Mud Daubers - Architects of the Insect World

As I was carrying lilac bush trimmings to the brush area in my yard I stopped short to focus my eyes on something on the underside of a leave.  To my amazement, this is what I was seeing..
.

It's a picture of the nest of a mud dauber wasp.  These wasps get their name because they construct their nest of mud.  There are several different types of mud daubers, each with a descriptive common name.
The owner of this nest is a potter wasp.  It's easy to see why! 

Mud daubers typically select a sheltered site to build their mud house.  Some favorite sites are under eaves, porch ceilings, in a garage or shed, and in attics.  The female makes many trips to get mud of the correct consistency, carrying it back to the site as tiny balls.  When the nest is ready the adult wasp  collects spiders, caterpillars, or beetle larvae and paralyzes them before putting them in the cell to serve as food for a "kid" (larvae)  that will hatch out shortly.   As a rule, the adult lays a single egg in the empty cell before provisioning it.  When the wasp larva hatches it eats the supplied prey... often taking a few weeks before pupateing.  The complete life cycle may last from a few weeks to more than a year!  So the wasps that I have seen this spring/early summer were eggs/caterpillars last year!  Wow!!!

  If you find a nest and it has a round hole in it that means the wasps have hatched out. It also means the nest is probably old and inactive.

                                  

                                                                 This beauty is a potter wasp...she's been "shopping" and will bring that caterpillar to her nest.  It's pretty amazing to see.  (My apologies since I do not remember where I found this picture.  As soon as I find the file I will repost, giving credit as due.) 

More amazing than the tiny pot on the leave was watching another mud dauber wasp create this nest...

First of all, this was made inside of a cooler that was missing the cover for the drain hole.  That is how she got inside to make the nest!!!  The cooler had been sitting on  picnic table near the driveway for a few weeks...sorry, I'm not great at putting things away!  :)  I had put some copper wire in to keep it out of the elements.  That's what is in the background and what she built the 'house' on.  I watched as she went in and out over the course of several days, carrying the bits of mud to the construction site.  LOOK at the colors and layers!  Isn't this amazing?!  I moved the cooler to a sheltered place in my backyard.  I am planning to move it into the unheated garage in a few weeks.  Inside the garage I can check on it every so often over the winter.  I am looking forward to observing the nest over the coming months.  Realistically speaking I will not see any changes in things until the spring, but that won't keep me from looking!   

Vocabulary
Mud Dauber - any of several wasps of the family Sphecidae that build a nest of mud cells and provision it with spiders or insects ( dictionary.com )

daub - to cover or smear with a sticky material (thefreedictionary.com/dauber )

Resources

http://insects.tamu.edu/fieldguide/cimg334.html

This link is a part of the Texas A & M University site. The site is a wonderful resource for anything to do with insects. While the focus is on Texas, most of the creatures can be found in Massachusetts, too.

A very good, though more professionally oriented, resource.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWr66LEqav0

This is a YouTube video of a mud dauber making a nest. Simply amazing

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potter_wasp
  This is a great entry that provides accurate information and clear photos of wasps and nests.                                                                                                                                

Beautiful Beetles

Well, I am back after a very LOOONG time away. My apologies and a thank you to the person who e-mailed me to ask what was up. Family and work issues have been very difficult lately. The up side to this is I have some really amazing files/photos that I have continued to collect over these months. So here goes...

While weeding an area of a garden I was amazed to find this beetle. It was actually running away from me (go figure!), heading deeper into the leaf litter that surrounds the area in which I was working.  I have a deep appreciation for most living things, beetles included, so when this specimen ran into view I was very happy. I believe it is a female because of the size of the abdomen. 



In this first picture I tried to get an angle that would fully expose her abdomen without scaring her too much. Looks like a 'baby bump' to me! :)


I wanted to give an idea of the size of this creature so I took a photo with a quarter...for comparison.  "She" is pretty big! 

Would YOU find "her" a bit scary if  "she" scuttled across your path as
you weeded some flowers?

In attempting to identify what kind of beetle this was I went to some  favorite resources.  One is http://bugguide.net/node/view/15740.
In their own words..."We are an online community of naturalists who enjoy learning about and sharing our observations of insects, spiders, and other related creatures." 

This site has amazing photographs of so many creatures!!  From this site my specimen could be a darkling beetle  (Family Tenebrionidae).  These beetles  are typically found under stones, decaying logs, bark, on bracket fungi, or on the ground. A few species are found in the open. 
Many are scavengers of plant material as both adults and larvae. Some are attracted to carrion, dead insects, dung. Some feed on fungus, often found under bark.

