Viceroy Update: Caterpillars have emerged!

The hibernating Viceroy caterpillars have emerged! In a previous post I wrote about the earlier stages of their development. I took this series of photos of one of the same caterpillars over the last week. It is interesting that it still returns to the hibernaculum to rest since it has emerged. It has molted at least once since it emerged (they overwinter in their third instar [molt]), so it is in fifth instar by now. 

You can see one of its old skins just above it.

 It has turned a grayish-green color now, which means it is about to pupate.

Notice how this caterpillar resembles a twig or bird dropping. If that isn't enough, the willow leaves and other Salicaceae these caterpillars feed on contain salicylic acid, which makes these larvae bitter and distasteful to predators.

I'll be out of the country for the next ten days, but I hope to update you on its progress after I return. In the meantime, pending internet availability, I may post some pictures from the other side of the world.

Joseph

Previous post in this series: Viceroy Hibernacula: Something about butterflies for a change

Northern Parula

Mom dropped Bryant and me off at Dillon Nature Center for about 45 minutes this afternoon while she did some shopping in town.  We had been there for a little bit and were looking through the usual Yellow-rumped Warblers, when we heard a sharply ascending buzzy trill.  Right away we identified it as a Northern Parula and went rushing around the lake to try to find.  It was up in the top of a large sycamore tree (which Parulas like) singing its heart out.  We knew it was right above us in the tree, but we could NOT see it!  We searched for about five minutes but simply couldn't spot it.  Finally it flew away into a different sycamore tree where we located it and got some pictures.

Northern Parula: photo by Andrew

This was only the second time we had seen one in Kansas.  The one other time was down near Cheney Lake.  Joseph had been to Dillon Nature Center about a week ago and was pretty sure he heard one, so maybe this was the same one.

We continued walking the trails and finding lots of Yellow-rumped warblers.  We also saw a Audubon's Yellow-rumped, which is a subspecies of the Yellow-rumped Warbler.  

Last Saturday there was a Little Blue Heron in one of the puddles in our field.  I managed to creep up and get this nice picture.

Little Blue Heron: photo by Andrew

Migration is really starting!

Andrew

Yellowheads

When a flock of Yellow-headed Blackbirds descended on our farm yesterday, I was happy to spend some quality time watching and photographing them. These flocks are interesting in that they are completely segregated. This flock was made up entirely of males, but in a few weeks the males will be gone and the flocks will be composed only of females.

The males migrate first in order to stake out the best breeding territories before the females arrive.

What have we here?

 The windmill seemed to be the perch of choice.

The end 

Joseph Miller

Quivira on April 17

When our birding friends Wayne and Lois Hochstetler, who now live in Illinois, invited Andrew and I to accompany them on an excursion to Quivira on Friday, we were more than thrilled.  Wayne and Lois lived in this area for fifteen years in the 80's and 90's.  They were active in the birding community, and Wayne helped found Friends of Quivira and served as its founding president for five years before they moved away.  They were eager to revisit their old haunts and we were delighted to join them.

We arrived at the refuge at around 10:30 a.m. and after a brief stop at the headquarters, we headed on around the Little Salt Marsh.  The numbers of American Coots on the water was impressive, and we also enjoyed scoping the variety of ducks and other water birds including Eared Grebes and American White Pelicans.  The drainage canals on the north side of the marsh produced this beautiful Horned Grebe and Belted Kingfisher at close range.

Belted Kingfisher: photo by Andrew.

Horned Grebe: photo by Andrew

On our way up to the Big Salt Marsh at the north end of the refuge, we stopped at Park Smith Lake where we picked up Cinnamon Teal.  It was a year bird for Andrew and me, and quite a beautiful one indeed.  This gorgeous drake was swimming among the reeds near the edge with other teal before we disturbed it.

Cinnamon Teal with two Blue-winged Teal: photo by Bryant

As we continued north from Park Smith Lake, we stopped to scan a large flock of Franklin's Gulls standing in a body of water beside the road.  Andrew, who was the first one to put up his binoculars, informed the rest of us of the presence of a very large tern among the gulls.  We all hurried to get a look at the Caspian Tern (A Kansas lifer for Andrew and I!) before it headed off north.  Andrew managed to snap off this picture before it took off.

Caspian Tern with Franklin's Gull for size comparison: photo by Andrew

We also turned up six American Golden Plovers in a burned field a short while later.  This was a year bird for Andrew and me.  In non-breeding birds, the most definitive field mark that separates American Golden Plovers from their close relative the Black-bellied Plover is the lack of black axillaries (or wingpits), which the Black-bellied have.

