At the height of the day the goldenrods in the meadow are
abuzz with bees, wasps, flies and beetles and I hardly dare to brush against
them. But in early morning I notice that the golden blossoms are dotted with dozing
bumblebees. They are found clinging to stems and hanging onto the underside of
inflorescences – whole motionless camps of them. These are the males that have
emerged from the queen’s nest and whose sole purpose in life is to mate before
dying off in the approaching cold season. They have nowhere better to go for
the night than a plant bearing sweet nectar.
The tall plants in the meadow do indeed provide a good
vantage point for viewing all kinds of fascinating visitors. A few weeks ago I
noticed several yellow bear caterpillars attached to New York ironweed,
munching away on the undersides of the leaves and unseen by birds from above.
This is the larval stage of the Virginian tiger moth (Spilosoma virginica), a handsome white moth with black stripes and
a touch of orange on its abdomen.
