Sandhill cranes are fairly social birds that usually live in pairs or family groups through the year. During migration and winter, unrelated cranes come together to form "survival groups" that forage and roost together. Such groups often congregate at migration and winter sites, sometimes in the thousands.
Sandhill cranes are mainly herbivorous, but eat various types of food, depending on availability. They often feed with their bills down to the ground as they root around for seeds and other foods, in shallow wetlands with vegetation or various upland habitats. Cranes readily eat cultivated foods such as corn, wheat, cottonseed, and sorghum. Waste corn is useful to cranes preparing for migration, providing them with nutrients for the long journey. Among northern races of sandhill cranes, their diet is most varied, especially among breeding birds. They variously feed on berries, small mammals, insects, snails, reptiles, and amphibians.
Sandhill cranes raise one brood per year. In nonmigratory populations, laying begins between December and August. In migratory populations, laying usually begins in April or May. Both members of a breeding pair build the nest using plant material from the surrounding area. Nest sites are usually marshes, bogs, or swales, though occasionally on dry land. Females lay one to three (usually two) oval, dull brown eggs with reddish markings. Both parents incubate the eggs for about 30 days. The chicks are precocial; they hatch covered in down, with their eyes open, and able to leave the nest within a day. The parents brood the chicks for up to three weeks after hatching, feeding them intensively for the first few weeks, then gradually less frequently until they reach independence at 9 to 10 months old.
The chicks remain with their parents until one to two months before the parents lay the next clutch of eggs the following year, remaining with them 10–12 months. After leaving their parents, the chicks form nomadic flocks with other juveniles and nonbreeders. They remain in these flocks until they form breeding pairs between two and seven years old.
As a conspicuous ground-dwelling species, sandhill cranes are at risk from predators, which are probably the main nonhuman source of mortality. Mammals such as foxes, raccoons, coyotes, wolves, cougars, bobcats, and lynx hunt them given any opportunity, the first three mainly hunting large numbers of young cranes, the latter four types more rarely taking full-grown cranes in ambush excepting the bobcat. Corvids, such as ravens and crows, gulls, and smaller raptors such as hawks (largely northern harriers or red-tailed hawks) feed on young cranes and eggs. Cranes of all ages are hunted by both North American species of eagles. Mainly chicks and possibly a few adults may be preyed on by great horned owls, and even a much smaller peregrine falcon has successfully killed a 3.1 kg (6.8 lb) adult sandhill crane in a stoop. In Oregon and California, the most serious predators of flighted juveniles and adults has been cited as golden eagles and bobcats, the most serious predators of chicks are reportedly coyotes, ravens, raccoons, American mink, and great horned owls, roughly in descending order. In Cuba and Florida, the American crocodile and alligator can take  surprisingly large numbers of sandhill cranes, especially recent fledglings. Sandhill cranes defend themselves and their young from aerial predators by jumping and kicking. Actively brooding adults are more likely to react aggressively to potential predators to defend their chicks than wintering birds, which most often normally try to evade attacks on foot or in flight. For land predators, they move forward, often hissing, with their wings open and bills pointed. If the predator persists, the crane stabs with its bill (which is powerful enough to pierce the skull of a small carnivore) and kicks.


Common pheasants are native to Asia and parts of Europe, their original range extending from the Balkans (where the last truly wild birds survive around Nestos river in Greece), the Black and Caspian Seas to Manchuria, Siberia, Korea, Mainland China, and Taiwan. The birds are found in woodland, farmland, scrub, and wetlands. In its natural habitat the common pheasant lives in grassland near water with small copses of trees. Extensively cleared farmland is marginal habitat that cannot maintain self-sustaining populations for long.
Common pheasants are gregarious birds and outside the breeding season form loose flocks. However, captive bred common pheasants can show strong sexual segregation, in space and time, with sex differences in the use of feeding stations throughout the day. Wherever they are hunted they are always timid once they associate humans with danger, and will quickly retreat for safety after hearing the arrival of hunting parties in the area.
While common pheasants are able short-distance fliers, they prefer to run. If startled however, they can suddenly burst upwards at great speed, with a distinctive "whirring" wing sound and often giving kok kok kok calls to alert conspecifics. Their flight speed is only 43–61 km/h (23–33 kn) when cruising but when chased they can fly up to 90 km/h (49 kn).