American Golden Plover: photo by Andrew

American Golden Plover showing distinctive white underwing coverts differentiating it from the similar Black-bellied plover: photo by Andrew

The Big Salt Marsh proved to be its usual hot spot.  First of season (FOS) birds included three Marbled Godwits, an unusual twenty Hudsonian Godwits, Black-necked Stilts, White-faced Ibis, seven Forster's Terns, five Snowy Plovers, and about a dozen Long-billed Dowitchers.

On our way home, a flock of several hundred Yellow-headed Blackbirds near the roadside brought us to a screeching halt with our cameras protruding from  the windows.

Yellow-headed Blackbird: photo by Bryant

When I got home, I picked up a few extra species around our place, bringing my day total to 100.  Not bad for the middle of April.

Bryant

Hoskinson's Sandpit: April 7

Bryant had a piano lesson in town today, so I got to go to Hoskinson's Sandpit for about an hour and a half this afternoon.  Over the past several weeks we have seen a gradual increase in Franklin's Gulls and a gradual decrease in Ring-billed and Herring.  Today they were almost all Franklin's with only about thirty Ring-bills and no Herrings.  As I sat there I saw a small bird swimming away.  I looked over and it was an Eared Grebe, I was pretty pleased because it was only the second time I had ever seen one in Reno county.  It was also a pretty good year bird.

Eared Grebe 

 I walked around the sandpit and got my first of season Cliff Swallow along with a fly-over Osprey.  I started walking back and saw a Swainson's Hawk, I saw a pointy winged raptor flying behind it.  I looked at it and was amazed to see a Peregrine Falcon, which is a good bird at this time of year.  Unfortunately it was too far off to get any pictures, but it was a very neat bird!  As I walked back to where I would wait for Bryant, I saw a large bird fly out of a tree.  It was a Black-crowned Night Heron!  It circled back around and came by me so I could get some okay pictures.

Black-crowned Night Heron

 I then sat down to check out the Franklin's Gulls again in hopes of finding a Bonaparte's Gull.  After a little bit I saw two gulls flapping around and identified them as Bonaparte's.  To top it all of I had two first of year Purple Martins fly over, giving me year bird #140 in Kansas.  It was a gorgeous day to be out, but it was a bit warm.

Bonaparte's Gull  (center)

McCown's Longspur!

Yesterday evening I decided to bike over to some alfalfa fields nearby to see if I could find any interesting birds.
 There were dozens of American Pipits flying around, as well as several Baird's Sandpipers looking out of place in the dry field. Before long I heard a longspur flying over. It didn't sound quite right for Lapland (the most common species in the area). As it landed it flashed a mostly white tail with a black "T" pattern. Bingo! Diagnostic for McCown's! This lifer then helpfully flew far out in the field, far out of photography range. I was a bit disappointed that I hadn't got better looks or photos, but then a second McCown's flew in as well! This one was just barely close enough for my camera, but I managed to get some horrible but identifiable pics.

Bryant, Andrew and Anthony showed up a bit later to look for the longspurs, but although we found several Lapland and Chestnut-collared Longspurs we were unable to relocate the McCown's.

A horrible photo, but you can just make out the black "bib" of the McCown's

This morning I returned to the field with Anthony and relocated one of the McCown's, along with many Lapland and Chestnut-collared Longspurs. This time we were able to get much closer and got far better looks and photos.

  American and Sprague's Pipits were also common. A few of them doing their display flights, singing their beautiful song as they soared high above us.

  It isn't surprising that this species is often overlooked! Their secretive nature, choice of habitat (mostly wide open short-grass prairie) and camouflage, makes them very hard to find. 

Sprague's Pipit's are supposedly quite uncommon in the area (and in fact didn't make on to the Reno county list until 2012), but we have found that they are actually quite common migrants in short alfalfa and overgrazed pastures.


First of year migrants are an almost daily occurrence now, with Swainson's Hawk, House Wren, Cliff Swallow, Grasshopper Sparrow, and Upland and Least Sandpipers all making appearances in the last couple of days.

 Eastern Phoebes are back, singing at the top of their lungs.

 As are Vesper (above) and Chipping Sparrows

While winter residents like this American Tree Sparrow, have nearly all left for the summer.

And the butterflies are back! This Common Checkered Skipper was one of several new species for my year list recently.


Joseph