Another resource that I have used is http://insects.about.com/.  This person has great resources, including a "bug of the week."  Teachers could use this feature as a challenging way to reinforce research skills.

Finally, check this site http://www.cipm.info/ent/biocontrol/goodbugs/groundbeetles.htm.  It's part of the North Carolina State University Department of Entomology.  There are some amazing photos and a positive take on insects as biological controls.
I learned from both of these sites that my specimen could be a ground beetle (Family carabidae)

From the insects.about.com site:  "Nearly all ground beetles prey on other invertebrates. Some Carabids are specialized predators, feeding exclusively on one type of prey. A few ground beetles feed on plants or seeds, and others are omnivores."

Sadly, I cannot identify this insect for certain.  Since I am not a trained entomologist, I find the minute detail and variations in each type of beetle make it difficult for me to make a positive identification.  While I am happy with narrowing it down as I have,  my next step is to contact somebody at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst Massachusetts.  Perhaps somebody there can assist with an identification.

Resources:
 http://www.ent.iastate.edu/

The Iowa State University Entomology Department homepage.  To the left on the page is a link to an insect identification section of the site.  While the site is focused on Iowa, the information/picures are a good resource.  Some of the "insect information notes" pages I checked had information on raising them.  It could be a fun activity for a class...


 Vocabulary:

Entomologist - a person who studies the branch of science concerned with insects

 Leaf litter -  consists of the dead leaves and other debris that fall to the floor of a forest.  It is a home for many living things.

Activity - Spread a sheet on the ground in a shaded area.  Have participants wear long pants and sit still around the edges of the sheet.  Carefully scoop some leaf litter and place it in the center of the sheet.  Everybody can watch/observe as the leader carefully searches the leaf litter for creatures that call it home.  Leader should be prepared to scoop creatures to safety if observers are nervous about them!  

Omnivore -  An animal whose normal diet includes both plants and animals. Human beings are omnivores.

Activity - Create an omnivore chart...include name, diet, and a picture of the animal where possible.  Alternately, have a student 'adopt' each animal to draw and investigate.


                                                                                                                               

The Magnificant March Moon - 2011

Were you one of the lucky people who had a sunrise or sunset view of the moon this past Saturday?  If you did manage to see it as it rose you were a very lucky person.  Many were unable to get a glimps because of cloud cover or other bad weather. Some of us (sheepish grin) simply forgot to look for it that evening.  While I DID see it on Sunday morning, I was unable to see it as it was setting.  My camera did not like the cold (27 degrees here at 5:30 a.m.) and simply shut down after a while.  This was expecially upsetting since I had decided on a very special place to watch it set, high on a hill at a local conservation area.  Oh, well.  I did a Google search and found some stunning photos.  This is one of my favorites.

In this photo provided by NASA, the full moon is seen as it rises near the Lincoln Memorial, Saturday, March 19, in Washington.

I think this is amazing.  Besides the beauty of the moon, it shows off the Lincoln Memorial!  If you have never visited Washington, DC you should go at some point.  Put it on your "bucket list" and have a great time.  If you are a teacher of older students, seriously consider a trip.  It is so worth the time and expense.  Our history there for the exploring!  Anyway, enough of that. 

Below are pictures I took on Sunday morning, very early.  I actually started in my backyard, shooting pictures as I walked to the street.  Then I more-or-less walked down the middle of the street and into a recreation area on the opposite side...again, taking pictures as I went. 

Facing West, the moon has begun to descend. 

Ok, I admit it.  I really like views of the moon/stars that are over wooded areas.  Like this!

  Science of The Supermoon 

                                                                                                              

The "supermoon" phenomenon occurred because the moon was in its "full phase" and just 50 minutes past  the point of its orbit that brings it closer to Earth.  This point is named perigee.  This happens because the moon does not orbit around the earth in a perfect circle.  The orbit is more of a sphere...think slightly the shape of an egg with the earth more-or-less in the middle.  A very clear explanation of this can be found at

http://www.space.com/11176-supermoon-science-scoop-biggest-full-moon.html

According to NASA scientists, Saturday's full moon appeared 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than the smallest full moons Earth sees, though the difference wasn't immediately apparent to some skywatchers.

So now what?  I will continue to watch the moon and appreciate the beauty/mystery above us.  I hope that my very amateur skills in astronomy can provide some pleasure and learning as time passes and I make more blog entries. 

For those who would like to teach and share with children, or would like more information, I have added some resources below.  I hope that you find them useful.

Resources

http://www.space.com/
This site has much useful information including pictures.

 http://www.middleschoolscience.com/moonphases.htm
Moon Phases Daily Log from http://www.middleschoolscience.com/
The Middle School Science site has a wide variety of lessons on many subjects. 

