

Posted on Nov 30, 2016

Monarch Butterfly

This is obviously a bit of a throwback to earlier this summer and yet another gorgeous Monarch (Danaus plexippus) butterfly enjoying some nectar in a garden. Have you seen any more Monarchs hurrying their way south in November? Considering how warm it has been in some areas there is still a chance to spot one or two here or there after having emerged recently, trying to elude the snow. Most of the Monarch butterfly population has already made their way to the wintering grounds in Mexico. Some of the species does overwinter in California, and counts will be conducted once again at many of...

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Nelson’s Sparrow

Posted on Oct 11, 2016

Nelson’s Sparrow

The October sparrow push continues! A huge flight of nocturnal and diurnal migrant birds have moved through the Northeast region in the wake of last weekend’s cold front, and that timing was about as good as it gets for sparrow lovers. This morning I was wandering around Stratford Point doing some surveying with my dog Zach and recording whatever would pop out of dozens and dozens of songbirds present. He is a large sheltie, and his oversized fox look is very helpful. He assists in hazing waterfowl out of the historic shot fall zone, and in the uplands little birds usually flush then...

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Garden Orbweaver (Argiope aurantia)

Posted on Oct 3, 2016

Garden Orbweaver (Argiope aurantia)

This looks like a Garden Orbweaver (Argiope aurantia) spider, and you can make it’s appearance into whatever you think it looks like! Eyes…a skull? We will post some more Halloween and October themed sightings throughout the month, while emphasizing they aren’t all scary or creepy, and plenty of the fall foliage as our environment explodes in exquisiteness. What a time to be outdoors!

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Fall Bobolink

Posted on Oct 2, 2016

Fall Bobolink

This Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) was a beautiful sight for the first day of October as it fed on seeds with sparrows, especially once it allowed this great a look. Keep an eye on your fields, grasslands, gardens and farms for more birds like this one still heading out and other new migrant species – like the Vesper Sparrow – arriving soon.

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