Pollinator Week 2024

I have been working with European honey bees for almost 13 years now. Some of the things that I love the most are the challenges that present themselves. The dramas of the hive such as queens attacking their sisters, would be invaders being stung to death and then mummified, and the pushing out of the male bees at the onset of the winter for them to starve death are all fascinating. And of course, the sweet, sweet, honey reward. Of course, European honey bees are not native to the United States nor are they even close to our only pollinators. The first hive was brought over on the Mayflower and later spread throughout North America being called the ‘white man’s flies’ by the indigenous communities. 

Virginia is home to over 450 native bees that have co-evolved with our native plants tocontribute greatly to their pollination. They are for the most part not social like honeybees and have a wide range of interesting ways to raise their young independently witheach female making their own nests for their developing brood. Some bees dig holes inthe ground and line their nests with leaves or make a cellophane like substance. Othersuse hollow stems or burrows in logs, and bumble bees re-purpose old mouse burrows.They come in different sizes and colors ranging from bright metallics like the Sweat Beeto dull oranges, browns, and blacks like the Two-spotter Longhorn Bee. Perdita minimais the tiniest bee at only 2 mm in length and our biggest coming in at almost an inch, arethe Common Bumble Bees. None of our native bees make honey, only small packets offood for their young. But they make better pollinators than honey bees for the most partas they have evolved with the native flowers and have different length tongues and have different strategies, like the bumblebee who uses buzz pollination to shake the pollen out of flowers. But wait! You’re sitting and looking at your beautiful ox-eye daisies and you notice something that does not have the body shape of a bee…. Wasps, beetles, moths, butterflies, flies, and even birds pollinate flowers while trying to grab either that sugar fueled nectar reward, using the flower as a base to prowl and eat other insects, or by grabbing up some protein rich pollen. The stink horn cabbage’s bloom smells like rotten meat and blooms in February while the days are still frigid and couldn’t be pollinated by anything other than flies! Scientists are still trying to scout out and count the most likely thousands of pollinators other than bees. I believe I sometimes count as a pollinator as I walk through fields during the summer, brushing past flowers, eventually being covered in yellow from the head down. 

Without this network of a mostly invertebrate, flower loving community, we would be doomed to a life without 75% of our fruits, nuts and vegetables. Over 100 crops in the United States alone depending on pollination. And yet, in a short 5-year study (2008-2013), wild bees declined by 23% across the United States. All over the world, scientists are reporting staggering decline in insect numbers in general. Habitat loss, climate change, and pesticide use are all slowly working against these small but mighty beasts that keep our species going. Although one person, one garden can not reverse what is occurring in our ecosystem, we can do some things that combined, may be the literal life and death of a localized community of insects in your area. Planting native plants of all kinds that bloom at different times of the year allows access to food for these insects during all seasons. Reduce or eliminate pesticide use around your garden. Build brush piles and leave some areas wild. Additionally turning off your outside lights when you go to bed can reduce confusion for night flying insects. There are also a few citizen science projects that are already approved like Budburst and Bumblebee Watch to help count and monitor pollinators so scientists can monitor the changes and declines of our important insects. Either way, go out, find a flower or two, and sit in amazement as something so small that contributes something so important to us all!

Article and photos submitted by Jesssica Driver

References: 

https://www.monticello.org/research-education/thomas-jefferson-encyclopedia/bees-and-honey/#:~:text=The%20bees%20have%20generally%20extended%20themselves%20into%20the,the%20approach%20of%20the%20settlements%20of%20the%20whites.

https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/insights/protecting-the-pollinator-population

https://www.usda.gov/pollinators

https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2016/06/24/reversing-pollinator-decline-key-feeding-future

https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2022/02/24/1082752634/the-insect-crisis-oliver-milman#:~:text=Habitat%20loss%2C%20pesticides%20and%20climate%20change%20are%20threatening,and%20that%20a%20third%20of%20them%20are%20endangered.

Recent Herp Sightings at the Fell Residence

Not a day goes by at my place without a visit from some interesting wildlife!  
Here are some recent visitors from this spring...

This tiny guy must be one of this year's hatchlings.   

Photo by Kathy Fell: Woodland Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina)

I also saw two adult turtles in May. 

Photo by Kathy Fell: Woodland Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina)

Don't forget to submit any box turtle sightings to the Virginia Herpeteological Society!  

