Author: Mike Dunn
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Dolly Sods
The mountains are calling and I must go. John Muir For my birthday a couple of weeks ago, I decided to revisit one of the most beautiful places I have been in the East, Dolly Sods Wilderness in West Virginia. Many years ago I had read about this unique highlands area and had wanted to… Read more…
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Extreme Dining
The abundance of insects feeding on pollen and nectar in the goldenrod patch out on the power line has naturally attracted an array of predators. One of the more formidable-looking of these is the Wheel Bug, Arilus cristatus, our largest member of the so-called Assassin Bug group. Wheel Bugs are named for the unusual gear-like… Read more…
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There is a Fungus Among Us (or at least among them)
I love nature, I just don’t want to get any of it on me. Woody Allen I gave a talk the other night to the Raleigh Chapter of the Carolina’s Nature Photographers Association. They were a great group and seemed to enjoy my topic about macro photography. One story, in particular, raised a few eyebrows.… Read more…
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Caterpillar Conundrum
I have been away a few days celebrating a major birthday (hard to believe it is that number) and returned to find a few caterpillars from BugFest still active (most were released the day after the event). I was particularly pleased to see the snappily-attired Turbulent Phosphila munching away on its host plant, Greenbrier (Smilax… Read more…
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Beautiful But Deadly
While out searching for caterpillars last week I came across a tiny juvenile Gray Treefrog in the bushes alongside the road. I walked back to the car to get my camera but when I returned, the frog had disappeared. As I looked for it I caught a movement out of the corner of my eye.… Read more…
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Caterpillars as Art
“The caterpillar does all the work but the butterfly gets all the publicity” George Carlin I’m sure that’s just how some caterpillars feel, under-appreciated at best, reviled by many a homeowner at worst. Caterpillars are often seen as those critters that “eat my plants” without the person making the connection to their necessity in order… Read more…
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Cool Cats
“Teaching a child not to step on a caterpillar is as valuable to the child as it is to the caterpillar.” Bradley Millar Caterpillars are cool. I have been fascinated by these diverse and sometimes outlandish creatures for decades and have found them to be one of the best gateways for introducing people to the… Read more…
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Hummingbird Habits
The past few weeks have been amazing in the garden – a daily display of aerial acrobatics from the remaining group of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. There are four birds feeding on various wildflowers and the three feeders I have out in the garden. Every time I am out there I see and hear the squabbles as… Read more…
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The Encounter
“The soul is the same in all living creatures, although the body of each is different.” Hippocrates I take a break from the caterpillar posts to share a truly incredible moment with you. A friend and I traveled east over the weekend to search for caterpillars for the upcoming museum event I have mentioned in… Read more…
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So Many Green Things, So Little Time…
There has been a spate of caterpillar sightings the past few days, especially of the big green kind. I know this is just to get me overly hopeful that some of them may actually still be around for use at the caterpillar tent this coming Saturday at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences big special… Read more…
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Roads End Naturalist 