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Re: Amsonia pollinators, bird notes, 4/20/03--Durham NC



on 04-20-2003 at 18:20, Patrick wrote:

>#4 was quite a surprise. The flower is a light blue, not generally
considered attractive to hummingbirds. (I read in a reference on flower
pollination that red was mostly attractive to hummingbirds because insects
are NOT attracted to it.)<

hmmmm...guess the Carpenter bees and Cloudless Sulphur butterflies here
haven't read that reference (the sulphurs seem particularly attracted to
red, even using the hummer feeders filled with clear solution here and at my
workplace in Georgetown Cty.)

one of the favored hummer plants i grow (perhaps the most favored) is Blue
Brazilian Sage (Salvia guaranitica.) it has dark blue blooms and produces
nectar with a relatively high sugar content (there are several cultivars
ranging from sky blue to purple.) hummers are highly inquisitive and
opportunistic little birds, and will investigate ANY flower bloom, as much
for insect prey as for nectar. they also appear to have amazing temporal and
spatial memory.

research published in the late-60's pertaining to primarily hummer
pollinated plants offered something to the effect that the birds and a
number of red flowers might have co-evolved because the color more readily
stands out against the green foliage, making the food source more
noticeable, esp. for migrating birds.

like the majority of other Neo-trops that breed in North America though,
hummers have gotta have the bugs. they can live for a short while on just
nectar, but soon their bodies begin to "cannabilize" themselves.

cheers,
gary


----- Original Message -----
From: "Patrick Coin" <patrick@coinconsult.net>
To: <carolinaleps@duke.edu>; <natural-history@duke.edu>;
<carolinabirds@duke.edu>
Cc: <coinp@dtcc.cc.nc.us>
Sent: Sunday, April 20, 2003 6:20 PM
Subject: Amsonia pollinators, bird notes, 4/20/03--Durham NC


> I have a nice bunch of blooming Blue Star, Amsonia tabernaemontana
> (Apocynaceae, also called Blue Dogbane) in my garden here in Durham. I've
> been testing a digital camera on the flowers, so have paid some attention
to
> insects and other critters visiting it. These have included:
> 1-ants
> 2-small black bee/wasp (looks like a bee to me)
> 3-Snowberry Clearwing moth (Hemaris diffinis)
> 4-Ruby-throated Hummingbird--visited briefly, seemed to get some nectar as
> it buzzed from flower to flower
>
> #4 was quite a surprise. The flower is a light blue, not generally
> considered attractive to hummingbirds. (I read in a reference on flower
> pollination that red was mostly attractive to hummingbirds because insects
> are NOT attracted to it.)
>
> The ant didn't have much luck getting into the flower very far. Looking at
> the digital photos, I noticed that the entrance to the corolla is guarded
> with a ring of stiff hairs. Perhaps this serves to keep ants out? The moth
> inserted its proboscis, and the hummingbird its beak, quite easily.
>
> Nice to know that this attractive and easily cultivated native plant is a
> good animal attractor too.
>
> In other Triangle nature notes:
> A female cardinal nesting outside my office at home is sitting tightly,
> presumably incubating.
>
> White-breasted nuthatches were feeding noisy nestlings today (4/20/03) in
a
> nest box in the Macedonia area (near Cary) of Wake County. This seems
early
> to me.
>
> I heard House Wrens here in Durham and in Wake County as well. I think
these
> are the first I have heard this spring. One in Wake County was busy
fiddling
> with nest material in a box, luckily not close to the Nuthatches. (I
> understand they frequently kill other cavity-nesters.)
>
> Patrick Coin
> Durham, NC
> patrick@coinconsult.net
>