Nature Notes from Sue

Greetings, Saturday night I was out conducting my first moth survey of the season in Talbott County. The habitat was a deciduous forest. The largest moths we have in Maryland are in the "Giant Silkmoth" family. We saw the Polyphemus Moth and the Luna Moth on Saturday. The caterpillars of both species feed on a variety of deciduous trees and are common around the state. They are big and beautiful! Polyphemus Moth Luna Moth When I conduct moth surveys, I attach 2 ropes between two trees. One rope I hang a white sheet on and the other I hang a black light so that it shines on the sheet. Black lights are really good for attracting nocturnal insects. The insects will land on the sheet and then I photograph them. This is something you can do in your own backyard! I contribute my observations to the Maryland Biodiversity Project. There are over 2600 moth species already documented around the state!

Greetings, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to post this photo of a Turkey Vulture in the early morning sun at Triadelphia Reservoir early this morning. Many of you have probably noticed this bird on a light post or sign along the highway perching with the wings spread out and wondered, why? The main reasons are thermoregulation and drying. At night, this bird actually lowers its body temperature. Spreading the wings in the early morning sun can help the bird warm up as well as dry the dew from its feathers. Do you know where any of these birds are nesting? If so, please let me know! This one is a hard one to document in the Breeding Bird Atlas. They nest in rock crevices, tree hollows and stumps, abandoned barns and sheds, etc.

Greetings, Have you been noticing butterflies fluttering about lately? This past weekend I was at the Patuxent Research Refuge and saw this lovely Red-banded Hairstreak. It isn't the biggest butterfly (about 1 inch), but there is no mistaking that red band on the wings! The caterpillar for this species feeds on fallen leaves of oaks and sumacs, so plenty of caterpillar food in our area. Just a reminder, the Howard County Bird Club has an online form on their website for you to submit your butterfly observations in Howard County, https://howardbirds.website/butterflyreport/