Lizards are a daily sighting here. Here are two of the most common:

Photo by Kathy Fell: Eastern Fence Lizard (Sceloporus undulatus)

Photo by Kathy Fell: Broad-headed Skink (Plestiodon laticeps)

This kinky fellow was checking out the bird house off the deck.  

Lucky for the birds, they had all recenlty fledged.

Photo by Kathy Fell: Eastern Ratsnake (Pantherophis alleghaniensis)

Here is what that snake was hoping to have for lunch:

Photo by Kathy Fell: Carolina Chickadees (Poecile carolinensis)

Amphibian Spring - Love In The Rain

By Brian Williams and Dr. Ariana Kuhn 

"It’s February, it’s dark, it’s raining – lets go!”   

While most humans may prefer a warm fire, a glass of wine, and a Valentine’s dinner, herpetologists are pulling on wading boots and rain gear, strapping on headlamps. and heading to the ditches and vernal pools with nets and cameras. So if you see some crazy folks wandering around in the woods on a rainy February night, don’t worry. It's just your local “herpers” out trying to catch the annual nuptial dance of the spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum).

The “Liebespiel” only takes place over a few nights in February and you have to be at the right place at the right time to see these magnificent spotted miracles performing their dance. Even if you don’t see the mating ritual, you might still be lucky enough to catch sight of a few of these impressive salamanders with two rows of bright yellow spots along their backs. Every spring, they migrate from the forest to wetland ditches and vernal pools to breed. Males usually arrive first, dropping spermatophores on small underwater vegetation where females will take these packets into their cloacas to fertilize their eggs and redeposit them on the vegetation in a sticky gelatinous mass. Each mass contains 100 to 200 eggs. The egg masses are quite easy to see, clinging to the underwater twigs with little black dots inside each egg sack (often seen together, wood frog egg masses and other salamander masses can look similar). The adults leave the pool after a few days, leaving their eggs behind. The larval salamanders hatch within a month or two and become salamanders in two to four months. The vernal pools are ideal sanctuaries for these eggs and larvae to grow, as they contain no fish predators. The best pools have lots of scuds and other macro invertebrates that the larvae feed on before they metamorphose, loose their gills, and begin the next part of their adult lives on land.

The first week of February saw major rains and it was evident by the road kills that the amphibians were taking advantage of the water levels in the ephemeral pools. Although we could not get out on this first rainfall event, several nights later we did manage to check out several locations and find not only spotted salamanders, but a few of the other amphibian harbingers of spring. The spring peeper (Pseudacris crucifer) is the call that most will recognize, sometimes you can even hear it through the rolled-up windows of your car as you pass by low lying areas with standing water. But this time of year you can also hear the raspy plunk of the wood frog (Lithobates sylvaticus), the resonating croak of green frog (Lithobates clamitans), and the cricket-like trill of the upland chorus frog (Pseudacris feriarum). The eatsern newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) are also common in some of these same locations this time of year, as they are doing their own underwater courtship dance.

Such a brief moment in time between egg deposition and when these “wetland wonders” head back underground for another year. They can live up to 20 years and return to the same pools each year, so it is important that we protect these sensitive areas.

Participating in early spring identification and monitoring of aquatic systems that support vernal breeding amphibians is a valuable resource to conservation, research, and ecosystem health. This data not only helps reinforce accurate geographic ranges and environmental preference of species, but also key information about the timing of biological events, such as breeding and development. Over time, threats like climate change could cause major shifts in these events, which could have serious implications for sensitive amphibians. Additionally, mapping out areas that are essential to many vernal breeders can benefit conservation and restoration projects that provide critical habitat to some of our less frequently seen, but incredible native species, like the spotted salamander.

Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) | Image by Brian Williams 

Vernal Pool | Image by Brian Williams

Every Birder Loves a Sharp-dressed Man: Meet the Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)

 By: Christine Stewart

My first encounter with the Dark-eyed Junco was last winter. He was a new arrival to

our yard, which was home to bluebirds, cardinals, tufted titmice, and various other

sparrows, finches, and wrens. I was perplexed because I didn't expect to find a new

bird settling in during the dead of winter.