Common pheasants nest solely on the ground in scrapes, lined with some grass and leaves, frequently under dense cover or a hedge.  Occasionally they will nest in a haystack, or old nest left by other birds they roost in sheltered trees at night.  The males are polygynous as is typical for many Phasianidae, and are often accompanied by a harem of several females. Common pheasants produce a clutch of around 8–15 eggs, sometimes as many as 18, but usually 10 to 12; they are pale olive in colour, and laid over a 2–3 week period in April to June.  The incubation period is about 22–27 days.  The chicks stay near the hen for several weeks, yet leave the nest when only a few hours old.  After hatching they grow quickly, flying after 12–14 days, resembling adults by only 15 weeks of age.
They eat a wide variety of animal and vegetable type-food, like fruit, seeds, grain, mast, berries and leaves as well as a wide range of invertebrates, such as leatherjackets, ant eggs, wireworms, caterpillars, grasshoppers and other insects; with small vertebrates like lizards, field voles, small mammals and small birds occasionally taken.


There are many colour forms of the male common pheasant, ranging in colour from nearly white to almost black in some melanistic examples.  These are due to captive breeding and hybridisation between subspecies and with the green pheasant, reinforced by continual releases of stock from varying sources to the wild.  For example, the "ring-necked pheasants" common in Europe, North America and Australia do not pertain to any specific taxon, they rather represent a stereotyped hybrid swarm. Body weight can range from 0.5 to 3 kg (1 to 7 lb), with males averaging 1.2 kg (2 lb 10 oz) and females averaging 0.9 kg (2 lb 0 oz). Wingspan ranges from 56–86 cm (22–34 in).
The adult male common pheasant of the nominate subspecies Phasianus colchicus colchicus is 60–89 cm (23+1⁄2–35 in) in length with a long brown streaked black tail, accounting for almost 50 cm (20 in) of the total length.  The body plumage is barred bright gold or fiery copper-red and chestnut-brown plumage with iridescent sheen of green and purple; but rump uniform is sometimes blue.  The wing coverage is white or cream and black-barred markings are common on the tail.  The head is bottle green with a small crest and distinctive red wattle.  P. c. colchicus and some other races lack a white neck ring. Behind the face are two ear-tufts, that make the pheasant more alert.
The female (hen) and juveniles are much less showy, with a duller mottled brown plumage all over and measuring 50–63 cm (19+1⁄2–25 in) long including a tail of around 20 cm (8 in). Juvenile birds have the appearance of the female with a shorter tail until young males begin to grow characteristic bright feathers on the breast, head and back at about 10 weeks after hatching.
The green pheasant (P. versicolor) is very similar, and hybridisation often makes the identity of individual birds difficult to determine. Green pheasant males on average have a shorter tail than the common pheasant and have darker plumage that is uniformly bottle-green on the breast and belly; they always lack a neck ring. Green pheasant females are darker, with many black dots on the breast and belly.
In addition, various colour mutations are commonly encountered, mainly melanistic (black) and flavistic (isabelline or fawn) specimens. The former are rather common in some areas and are named Tenebrosus pheasant (P. colchicus var. tenebrosus).


The species undertakes migration and may be nomadic, and is thus widespread in tropical Asia and Australasia. It occurs in South Asia, Australia and a variety of Indian and Pacific Oceans Islands. It prefers coastal lagoons, estuaries and swamps, as it is somewhat salt-tolerant.


An adult male Macrodiplax cora is a medium-sized dragonfly (length 45mm, wingspan 75mm) with a red abdomen, dorsally marked with black patches on each segment. The female abdomen is less brightly colored. The synthorax is a brownish color and may be hirsute. The wings are clear except for a yellowish patch at the base of the hind wing. Its bi-colored legs and hourglass shaped black patches on the abdominal segments will help to easily distinguish them from other red colored dragonflies.


Junonia iphita, the chocolate pansy or chocolate soldier, is a butterfly found in Asia.
The wingspan is about 5–6 cm (2.0–2.4 in) and the female can be told apart from the male by white markings on the oblique line on the underside of the hindwing. The wavy lines on the underside of the wings vary from wet- to dry-season forms.
Individuals maintain a territory and are usually found close to the ground level and often bask in the sun.


