Japanese Beetle (Popillio japonica)
This week is invasive species awareness week. There are plenty species to highlight in just one short week, but here’s one that seems to be particularly prevalent this time of year. The Japanese Beetle (Popillio japonica) is easily recognized by the characteristic rows of pale hairs on its abdomen and can be found in dense concentrations on a variety of fruit-bearing plants. Anyone growing blueberries, raspberries or blackberries can attest to how much damage they can do in a short period of time, if left unchecked!
Read MoreTricolored Bumble Bee (Bombus ternarius)
Have you ever seen a Tricolored Bumble Bee (Bombus ternarius)? This pollinator has quite a dashing look. There are actually 46 species of what most of us call “bumblebees” in the Americas north of Mexico.
Read MoreDelta-spotted Spiketail (Cordulegaster diastatops)
Last June we discovered a Delta-spotted Spiketail (Cordulegaster diastatops) along a busy road that turned out to be a first Chautauqua County record. This past weekend I discovered an individual of a new population at a second location in CHQ that Twan photographed here. We are hoping to record other spiketail species this spring and summer at a few more sites in the Chautauqua-Allegheny region.
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