Image from: https://s3.animalia.bio/animals/photos/full/original/dark-eyed-junco-3.webp

I soon was enamored with this little man. His coloring made him look like he was

sporting a tuxedo…..charcoal on top and a white belly. His wings and tail were sharply

delineated black and white stripes resembling a cumberband. Dark-eyed juncos are a

medium-sized member of the sparrow family, Passeridae, with a rounded head and jet

black eyes. Their bill is short and stout and conversely their tail is relatively long for

their body size. The males are the “sharp-dressed men” and the females are

drab….usually paler gray or brown on top. But this description is for the “typical”

population; the coloration of the species varies widely throughout the populations across

North America. For example, there is a population out West with a pink-tinge to their

feathery wardrobe.

As I continued to observe my new friend scrounging for leftovers under the bird feeder, I

noticed they hopped rather than walked along the ground. He would scratch among the

leaf litter and literally fling it into the air like a juggler. He then proceeded a little further

back into the woodland edge and scrambled among the leaf litter and brush piles.

Searching for food or maybe a place to nest? Dark-eyed Juncos are ground foragers

and nesters.

Their nests are entirely constructed by the female made from nearby materials…leaves,

twigs, moss, animal hair, etc. They are about 3-5” in diameter and tucked into brush,

leaf litter, and even upturned tree roots. They have 2-3 nests a season each holding

3-6 eggs at a time. The young leave the nest 9-13 days after hatching.

During nesting, Dark-eyed Juncos incorporate a larger amount of insects into their diet,

such as caterpillars, butterflies, moths, ants, wasps, and flies. But the remainder of the

year they are primarily 75% seed-eaters. At feeders they are scavenging the leftover

millet, cracked corn, and black-oil sunflowers left on the ground. Without human

support, they dine on weed seeds like ragweed, crabgrass, chickweed, sorrel, and

lamb’s quarters. They are even known to burrow in the snow in search of seed. So

perhaps we need to reconsider the “weeding” of our gardens.

These “snowbirds” typically migrate from Canada to the Lower 48 for the winter, except

for the Appalchian population. They are vertical migrators descending down from the

spruce-fir forests in the higher elevations to the foothills in woodland edges or brushy

thickets. They live in flocks, often with other sparrows and bluebirds in an area roughly

10 acres during their winter stay.

According to E-bird, they are typically seen in Martinsville between mid-October through

mid-April. For this season they were last-sighted at J. Frank Wilson Park on November

5th. The high count so far this year was on January 28th at Community Park where 35

Dark-eyed Juncos were observed. And a study conducted by USA Today, reports that

Dark-eyed Juncos rank #7 of sighted birds during November in the state of Virginia.

So now that winter will soon be knocking at our doors, look for the “sharp-dressed man”

in your walks along the Dick & Willie Trail (particularly off Spruce Street) or even in your

own yard.

Internet sources:

● E-bird

● Wild Birds Unlimited

● Celebrate Urban Birds

● Cornell Lab

● Audubon Society

Milestone Reached on VBWT Rock Castle Gorge Trail

 Submitted by Dottie Haley

Chapter member Garnett Hudson recently reached a personal milestone on one of our local Virginia Birding and Wildlife Trails.  Garnett graduated and certified as a SWPVMN in 2022.  He frequently visits many of our local trails but he established a long-term goal 25 years ago regarding his Rock Castle Trail hikes.  This journey began as a competition between him and his younger brother to see who could be the first to complete 100 hikes at Rock Castle.  Untimely surgery for Garnett allowed his brother to win but it was then that he set a new personal goal - 300 hikes over his lifetime.   Though his time to complete the walk has gotten a little longer over the years, he adjusted and held tight to his goal.  On November 15, 2023, he completed number 300.  And did I forget to mention that Garnett will celebrate his 78^th birthday this coming February?  Quite inspiring!

 

Photo by Dottie Haley: Progress was documented by making marks on his walking stick after each hike.  It took him four different sticks to record all 300.

He chose Rock Castle as his course due to its likeness to the Appalachian Trail.  Garnett always had a desire to complete the Appalachian Trail hike and although he has not completed it in its entirety, he has walked over 100 miles of the trail including three separate overnight stays. Rock Castle is a difficult 10.8-mile loop hike on the Sweet Mountain Laurel loop of the Virginia Birding and Wildlife Trails.  The terrain is rough and rocky and often quite steep.  Elevation during the hike spans 164 floors and requires around 27,000 steps to complete.  The scenery is diverse and includes deep woods alongside the rushing creek, tall rock formations and open pastures where you will need to watch your step to avoid the fresh cow piles.  Seasonal conditions add to complexity of the hike.  Fallen leaves, acorns and disguised patches of frozen ground are possible during the winter.  Garnett ended up making two trips to the ER over the years after hikes during which he suffered a fall. 