The larvae feed on a variety of plants of the family Acanthaceae species recorded are -
Hygrophila costata
Justicia micrantha
Justicia procumbens
Justicia sphaerosperma
Lepidagathis formosensis
Strobilanthes callosus
Strobilanthes formosanus.
Barleria cristata
Dipteracanthus prostratus
Hygrophila auriculata
Ruellia elegans
Ruellia simplex
Ruellia tuberosa
Strobilanthes
Achimenes grandiflora
Strobilanthes ciliata


Danaus erippus is included with other Nymphalidae, the largest family of butterflies with about 6000 species distributed throughout most of the world. It has a reduced pair of forelegs, is brightly coloured, and is included with popular species such as the emperors, admirals, tortoiseshells, and fritillaries. Its wingspan reaches about 110 millimetres (4.3 in), with an easily recognizable orange and black pattern. Until 2007, this butterfly was treated as a subspecies of Danaus plexippus. These species are very similar, but D. erippus usually has an orange trailing edge of the forewings, while in D. plexippus it is black. The lineages of the two species are thought to have separated about 2 million years ago. The colour of the wings in males of the southern monarch is paler than in the females.


This species can be found in tropical and subtropical latitudes of South America, mainly in  Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and southern Peru.


Speyeria mormonia, commonly known as the Mormon fritillary, is a North American butterfly belonging to the family Nymphalidae.  It is highly diverse, having differentiated into several subspecies which occupy a wide geographic range. S. mormonia exhibits extreme protandry, which is the emergence of male adults before female adults. This has several consequences on male and female behavior.  Habitat specificity is still being investigated, as there are few known environmental predictors, and S. mormonia appears to be associated with a wide range of habitats. This species is not under threat, and conservation efforts are generally not necessary.


The Mormon Fritillary is relatively small in comparison to other fritillaries.  Their wings are orange with small black patches, excepting the ventral hindwing, which has a green tinge accented by light silver streaks.  These silver streaks vary between subspecies, with some possessing a reflective quality, and others appearing chalk white.  On average, female wingspan ranges from 25-27mm, while males have a slightly smaller wingspan, from 23-26mm.  These values are specific to a population in Colorado, and wingspan might vary between unique populations and subspecies.


Mud puddling refers to a behavior where adult butterflies feed from mud and animal waste, rather than on nectar.  In adult S. mormonia, males puddle more than females, and young males puddle more frequently than older males. Furthermore, older females were observed puddling, particularly if their overall lifetime mating count was low.  This behavior is explained by the nutrients derived from puddling.  Males source sodium at puddles, which they then transfer to females during mating. An older female who has only mated once or twice may have exhausted her sodium supply, and so turns to puddling to refresh her nutrient stores.  Young females still retain sodium from their first mating, and therefore have no need to puddle. Females who mate multiply are resupplied sodium with each mating, and similarly do not need to puddle.


S. mormonia is found throughout western North America, with significant populations in both the United States and Canada. Four subspecies are present in Canada, from the Yukon region through British Columbia.  Several more subspecies are present in the United States, with montane populations in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, and mesic populations in California and Nevada.  S. mormonia is a wide-ranging species compared to other Speyeria, and exhibits high genetic variability as a result.


S. mormonia are a univoltine species, having one flight period from mid-July through early September.  Females and males differ in their peak flight periods, with males flying first, and females following two to three weeks afterwards.  Although they have different peaks, both males and females conclude their flight period at the same time, towards the end of August and into early September. Regarding specific flight patterns, both sexes display dispersing habits, with no significant difference between the two. However, males may be more mobile than females, as they fly close to the ground to search for mates.  Flight period shows a close dependency on weather patterns, with a lack of rainfall correlating to shorter flight periods.


Forewing lighter in color from the apex of the cell outwards, the dark basal area rounded distally; hindwing with suggestion of a small tail; some red spots on the disc, in two separate rows, in the male the proximal spots very small, usually only indicated; in the female all the spots larger than in the male.
The wingspan is 84–95 mm.


Adults are on wing from February to October in Mexico and in April in southern Texas.
The larvae feed on Rutaceae species. Adults feed on flower nectar.


Papilio rogeri, the pink-spotted swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae (swallowtails). It is found in central and southern Mexico. One stray has been reported from the lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas, United States.


