The Joy of Hummingbirds

The autumn season in the Midwest brings cooler, more comfortable temperatures, a stunning array of colorful leaves and crisp, sweet apples ripe for picking. When the month of October arrives, I know the departure of our little Ruby-throated Hummingbird friends is not far away. It's no secret I love hummingbirds. Last fall I wrote a blog about my experiences with these tiny fascinating creatures titled Hummingbird Delight.

This past summer, Bruce and I took great pleasure in watching what seemed like hundreds of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds visit the fifteen feeders on our country property. This post features many of the hummingbirds seen over the last few months. It is time to bid adieu to these feisty, diminutive birds who so skillfully perform breathtaking aerial displays. They will surely be missed.

A common sight on our property over the spring and summer months ~ Ruby-throated Hummingbird

 

I did not know hummingbirds were capable of opening their beaks so wide until I witnessed this male exhibit the behavior several times

 

My, what a long tongue this hummingbird has!

 

Ready for departure ~ Take note of the small red feathers developing on the neck (gorget) of this young dashing male

 

A little itchy ~ I marvel at the minuscule feet

 

 A hummingbird wipes its long beak across the branch as if it is a violinist drawing the bow along violin strings

 

All fluffed up!

 

A little action at the feeder

 

While rehanging a feeder, I heard a chirping commotion behind my back ~ I turned around to find these two hummingbirds in a heated dispute

 

Using their beaks like swords ~ Dueling for ownership of the feeder

 

Pleasantly plump for the long migration south

 

Until next year ...



Changes

As many of you know, we are currently in the process of building a permanent residence in northwest Indiana. Bruce is overseeing the project so we have been spending quite a bit of time on our property this summer. One of my favorite things to do is wander about our acreage in search of beautiful nature/wildlife. I most always tote my camera along, just in case I find something of interest. Below are photographs of a few caterpillars I have been observing and the changes they have been going through.

I found this very young Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Caterpillar snacking on the leaves of a sassafras tree. The markings and coloration on the caterpillar resembles bird droppings, which helps protect it from hungry predators. I found three of these caterpillars on the same sassafras tree. This one was the largest, the other two were quite small, no bigger than a grain of rice

Here is the same caterpillar two days later. The eyespots have developed and the coloring on the caterpillar has taken on a greenish tinge. Take note of the mat of silk that the caterpillar has spun atop the leaf. I observed all the caterpillars move from their silk resting spots to feed on other leaves. When finished eating, they returned to their silk pads

I checked back a week later to find a plump, bright green caterpillar with light blue spots

Meanwhile, the smallest caterpillar of the three is developing quite nicely

A day later, the largest caterpillar has relocated to a new leaf and found a companion. They nestled side by side for 24 hours, then the smaller of the two moved on

Appearances can be deceiving. The eyespots are false and what looks like a tongue, is the head of the caterpillar.

To my delight, I found three more Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Caterpillars on another nearby sassafras tree ~ This one seems to have fared well through the heavy rain storm

Back to the largest caterpillar ~  I woke up in the morning to find that its color had changed from bright green to olive-brown with numerous speckles.  The next day it was gone ... my guess is that it moved on to pupate elsewhere

Eventually, the ever-changing caterpillars above will turn into a beauty such as this Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly

While walking through an area with an abundance of wildflowers, I noticed this Common Buckeye Caterpillar on the side of a Queen Anne's Lace flower

Twenty minutes later I found it attached to the unopened flower head and arching upward

I returned an hour and a half later to find it curled up in a "J"position preparing to pupate

 I checked back the next day, and to my surprise, found that it had turned into a pupa overnight. I was amazed at how fast this happened

I have not noticed any changes over the last several days, though the Queen Anne's Lace stem is slowly wilting

 

I have my fingers crossed that I will be fortunate to watch it emerge from its chrysalis, dry its wings and flutter across fields of yellow and purple wildflowers ~ Common Buckeye Butterfly

Countryside Wonders

This post features many wondrous summer sights seen on our country property

~ Identification corrections always welcome ~

A stunning Common Buckeye Butterfly alights on a blade of grass

A delightfully fuzzy Hickory Tussock Caterpillar makes a meal of a plant leaf

 

Filtered sunlight enhances the striking wings of a Viceroy Butterfly

A colorful Black-and-yellow Argiope wraps its unfortunate prey ~ I was one step away from walking through the web before I spotted this busy, large spider (female ~ 3/4 - 1 1/8")

I visited the same spider four days later to find it feasting of web captured insects

This Common Clearwing Hummingbird Moth surprised me by landing on a locust leaf directly in front of where I was standing ~ I had never seen one stationary prior to this occurrence

A Beautiful Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly explores a fragrant milkweed plant

I found this large, fuzzy, yellow American Dagger Caterpillar dining on lush green ground cover ~ I observed it most often on the underside of the leaves

This is the same American Dagger Moth Caterpillar viewed from a different angle ~ Surprisingly, it stayed in the same general area feeding for at least six days

 Bristly Milkweed Tussock Moth Caterpillars collectively swallow up the leaves of a Common Milkweed plant

A delicate, tiny Gray Hairstreak Butterfly perches atop a Common Milkweed bud

This Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Caterpillar has developed what appears to be large eyes, though they are not  ~ The purpose of these distinctive eyespots is to resemble the look of a larger creature or snake, thus scare away predators

This warty toad was larger than my fist ~ It was seen hopping about our building site ~ I believe this is an American Toad

Summer Delights

Our country property is especially lush and beautiful over the summer months. While taking a break from my usual chores, I delight in wandering around our acreage with my camera in hand. There is always something lovely and interesting to see. In this post I feature several of the pretty sights I have observed this summer ~ Identification corrections always welcome

A colorful Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly enjoys the deep purple blooms of a Tall Ironweed plant

 Wild Bergamot flowers attract this beautiful hovering Hummingbird Clearwing Moth

A Monarch Caterpillar navigates the buds of a Common Milkweed plant ~ I have seen very few of these striped beauties this year

A Viceroy Butterfly shows off its gorgeous wings

The iridescent colors on this tiny Condylostylid Long-legged Fly are especially resplendent

Red Milkweed Beetles are regularly seen exploring the Common Milkweed plants

A Wild Bergamot bloom is the flower of choice for this Silver-spotted Skipper

Delicate Eastern Amberwing Dragonflies are a common sight in our peach and apple orchard

 

A busy Honey Bee delights in the tiny blooms of a Sumac Bush

This sightly Eight-spotted Forester Moth was seen flitting around the Common Milkweed plants all day long

Bruce observed a Spicebush Swallowtail Butterfly lay this single egg on a peach leaf ~ I kept an eye on it for a few days ~ Sadly, during a recent visit, I noticed it was gone

Had the pretty green egg survived, it would metamorphosized into a lovely Spicebush Swallowtail like this