Photo by Dottie Haley: Garnett navigating the rocky trail during hike number 296

Photo by Garnett Hudson: The visitors center at Rocky Knob – a favorite spot to break for lunch

 

His most memorable walks were those where he had unique wildlife encounters.  He was able to watch an Otter catch and eat a fish.  Although it happened too quickly to get a picture, it was a once in a lifetime encounter.  During another hike, he observed a bear cub high up in a tree bellowing for his mother.  Knowing she would answer the call, he quickly moved on.   

 

Photo by Garnett Hudson: Frozen Waterfall

 

Photo by Garnett Hudson: Flame Azelea in bloom on the trail

 

When I inquired as to whether he would continue his walks now that his goal has been met, the answer was yes, but probably not as frequently.  I was curious as to whether becoming a VMN had impacted his hikes.  He commented that since becoming a VMN, he is more aware of litter that he sees on the trail and now picks it up as he goes.  He also now enjoys using the Merlin app to help identify birds.  He uses it when he walks but also enjoys birding from his deck at home.  He has used the app to identify as many as 27 different bird species in his backyard.  

There is nothing better than a walk in the woods on a nice day.  If Rock Castle doesn’t sound like the trail for you, we are blessed to have a wide variety of trails in our area to choose from.

·       For more information on the VBWT systems, click here Virginia Birding and Wildlife Trail.

·       If you would like to earn volunteer hours by adopting a VBWT, contact Dottie Haley (dottiehaley42@gmail.com).

·       For more information on the Merlin birding app, click here Merlin app

National Bat Week

 by Regina Flora

SWP’s Education Outreach Committee celebrated National Bat Week by exhibiting on bats at the Bonez and Booz festival hosted by VMNH on October 28th. Nine chapter members presented bat facts, discussed differences between bats and birds, and exhibited bat specimens and a bat house. A local bat enthusiast, Amanda Rhyne, provided answers to questions and a display board of information. 

Photo by Regina Flora: Valinda, Whitney and Kamera with Batman

Children in their fun festival costumes participated by drawing bats with walnut husk stain. A bat cutout was distributed for continued learning at home. About 500 children and parents received information at the table. 

We have 17 species of bats in Virginia. All of our bats feed on thousands of insects each night. Some are tree bats and overwinter in tree cavities, wood piles, leaves and loose rocks. Other types form large colonies for hibernation inside caves and old mines. 

Although not blind, bats rely on echolocation since they are nocturnal. They emit  sound waves which bounce off objects and return as an echo. This echolocation allows them to navigate, find prey, and communicate. 

To encourage bat populations in your backyard, grow native plants, provide a water source, avoid pesticides, and allow leaves and old snags to stay in place for shelter. You can also provide shelter by placing a bat house. 

Photo by Regina Flora: Kamara at our display table

2024 Virginia Master Naturalist State Conference

 

Four chapter members attended the 2023 Virginia Master Naturalist State Conference from Sept 29th to Oct 1^st.  This year, the conference was held in the Blue Ridge Mountains in the town of Abingdon and was attended by 180 naturalists from across the state.

Photo by Regina Flora: Entrance to conference venue

Conference attendees: Regina, Kathy, Stephanie and Ed

Ed and Kathy arrived on Thursday to visit some of Virginia’s State Parks in the area.  Ed visited Natural Tunnel State Park in Scott County.  At more than 850 feet long and 10 stories high, Natural Tunnel began to form more than one million years ago as water slowly dissolved limestone and dolomite bedrock to naturally carve this enormous cave.   Kathy visited the new Clinch River State Park in Wise County. The park currently contains the pre-existing Sugar Hill Loop hiking trail.  DCR is acquiring more property in the area to build a 100 mile long Blueway along the Clinch River.  We have a Blueway here on Philpott Lake.