In eastern Asia, P. indusiatus is considered a delicacy and an aphrodisiac. Previously only collected in the wild, where it is not abundant, it was difficult to procure. The mushroom's scarcity meant that it was usually reserved for special occasions. In the time of China's Qing Dynasty, the species was collected in Yunnan Province and sent to the Imperial Palaces to satisfy the appetite of Empress Dowager Cixi, who particularly enjoyed meals containing edible fungi. It was one of the eight featured ingredients of the "Bird's Nest Eight Immortals Soup" served at a banquet to celebrate her 60th birthday. This dish, served by descendants of the Confucius family in celebrations and longevity banquets, contained ingredients that were "all precious food, delicacies from land and sea, fresh, tender, and crisp, appropriately sweet and salty". Another notable use was a state banquet held for American diplomat Henry Kissinger on his visit to China to reestablish diplomatic relations in the early 1970s. One source writes of the mushroom: "It has a fine and tender texture, fragrance and is attractive, beautiful in shape, fresh and crispy in taste." The dried fungus, commonly sold in Asian markets, is prepared by rehydrating and soaking or simmering in water until tender. Sometimes used in stir-frys, it is traditionally used as a component of rich chicken soups. The rehydrated mushroom can also be stuffed and cooked.
Phallus indusiatus has been cultivated on a commercial scale in China since 1979. In the Fujian Province of China—known for a thriving mushroom industry that cultivates 45 species of edible fungi—P. indusiatus is produced in the counties of Fuan, Jianou, and Ningde. Advances in cultivation have made the fungus cheaper and more widely available; in 1998, about 1,100 metric tons (1,100 long tons; 1,200 short tons) were produced in China. The Hong Kong price for a kilogram of dried mushrooms reached around US $770 in 1982, but had dropped to US $100–200 by 1988. Additional advances led to it dropping further to US $10–20 by 2000. The fungus is grown on agricultural wastes—bamboo-trash sawdust covered with a thin layer of non-sterilised soil. The optimal temperature for the growth of mushroom spawn and fruit bodies is about 24 °C (75 °F), with a relative humidity of 90–95%. Other substrates that can be used for the cultivation of the fungus include bamboo leaves and small stems, soybean pods or stems, corn stems, and willow leaves.
Nutritional analyses of P. indusiatus show that the fruit bodies are over 90% water, about 6% fiber, 4.8% protein, 4.7% fat, and several mineral elements, including calcium, although the mineral composition in the fungus may depend on corresponding concentrations in the growth substrate.


Medicinal properties have been ascribed to Phallus indusiatus from the time of the Chinese Tang Dynasty when it was described in pharmacopoeia. The fungus was used to treat many inflammatory, stomach, and neural diseases. Southern China's Miao people continue to use it traditionally for a number of afflictions, including injuries and pains, cough, dysentery, enteritis, leukemia, and feebleness, and it has been prescribed clinically as a treatment for laryngitis, leucorrhea, fever, and oliguria (low urine output), diarrhea, hypertension, cough, hyperlipidemia, and in anticancer therapy. Modern science has probed the biochemical basis of these putative medicinal benefits.
The fruit bodies of the fungus contain biologically active polysaccharides. A β-D-glucan called T-5-N and prepared from alkaline extracts has been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties. Its chemical structure is a linear chain backbone made largely of α-1→3 linked D-mannopyranosyl residues, with traces of 1→6 linked D-mannopyrosyl residues. The polysaccharide has tumour-suppressing activity against subcutaneously implanted sarcoma 180 (a transplantable, non-metastasizing connective tissue tumour often used in research) in mice.
Another chemical of interest found in P. indusiatus is hydroxymethylfurfural, which has attracted attention as a tyrosinase inhibitor. Tyrosinase catalyzes the initial steps of melanogenesis in mammals, and is responsible for the undesirable browning reactions in damaged fruits during post-harvest handling and processing, and its inhibitors are of interest to the medical, cosmetics, and food industries. Hydroxymethylfurfural, which occurs naturally in several foods, is not associated with serious health risks. P. indusiatus also contains a unique ribonuclease (an enzyme that cuts RNA into smaller components) possessing several biochemical characteristics that differentiate it from other known mushroom ribonucleases.
Two novel sesquiterpenes, dictyophorine A and B, have been identified from the fruit bodies of the fungus. These compounds, based on the eudesmane skeleton (a common structure found in plant-derived flavours and fragrances), are the first eudesmane derivatives isolated from fungi and were found to promote the synthesis of nerve growth factor in astroglial cells. Related compounds isolated and identified from the fungus include three quinazoline derivatives (a class of compounds rare in nature), dictyoquinazol A, B, and C. These chemicals were shown in laboratory tests to have a protective effect on cultured mouse neurons that had been exposed to neurotoxins. A total synthesis for the dictyoquinazols was reported in 2007.
The fungus has long been recognised to have antibacterial properties: the addition of the fungus to soup broth was known to prevent it from spoiling for several days. One of the responsible antibiotics, albaflavenone, was isolated in 2011. It is a sesquiterpenoid that was already known from the soil bacterium Streptomyces albidoflavus. Experiments have shown that extracts of P. indusiatus have antioxidant in addition to antimicrobial properties.
A 2001 publication in the International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms attempted to determine its efficacy as an aphrodisiac. In the trial involving sixteen women, six self-reported the experience of a mild orgasm while smelling the fruit body, and the other ten, who received smaller doses, self-reported an increased heart rate. All of the twenty men tested considered the smell displeasing. The study used fruit bodies found in Hawaii, not the edible variety cultivated in China.  The study has received criticism.  A way to achieve instant orgasms would be expected to gain much attention and many attempts to reproduce the effect, but none has succeeded.  No major science journal has published the study, and there are no studies where the results have been reproduced.


