Bronx Bugs, Birds And Bats

Greater Angle-Winged Katydid

2012-01-23T16:23:00.000-08:00

I believe this was a Greater Angle-Winged Katydid...

Random Bee Pics, from the back yard - Click To Enlarge -

2011-09-03T16:09:00.000-07:00

Carpenter Bee, on Pink Sedum - (Friendly)

(2) Honey Bees, on Sedum - (Mostly friendly, only get mad if you're near their hive)

Pic above & below: A Leafcutter Bee, on the Sweet Pea flower I planted (last year). Cute, wide head! (Friendly) - Pic below shows the characteristic lifting of their pollen-carrying butts! (Abdomen, actually) -

Computers are so unreliable...

2011-08-25T19:00:00.000-07:00

Yes, even the best cared-for PCs can have problems. I ought to know, I was a Sr. Computer Engineer for ~15 years (before I became disabled).
Well, despite all that and having taken all the proper precautions - one of my fully-packed hard drives was "taken down" by a few Trojan horse viruses that got through.
Luckily, I had the old hard drive still handy, and that's why it didn't take me long to get back up and running.
So, anyway; it got me thinking - I should get my wildlife/nature pics up here, because I never know when I'll lose access to them (like now!). So, I'm going to post some random & miscellaneous pics (from this old drive).
Hope you enjoy!

A Skipper, from Long Island NY
...The only (good) pic I was able to find (for now).
More to follow...

Notes On Bees

2011-08-10T21:34:00.000-07:00

Just random notes on Bees -

Bees tend to be attracted to flowers that are blue, purple, and yellow.
Members of the daisy family, Compositae, are good for bees. As are: Cosmos, Zinnia, and Dahlia (single. Again, avoid the double varieties.
Small, shallow flowers such as mustards, valerian, buttercup, goldenrods, asters yarrow (Achillea sp.) and Queen Anne's lace attract a great variety of short-tongued bees and beneficial hover-flies.
Members of the mint family are also attractive to many long-tongued.bees. This includes many herbs such as sage (salvia), oregano, lavender, and mint as well as native plants like Nepeta, and Stachys. Their nectar is the main attractant.

Small Yellow Underwing Moth (Catocala Sp.)

2011-08-02T14:01:00.000-07:00

Small Yellow Underwing Moth (Catocala Sp.) - Species not identified yet...But, I will soon!

I can't believe I was lucky enough to stumble across this beauty, right outside the front door!
For those who don't know: Most times, you need to go into some wooded area, do some 'Sugaring', etc. etc. in order to see an Underwing Moth. So this was great! Here are some un-edited / un-enhanced pics:

Pictures Of Bees From The Backyard - 2011

2011-07-30T21:28:00.000-07:00

I like to take snapshots of Bees (and other insects) while they are going about their work...without disturbing them. But, I figured I'd bring these 2 indoors - Temporarily, just to photograph. They were brought back outside, and released (unharmed).

Appears to be a Honey Bee -

And a (very lazy) Bumble Bee -

Pictures Of Butterflies I Raised (and released) Years Ago...

2011-07-23T10:58:00.000-07:00

Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker - An old pic - NYBG

2011-05-03T23:49:00.000-07:00

Old pic I came across...Taken a few years ago, at the New York Botanical Garden (Bronx, NY)
(definitely not a great shot, but anyway - )

Taken from the woods, on Hunter Island - Pelham Bay Park Bronx, NY

2011-01-27T13:55:00.000-08:00

Late afternoon...Hunter Island - Pelham Bay Park Bronx, NY
(Not far from Orchard Beach)

Skipper - September 2009

2009-10-13T20:26:00.000-07:00

Skipper on Pink Sedum.

A peek inside 'The Simple Bat Detector'

2009-10-01T12:39:00.001-07:00

I needed to take a quick look inside the frequency division detector I built a while back...

Sallow Moth

2009-10-01T12:36:00.000-07:00

Gray Hairstreak Butterfly

2009-09-29T19:58:00.001-07:00

Wildlife recording in an urban environment

2009-08-16T18:08:00.000-07:00

I have come to the conclusion, that trying to record night sounds ("singing" insects) or "The dawn chorus" (birds singing at sunrise) is not always successful in an urban area. There are lots of other noises to contend with: various motor vehicles, low-flying passenger planes, and various other very unpleasant sounds. BUT - You can always make ultrasonic recordings. Ultrasonic detectors are not affected by the various noise pollution. Aside from the occasional very low flying jet, there aren't any man-made ultrasounds to contend with. So, you can always record the ultrasonic sounds of bats and certain insects. And, I thank God for that!

