A Cast of Small Characters

Painted Lady: Even in a small outdoor space, such as the confines of our condo yard area and deck, you can, with a bit of thought and planning, attract a remarkable variety of pollinators and other interesting garden insects.  We have Joe Pye Weed in a large container. This dramatic blossom brings out the butterflies, such as this painted lady.  Bumblebees love it as well and I sometimes find them sleeping on it early in the morning right where they spent the night.

Golden Digger Wasp: If I could have five acres of oregano, I would.  If you let it run to flower, you will be visited by a delightful mob of charming and colorful freeloaders.  Wasps, such as this Golden Digger, go around and around the blossom clusters endlessly.

Carpenter Bee: When it rains they get wet.  This carpenter bee spent a long, cold night on our citronella following a recent, heavy downpour.  Many people mistake the large and common carpenters for bumblebees, but they don’t mind in the least what you call them.  If you have flowers that they like, they will stop by every day.

Paper Wasp: This paper wasp is of a different species from the one most commonly found on the large, gray nests you see under house eaves, but they are very similar in every way.  They are not at all aggressive and are very beneficial to gardeners because they dine on nectar themselves and hunt for small caterpillars to feed their ever-growing brood.

Fiery Skipper: If butterflies don’t make you smile then maybe you shouldn’t be gardening after all.  Skippers are common in this area, and fortunately the Fiery, like living origami, is one of the most routine you are likely to encounter.  They can be practically tame once they get used to your presence in their luncheonette, so you can see them up close and watch them fold and unfold with relative ease.

Scoliid Wasp |  Hairstreak Butterfly | Thread-waisted Wasp & Sand Wasp: Mention apple mint to some people and they will scorn you.  It runs.  It grows tired.  But during July and August, it serves as the meeting, greeting and eating place of many pollinators, both in numbers and in varieties.  It is not unusual to see two or more species dining in peace - or sometimes not - on the same flower head.  It’s comical to see a tiny leafcutter bee attacking a larger species, much like a mockingbird harassing a crow.

Black Wasp: Many people are frightened of bees and wasps, but the truth is they are generally no more interested in you than your teenagers are.  All they care about is what there is to eat.  In this area, the most aggressive species are the ground-nesting hornets, and they are primarily woodland dwellers.  Dangerous-looking species such as this large Black wasp will sting only if seriously provoked, and will most often use its wings to flee any contact.  Obviously, if you have any known allergies, then you should definitely keep your distance.

Green-eyed Wasp: Another plant I’d like to have planted in five acres is this beautiful flowering garlic.  Some of my more uncommon visitors, like this exotic Green-eyed wasp visit it - and not much else - during the season.  They are very striking animals, and extremely fast.  They can appear to disappear like a magician’s trick.  Keep in mind that where you live, meaning the surrounding habitat, has everything to do with which species can visit you.  But if you build your little garden with the right plants, they will find you, and as I have mentioned before, the insects you see next summer will be the offspring of the ones you fed this summer.

Guest writer: Robert Brown, LRNow Stewardship and Access Committee

You Never Know When a Thought Might Happen

At the beginning of the month I was on our patio getting ready to have dinner when a black wasp fluttered heavily past me carrying a bright green load that may have outweighed it by a little bit.  The wasp I recognized as a mason wasp, and the load it carried was the caterpillar larva of a small moth species.  Hunting wasps are not generalists.  They do not consume the insects they catch themselves, but rather provide them as the sole diet of their offspring in the nest.  Adults are fueled by nectar and pollen, hence their dual importance to gardeners: controlling insects that damage plants while aiding in the pollination of the flowers they visit.

Trying to keep track of her in order to possibly discover her nest, I found her alighted on a leaf of Joe Pye Weed adjusting her load.  Previously, upon capturing this prey, she quickly administered a series of stings to paralyze it, making it possible for it to be delivered as inert cargo to the nest and rendering it safe to inhabit the nest cavity with her tiny egg. (Imagine a softball placed next to a sofa for size comparison.)  Her body, like that of all hunting wasps, is adapted to the transport of their specific prey, but the loads are nonetheless awkward and heavy, some weighing more than the wasp itself and which in some cases have to be dragged overland to the nest site.  It is sometimes a fantastic feat of endurance and of instinctive perseverance.  

I had no luck tracking the wasp any further, but I did find myself suddenly seeing this process from a new angle.

In my reading on this subject over the years the life cycle of these particular wasps has become pretty familiar to me, and two bits of data from that reading struck me.  Following the hatching of the egg, the larva proceeds to consume the provision left by the mother completely. From that single meal throughout the entire metamorphic period - in total lasting up to ten months - the  maturing larva does not pass any waste into the chamber or cocoon. This function starts only after emergence in the adult form.  Essentially, the wasp winds up containing every single molecule of the caterpillar. In a manner of speaking, then, the female wasp, by supplying a copy of wasp DNA via her egg, has transformed a moth caterpillar into its own future predator.

I don’t present this as a metaphysical construct, but as an amazing and somewhat unusual example of the principle of conservation of energy running at very close to 100% in a biological system.  

Not all hunting wasps are this efficient.  The larva of those that hunt adult crickets and other hard-bodied prey do not consume the brittle structures such as wings and carapace shells, but though the conservation rates are slightly different, the idea is the same.  This family of  wasps and their specific prey are part of a very tight and interesting closed loop.

Armor your Shorelines & Prevent Erosion!

Shoreline erosion is the natural process of sediment displacement, but too much erosion can be damaging to almost all aspects of aquatic ecosystems, as well as to your property value. Erosion occurs when sediment such as rock or soil is displaced by both natural elements and anthropogenic activities - wind, water, boat wake and construction, etc

Figure 1: Muddy waters of the Lynnhaven River
http://www.chesapeakebay.net/blog/keyword/Rivers_and_Streams

Signs of erosion include bare soil areas lacking vegetation, muddy water, collapsing banks, and gradual shoreline retreat - all of which lead to decreased water quality and unhealthy ecosystems. See Figure 1 for erosion in the Lynnhaven River. 


There IS a solution to shoreline erosion!


"Living Shorelines"

Living shorelines are Virginia's preffered method of shoreline management (over bulkhead or riprap), and they are a creative and proven approach to protecting tidal shorelines from erosion. They do this by slowing down the erosion process and maintaining a sturdy shoreline. The technique usually consists of filling and grading the bank and planting native wetland plants and grasses, shrubs, and trees at various points along the tidal water line. Along with the benefits of reducing erosion and property loss, living shorelines also increase biodiversity, improve water quality, and provide an attractive, natural appearance. To learn more about living shoreline benefits visit The Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) "Shoreline Site." 

If you think your property could benefit from a living shoreline, email Trista or call (757)962-5398 to set up a free consultation appointment at your property. (Living shorelines or other shoreline treatments usually require a permit from VMRC, and will not be ready for construction until the following spring.)

Here is an example of a recent living shoreline project
on the Lynnhaven River

Before

After

Find more information regarding living shorelines and plans of action below!

• Do I have an erosion problem?
• Living shoreline research
• What plants are suitable for living shorelines?
• Living shoreline permit information
• Living shoreline design class

For questions, comments or concerns - visit Lynnhaven River NOW or call (757) 962-5398

Blog Composed by Thomas O'Hara - Lynnhaven River NOW Intern