Phallus indusiatus, commonly called the bamboo mushrooms, bamboo pith, long net stinkhorn, crinoline stinkhorn or veiled lady, is a fungus in the family Phallaceae, or stinkhorns. It has a cosmopolitan distribution in tropical areas, and is found in southern Asia, Africa, the Americas, and Australia, where it grows in woodlands and gardens in rich soil and well-rotted woody material. The fruit body of the fungus is characterised by a conical to bell-shaped cap on a stalk and a delicate lacy "skirt", or indusium, that hangs from beneath the cap and reaches nearly to the ground. First described scientifically in 1798 by French botanist Étienne Pierre Ventenat, the species has often been referred to a separate genus Dictyophora along with other Phallus species featuring an indusium. P. indusiatus can be distinguished from other similar species by differences in distribution, size, color, and indusium length.
Mature fruit bodies are up to 25 cm (10 in) tall with a conical to bell-shaped cap that is 1.5–4 cm (0.6–1.6 in) wide. The cap is covered with a greenish-brown spore-containing slime, which attracts flies and other insects that eat the spores and disperse them. An edible mushroom featured as an ingredient in Chinese haute cuisine, it is used in stir-fries and chicken soups. The mushroom, grown commercially and commonly sold in Asian markets, is rich in protein, carbohydrates, and dietary fiber. The mushroom also contains various bioactive compounds, and has antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. Phallus indusiatus has a recorded history of use in Chinese medicine extending back to the 7th century AD, and features in Nigerian folklore.


Immature fruit bodies of P. indusiatus are initially enclosed in an egg-shaped to roughly spherical subterranean structure encased in a peridium. The "egg" ranges in color from whitish to buff to reddish-brown, measures up to 6 cm (2.4 in) in diameter, and usually has a thick mycelial cord attached at the bottom. As the mushroom matures, the pressure caused by the enlargement of the internal structures cause the peridium to tear and the fruit body rapidly emerges from the "egg". The mature mushroom is up to 25 cm (9.8 in) tall and girded with a net-like structure called the indusium (or less technically a "skirt") that hangs down from the conical to bell-shaped cap. The netlike openings of the indusium may be polygonal or round in shape. Well-developed specimens have an indusium that reaches to the volva and flares out somewhat before collapsing on the stalk. The cap is 1.5–4 cm (0.6–1.6 in) wide and its reticulated (pitted and ridged) surface is covered with a layer of greenish-brown and foul-smelling slime, the gleba, which initially partially obscures the reticulations. The top of the cap has a small hole. The stalk is 7–25 cm (2.8–9.8 in) long, and 1.5–3 cm (0.6–1.2 in) thick. The hollow stalk is white, roughly equal in width throughout its length, sometimes curved, and spongy.  The ruptured peridium remains as a loose volva at the base of the stalk. Fruit bodies develop during the night, and require 10–15 hours to fully develop after emerging from the peridium. They are short-lived, typically lasting no more than a few days. At that point the slime has usually been removed by insects, leaving the pale off-white, bare cap surface exposed. Spores of P. indusiatus are thin-walled, smooth, elliptical or slightly curved, hyaline (translucent), and measure 2–3 by 1–1.5 μm.


