July 11, 2010

Another miracle - an emerging cicada. We watched this unfolding for the better part of an hour. When we returned later in the day, the cicada was gone (perhaps singing in the pines overhead with others of its kind?).

Black-throated Blue Warbler nestlings. The father(?) was very near. The nest was surprisingly low, perhaps about two feet off the ground.

July 12

Round-leaved Sundew, Drosera rotundifolia, a carniverous plant. The tips of the leaves are covered with a sticky substance that traps insects. These are growing on floating sphagnum mats in an acidic, boggy pond here near the Quabbin.

July 17

Another Cicada, this time on a Black Locust tree. Curiously, this one had more green on its wings, which seemed to blend well with the bark on this Locust tree, just as the Cicada last week seemed perfectly matched against the bark of the White Pine it was on. From what I have read, the nymph spends several years feeding on the xylem sap of roots. I am curious if it stays on the roots of one tree and then emerges to molt on the trunk of that same tree. I am also curious if there is some generational attachment to one tree or species of tree. ...Time to research the literature.