Ain't he cute? , from back in '07, enjoying the sugar

2009-03-01T22:17:00.000-08:00

An old shot (of a Sallow?), taken back in 2007, Alley Pond Park Long Island NY.
During a minor "Sugaring expedition"

Raptors at the Pelham Bay Park Landfill

2009-02-03T21:33:00.000-08:00

As mentioned in the last post, Landfill area is a great place to see birds of prey - as evidenced by this shot with 2 raptors captured in the same frame!

Pelham Bay Park

2009-02-03T21:10:00.000-08:00

A long-distance shot, a beautiful American Kestrel, with it's morning breakfast - a Vole it just captured. Small rodents are the largest critters that this small Falcon is able to catch.
This was taken at Pelham Bay Park, the bird was hunting in the Landfill area. This is where all the raptors can usually be found: soaring, hunting, and perching.
It is just such a cool and cute bird!

1/2/2009 Out of the back window

2009-02-03T21:06:00.000-08:00

Just a Blue Jay, in my backyard.

Another Photo of a Long Eared Owl

2008-12-30T16:35:00.001-08:00

As yet, Unidentified Sparrow PBPK

2008-12-30T13:44:00.000-08:00

Below is the only pic I got, of what appears to be some type of Sparrow, on 12/29/08. I have not been able to ID it yet. It was photographed at Pelham Bay Park, near Orchard Beach, it was hopping around the ground in a small swampy area, with lots of tangles and vegetation:

Hooded Merganser at The New York Botanical Garden

2008-12-28T20:14:00.000-08:00

Taken with Bushnell 8x32 InstantReplay Binoculars, with built-in 3MP digital camera.

Striped Skunk In Pelham Bay Park October 2006

2008-12-28T19:18:00.000-08:00

Here's a pic of a Striped Skunk that Ron & I came across while birding Pelham Bay Park, on a path not far from the landfill area. I think Raccoons, Skunks, etc. are neat. And when spotted in urban areas, such as around your home or neighborhood they can give you the feeling that there is still hope for urban wildlife. In fact, as I type this (12/28/08 @ 11:45PM) I smell skunk, and my landlord just spotted one in the backyard.

An Owl! Finally! After 3 months of searching...

2008-12-28T10:44:00.000-08:00

I wish I could say that I found the Owls all by myself, but I didn't. Great thanks goes to Debbie Becker; for leading me, and the rest of the folks on her Birdwalk right to them. Debbie leads Birdwalks in the New York Botanical Garden on most Saturdays.

http://www.nybg.org/wordpress/?p=1413#more-1413

Well Debbie located and pointed out both a Female & Male Great Horned Owl to us. It wasn't easy, those Owls really know how to camouflage themselves.

Here is a pic of the Male, taken with 8x Bushnell binoculars with 3 Megapixel built-in camera.
(which explains why the photo quality is soo poor). The image needed to be enlarged, enhanced, etc. I'm still waiting for my film slides to arrive, at which point, I should have some nice photos to upload.

Moth season is in full swing-

2008-06-29T17:53:00.000-07:00

Well, moth season is here. I've been putting the sugar out, and the occasional 20 watt actinic bulb. Didn't get any moths until last night (Sat. June 28th). The highlight of putting the light in the window was a Catocala moth. Picture is not very good. The sugar is out tonight and I hope to get some good Owlet moths...

Unidentified caterpillar

2007-11-12T10:48:00.000-08:00

Haven't had a chance to look him up yet...

Came to sponge with sugar mix

2007-10-22T19:20:00.000-07:00

I thought it looked familiar...-Green Cloverworm Moth-Plathypena scabra

Thanks to Bob Patterson!

Found in Alley Pond Park, Queens NY

2007-10-18T10:19:00.000-07:00

Leafhopper

And on the third night...the sugar was still holding up

2007-10-16T17:52:00.001-07:00

Had the ingredients, but didn't have the time to mix up a new batch of sugaring mixture.

So, off I went to see how effective the bait would be on the third night of application.

Within 30 minutes of sunset, a few moths started to arrive.

These are the photos I got (look like more Sallows? I will make further attempts to ID soon).

IDing these moths is not as easy as one would think. Even with the incredible resources available at: http://mothphotographersgroup.msstate.edu/

It seems akin to trying to ID songbirds during Fall migration. Or Similar to trying to ID Sparrows AKA "Little brown jobs". Thankfully, there are some great Web sites out there that are a tremendous help. I will continue to put in a modest effort to ID them, but please forgive the fact that most are unidentified.

1st Time out sugaring along a trail

2007-10-14T12:19:00.000-07:00

Sunira bicolorago - Bicolored Sallow

This was my first real sugaring excursion, which took place on Sat. Oct. 13th at Alley Pond Park in Queens, NY. The 1 pint container of sugaring mix was only enough to paint 8X8" patches on about 8 or 9 trees. Moths arrived about 15 minutes after sunset. I couldn't make it back on Sun.

: ( The bait was probably most effective on that night - But, I did return on Mon. evening; to see if baited trees really do retain their attraction up to 3 days. Log entry for Monday's activities will follow this one.