The blue jay occurs from southern Canada (including the southern areas of provinces from Alberta eastward to Quebec and throughout the Atlantic provinces) and throughout the eastern and central United States south to Florida and northeastern Texas. The western edge of the range stops where the arid pine forest and scrub habitat of the closely related Steller's jay (C. stelleri) begins, generally in the eastern foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Recently, the range of the blue jay has extended northwestward so that it is now a rare but regularly seen winter visitor along the northern US and southern Canadian Pacific Coast. As the two species' ranges now overlap, C. cristata may sometimes hybridize with Steller's jay. The increase in trees throughout the Great Plains during the past century due to fire suppression and tree planting facilitated the western range expansion of the blue jay as well as range expansions of many other species of birds. From 1966 to 2015, the Blue Jay experienced a population decline along the Atlantic coast, but a greater than 1.5% annual population increase throughout the northern part of its range, including Labrador, Nova Scotia, southern Quebec, and southern Manitoba.
The northernmost subspecies C. c. bromia is migratory, subject to necessity. It may withdraw several hundred kilometers south in the northernmost parts of its range. Thousands of blue jays have been observed to migrate in flocks along the Great Lakes and Atlantic coasts. It migrates during the daytime, in loose flocks of 5 to 250 birds. Much about their migratory behavior remains a mystery. Some are present throughout winter in all parts of their range. Young jays may be more likely to migrate than adults, but many adults also migrate. Some individual jays migrate south one year, stay north the next winter, and then migrate south again the next year. To date, no one has concretely worked out why they migrate when they do. Likely, it is related to weather conditions and how abundant the winter food sources are, which can determine whether other northern birds will move south.
The blue jay occupies a variety of habitats within its large range, from the pine woods of Florida to the spruce-fir forests of northern Ontario. It is less abundant in denser forests, preferring mixed woodlands with oaks and beeches. It has expertly adapted to human activity, occurring in parks and residential areas, and can adapt to wholesale deforestation with relative ease if human activity creates other means for the jays to get by.


The blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata) is a passerine bird in the family Corvidae, native to eastern North America. It lives in most of the eastern and central United States; some eastern populations may be migratory. Resident populations are also in Newfoundland, Canada; breeding populations are found across southern Canada. It breeds in both deciduous and coniferous forests, and is common in residential areas. Its coloration is predominantly blue, with a white chest and underparts, and a blue crest; it has a black, U-shaped collar around its neck and a black border behind the crest. Males and females are similar in size and plumage, and plumage does not vary throughout the year. Four subspecies have been recognized.
The blue jay feeds mainly on seeds and nuts, such as acorns, which it may hide to eat later; soft fruits; arthropods; and occasionally small vertebrates. It typically gleans food from trees, shrubs, and the ground, and sometimes hawks insects from the air. Blue jays can be very aggressive to other birds; they sometimes raid nests and have decapitated other birds.
It builds an open cup nest in the branches of a tree; both sexes participate. The clutch may be two to seven eggs, which are blueish or light brown with darker brown spots. Young are altricial, and are brooded by the female for 8–12 days after hatching. They may stay with their parents for one to two months.
The name jay derives from the bird's noisy, garrulous nature and has been applied to other birds of the same family, which are also mostly gregarious. Jays are also called jaybirds.