Photo by Ed Coleman: Natural Tunnel State Park

Pre-conference field trips were on Friday.  Ed hiked about six miles round trip with a group of 20 Master Naturalists through a high-elevation forest to the Channels.  Formed 400 million years ago from an ancient sea floor, the geological formations of the Channels are comprised of a network of deep sandstone crevices.  The channels may have been created by permafrost and ice wedging during the last ice age, which split large seams in the soft rock.  

Photo by Ed Coleman: The Channels

Kathy visited the DCR Aquatic Wildlife Conservation Center where she learned much about mussels.  This facility is doing captive breeding of endangered species of mussels from the area, including the rarest mussel in the world: the Appalachian monkeyface mussel.  The tour began with a video of a momma mussel, waving a body part to attract a fish.  When the fish came close, she grabbed it by the nose.  For 10 minutes, she spit microscopic larvae at the fish before releasing it.  The immature mussels, called glochidia, attach to the fish gills and feed off the fish until they are mature enough to drop off and fend for themselves.  The facility includes spaces for male and female mussels to live and breed, microscopes to find the glochidia, and space to raise the specific species of host fish for each of the different species of mussels.  Eyedroppers are used to collect the glochidia and spray them on an unwitting fish in a private tank. We even got to see all the fish food and mussel food they had on hand. This was all more interesting than I had imagined it would be.  There is an interesting article about breeding the monkeyface mussel here. 

Friday, Regina did some bird watching and visited Shot Tower State Park and New River Trail State Park, bringing her total for Trail Quest to 19 of Virginia’s State Parks.  Then she set up the chapter display for the Friday evening Share Fair.  Our display table focused on the education outreach project about Spotted Lanternfly.

Regina at our Outreach table

Saturday morning was spent inside the Higher Education Center in Abingdon. The keynote speaker, Jeremy Stout, gave a fascinating presentation on the prehistory and ecology of the southern Appalachian Mountains.  

All 4 of SWP members attended “Living with Black Bears in Virginia”.  This talk described a new joint project with the Department of Wildlife Resources to educate the public about interactions with bears. This project has recently been approved for our chapter as our outreach focus for 2024.  The timing of this educational session was helpful for Ed, who had a recent face-to-face encounter with a black bear. After the session ended, he sat down with Carl Tugend, Black Bear Project Leader DWR, for a personal assessment of his particular bear situation.  

Photo by Regina Flora

Saturday afternoon, Ed and Kathy traveled by bus to the Blue Ridge Discovery Center where Ali Reilly, Program Coordinator, took us on a tour of the historic Blue Ridge Discovery Center building, which was originally sided with American Chestnut bark.  We explored the 6,000 square-foot native plant rain garden in front of the building, then headed to the wetland restoration project on the Blue Ridge Discovery campus. The wetland had previously been filled in and turned into a trailer park.  The diversity of species we found in and around this restored area was amazing.   Regina went on this same field trip at a different time.

Photo by Regina Flora: Wetland Restoration site

On Sunday morning, Regina attended the Presidents breakfast, where attendees participated in group sessions to discuss any chapter issues and problem-solving suggestions.  Then, she attended a field trip on Edible plants at Hungry Mother State Park, adding a 20^th park to her tally.

Photo by Regina Flora: Hungry Mother Lake at Hungry Mother State Park

Ed drove to Saltville to view shorebirds with Katie Cordle.  Situated on a 86-acre park in the center of town, the Saltville Well Fields are a series of brackish wetlands caused by salt leakage from old brine wells.  The site, which is the only inland saline marsh in Virginia, is located geographically along a spring and fall migration route for shorebirds and waterfowl.  

Photo by Ed Coleman: Saltville Well Fields

Kathy attended a session by a wildlife rehabilitator and an update by Kate LeCroy on her research on our native blue mason bees.  Master Naturalists across the state participated in her PhD research.  She has determined that bee hotels attract mostly the non-native mason bees and bee predators.  Bee hotels are also spreading the chalk brood fungus that is killing our native mason bees. The non-native bees appear to be less affected by this fungus. 

We all headed home on Sunday afternoon, appreciative of the many educational experiences enjoyed during the conference and looking forward to the 2024 conference.   The 2024 Virginia Master Naturalist conference will be a virtual event held September 27-29.  We are discussing the possibility of scheduling some field trips and get-togethers with the three other chapters in the southern piedmont.