Haven't ID'd yet - Came to 20W Quantum BL

2007-10-08T21:50:00.000-07:00

Unidentified - Came to 20W BL

2007-10-07T18:40:00.000-07:00

My apologies for the poor pic quality.

Came to the new 20W BL bulb from Leptraps

2007-10-06T16:42:00.000-07:00

Greater Black-letter Dart Moth -Xestia dolosa

Came to the new 20W BL from Leptraps (Leptraps.com)

2007-10-06T16:29:00.001-07:00

New one enjoying the sugar

2007-10-05T10:48:00.000-07:00

Placed one sugaring tray out last night. Checked it pretty frequently, from 7-10 PM. No visitors.

I happened to get up at around 5AM, checked the bait - nothing. In a last ditch effort, I decided to turn the 4 watt Black light on, placed right near the sugar - And, in LESS THAN 10 Min, this guy appeared:

I was only able to get a few shots, through the window - upon opening the window, it took off.

Came to 4W BLB

2007-10-05T10:41:00.000-07:00

No ID yet

Leps from Long Island -Green Cloverworm Moth-Plathypena scabra

2007-09-30T19:11:00.000-07:00

In the process of trying to ID the moth now...

Recent pic, taken through my back window, at 10x zoom

2007-09-26T09:10:00.000-07:00

Came to 4 watt Black light at window sill

2007-09-20T17:13:00.001-07:00

Still not sure what this is.

Came to 4 watt Black light

2007-09-19T22:29:00.000-07:00

Explicit Arches Moth -- Lacinipolia explicata

I've attempted to ID using field guides & the Web - Thanks to the incredible mothphotographersgroup website (http://mothphotographersgroup.msstate.edu), I've been able to ID the moth above. It is:

Yellow-headed Monopis Moth - Monopis sp. nr. monochella

Very cool-looking Leafhopper

2007-09-18T18:14:00.000-07:00

More photos from my weekend on Long Island

2007-09-18T18:05:00.000-07:00

Picture quality leaves a lot to be desired...but here are some pics from my Sister-in-law's L.I. backyard.

A few photos from Long Island - More to follow

2007-09-17T19:45:00.000-07:00

Spent the weekend at my Sister-in-law/Brother-in-law's house in L.I. this weekend. Was expecting a lot more photo opportunities, but they recently reduced their flower population by 50% : ( I was disappointed, to say the least.

Anyway here are some pics that I got through persistence- Leafhoppers. More to follow (some decent Skipper pics)

Thank you

2007-09-17T08:36:00.000-07:00

My Sincere thanks to Hugh McGinness and Bob Nuelle Jr. for their great posts and comments.
Very informative. Thanks very much to Hugh for the ID's. Thanks Bob, I was very close to buying a bulb from: Leptraps.com; your recent comment was the "clincher" for me.

Best Regards,

Al

Came to 4 watt Black light at window sill

2007-09-15T10:35:00.000-07:00

Sugaring hasn't been effective this week, but the small Black light brings a couple in from time to time.

The two moths that came to 4 watt black light tonight

2007-09-08T21:56:00.001-07:00

Put sugaring "trays" out at 8 PM

2007-09-08T21:35:00.000-07:00

No moths came to sugar yet (it's 12:35 AM now). Did get a couple of small moths to come to the black light earlier. Conditions seem good (warm, humid, overcast, etc.) but, haven't seen an abundance of moths around tonight. I check the streetlights several times each evening.
Not easy IDing these moths with the Peterson guide. The recently acquired 'A Field Guide to Moths of Eastern North America' by Charles Covell Jr. seems to be the exact same field guide -but at three times the price of the Peterson guide! :(
Must find a good guide in the future. Preferably with images of the moths at rest.
...with red flashlight in hand, I'm off to check the bait "traps"...

Sept. 8th 2007 1:00 AM

2007-09-07T22:34:00.000-07:00

Sugaring was successful again. Didn't look up this moth yet, but I will soon. It's too bad that the photo aspect is lost when "shrinking to fit" on this page. Looks a bit out of proportion. I just find it amazing that I've attracted a second type of moth using the sugaring technique on my window sill. Using a slightly different method, will elaborate on a future post..
Tried black light for a short time, no good results. I thought I saw a baby mantid on the light - not sure if they'd be attracted to UV? But if it was - that would have been cool. I've kept mantids as pets before.

No new moths to report (yet)...

2007-09-06T17:46:00.000-07:00

Have been sugaring and "blacklighting" the window sills pretty regularly - but alas, no new moths to report. Weather conditions haven't been exactly perfect lately. Too windy, and/or cool.

I'm fairly new to "Mothing"

2007-09-01T22:59:00.001-07:00

I can use some help in identifying these moths. My current field guides aren't the best.
Please feel free to post identifications of these moths.

Thanks!

Al