Lesson Plan for older students.  "Telling Time by the Light of the Moon"
http://www.discoveryeducation.com/teachers/free-lesson-plans/telling-time-by-the-light-of-the-moon.cfm

A printable page showing the phases of the moon via photographs.  It is used with the lesson above.
http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/worksheets/lightofthemoon/worksheet1.html

How about making a flip book of the phases of the moon?  I know there are templates/patterns available, but I was not able to find any on the internet.  If anybody does find one would you please share?  If I find my version I will scan it and add it here at a later date.  Below is a link to an ehow tutorial on science flip books
http://www.ehow.com/list_5923203_flip-book-science-ideas.html

Growing Up Wild

On Thursday, February 24th, I was privileged to be a co-facilitator at a training for Head Start teachers from the Worcester Massachusetts area.  A total of 32 teachers of 3 - 5 year olds gathered to learn about Growing Up Wild, "an early childhood education activity guide that builds on children's sense of wonder about nature and invites them to explore wildlife and the world around them."  (This from the website  http://www.projectwild.org/GrowingUpWILD.htm .) 
The site goes on to describe the six hour training as exciting, fun, hands-on... with activities that may include crafts, art projects, music and movement...and much more.

What the site does not say is how much fun is had by all who come rested and willing to learn by being actively involved in the agenda.

Our morning was spent with facilitators (Gini and me) demonstrating active involvement in each area/lesson shared and teachers enjoying themselves as they learned about the GUW materials.
Morning topics included What's Wild?, Wildlife is Everywhere!, and Tracks!  Activities included sorting cards and toys into wild/domesticate, going outside to search for signs of wildlife, and learning this chant...

Tracks!  Tracks!
(To the tune of "Soup, Soup, We all love soup!)
Tracks!  Tracks! 
We all make tracks!
Big Feet or small paws
With or without claws.

Tracks!  Tracks!
We all make tracks.
A footprint left in mud or snow
A clue that tells which way to go.

Tracks!  Tracks!
We all make tracks.
Come follow me and have some fun!
(from Growing Up Wild:  Exploring Nature with Young Children, copyright:  Council for Environmental Education)

After lunch everybody was introduced to some amazing worms...and learned a song!

Worm Song...
(tune:  Mary Had a Little Lamb)

The worms are mixing up the soil,
Up the soil, Up the soil.
The worms are mixing up the soil
So we can plant our seeds.

The soil is loose and all mixed up,
All mixed up, all mixed up.
The soil is loose and all mixed up,
The seeds are growing well.
(copyright:  Council for Environmental Education)

Teachers then divided into groups with each choosing a lesson from the activity guides.  The fun began in earnest when lessons were presented to the larger group...

"Big Ant Eyes" were created by members of the group that presented Ants on Parade,  a lesson that has children going outside to observe ant behavior and learn insect characteristics.

Trash was sorted by everybody then graphed to demonstrate a math connection in Less is More, a lesson in which children learn that using less is a way of sharing resources.

Participants designed their own birds as part of Bird Beak Buffet, a lesson about the special functions of bird beaks.

Each of the seven groups were given time to present their ideas/material as they were comfortable.  The day wrapped up with participants providing feedback, receiving their certificate of completion, and  taking their own copy of Growing Up Wild Exploring Nature with Young Children activity guide with them as they left.

From the view of a person who has presented numerous math/science/gardening workshops, I was amazed at this day.  The teachers attending this training seemed genuinely interested in what was presented.  The level of participation and excitement was contagious!  This was beyond a doubt one of the best groups I have ever worked with...in over twenty years of facilitation.  THANK YOU TO ALL OF THE HEAD START TEACHERS WHO SO WILLINGLY SHARED THEIR ENTHUSIASM, THEIR KNOWLEDGE, AND THEIR TIME.

More pictures...




          Cardboard binoculars and Safari Hats from Wildlife Water Safari lessson.

                                                       

 
Creating for Fishing Fun!
            Led by
              Gini

                                         Examples of animal "sign" that may be found outside.

Where is My Backyard?

Where, exactly, is my backyard?  At this time I will be sharing experiences that focus on my Central Massachusetts environment.  Given how global our world has become I do NOT believe my backyard ends in Massachusetts.  Much of what each person does impacts people and other living beings hundreds and thousands of miles away.  With that in mind, I want to invite everybody/anybody to respond to my posts and share what they see/experience in their life travels.  By sharing we can all become more aware of the wonders of the outdoors both here in New England and in other places. 

Thank you for visiting and please come back...Nature Lady