The blue jay is a noisy, bold, and aggressive passerine. It is a moderately slow flier (roughly 32–40 km/h (20–25 mph)) when unprovoked. It flies with body and tail held level, with slow wing beats.
Its slow flying speeds make this species easy prey for hawks and owls when it flies in open areas. Virtually all the raptorial birds sympatric in distribution with the blue jay may prey upon it, especially swift bird-hunting specialists such as the Accipiter hawks. Diverse predators may prey on jay eggs and young up to their fledgling stage, including tree squirrels, snakes, cats, crows, raccoons, opossums, other jays and possibly many of the same birds of prey who attack adults.
The blue jay can be beneficial to other bird species, as it may chase predatory birds, such as hawks and owls, and will scream if it sees a predator within its territory. It has also been known to sound an alarm call when hawks or other dangers are near, and smaller birds often recognize this call and hide themselves away accordingly. It may occasionally impersonate the calls of raptors, especially those of the red-tailed and red-shouldered hawks, possibly to test if a hawk is in the vicinity, though also possibly to scare off other birds that may compete for food sources. It may also be aggressive toward humans who come close to its nest, and if an owl roosts near the nest during the daytime the blue jay mobs it until it takes a new roost. However, blue jays have also been known to attack or kill other smaller birds, and foliage-roosting bat species such as Eastern red bats. Jays are very territorial birds, and they will chase others from a feeder for an easier meal. Additionally, the blue jay may raid other birds' nests, stealing eggs, chicks, and nests. However, this may not be as common as is typically thought, as only 1% of food matter in one study was bird material. Despite this, other passerines may still mob jays who come within their breeding territories.
When a blue jay is agitated or angry, the blue crest atop its head will rise. It will lower when the bird is relaxed or calm.
Blue jays, like other corvids, are highly curious and are considered intelligent birds. Young individuals playfully snatch brightly coloured or reflective objects, such as bottle caps or pieces of aluminum foil, and carry them around until they lose interest. While not confirmed to have engaged in tool use in the wild, blue jays in captivity have been observed using strips of newspaper as tools to obtain food, while captive fledglings have been observed attempting to open the doors of their cages.


The blue jay measures 22–30 cm (9–12 in) from bill to tail and weighs 70–100 g (2.5–3.5 oz), with a wingspan of 34–43 cm (13–17 in). Consistent with Bergmann's rule, jays from Connecticut averaged 92.4 g (3.26 oz) in mass, while jays from warmer southern Florida averaged 73.7 g (2.60 oz). There is a pronounced crest on the head, a crown of feathers, which may be raised or lowered according to the bird's mood. When excited or aggressive, the crest will be fully raised. When frightened, the crest bristles outward, brushlike. When the bird is feeding among other jays or resting, the crest is flattened on the head.
Its plumage is lavender-blue to mid-blue in the crest, back, wings, and tail, and its face is white. The underside is off-white and the neck is collared with black which extends to the sides of the head. The wing primaries and tail are strongly barred with black, sky-blue, and white. The bill, legs, and eyes are all black. Males and females are almost identical, but the male is slightly larger. The black plumage on its nape, face, and throat varies extensively between individuals; it is believed to assist in recognition between individuals.
As with most other blue-hued birds, the blue jay's coloration is not derived from pigments but is the result of light interference due to the internal structure of the feathers; if a blue feather is crushed, the blue disappears because the structure is destroyed. The actual pigment in its feathers is melanin. This is referred to as structural coloration.


Leucoagaricus americanus is a mushroom in the genus Leucoagaricus, native to North America. It was first described by Charles Horton Peck, an American mycologist of the 19th and early 20th centuries, in 1869. It is widely distributed in North America, though more common east of the Rocky Mountains; it is saprobic, and grows on sawdust, on wood chips, on stumps, and on the ground.  It is not consumable; may cause vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pain.


The cap is 3–15 cm and oval in shape when immature, becoming convex to flat when fully grown. The cap feels dry and smooth at the beginning, but gradually gets reddish to reddish brown scales. It is white in color but reddens with maturity or after being handled. The gills are free from the stipe and lie close together. They appear white when young and are stained pinkish to maroon. The stipe is 7–14 cm long, often enlarged at or below the middle and tapering toward the base. It appears white at first, staining or aging pink or reddish brown. It feels smooth with its silky hairs. The membranous veil leaves a white double edged ring on the upper stipe that may disappear in age. The spores are white to cream in color and measure 8–10 x 6–7.5 µm. The flesh is white throughout. It bruises yellow to orange when young but dries reddish when mature. The flesh is thick and discolors when cut, bruised or damaged.


The orange-fronted parakeet or orange-fronted conure (Eupsittula canicularis), also known as the half-moon conure, is a medium-sized parrot that is resident from western Mexico to Costa Rica.


It is found in lowlands and foothills on the Pacific side of the central mountain ranges in forest canopy and edges, and more open woodland, including savanna and second growth.


The 3–5 white eggs are laid in an unlined nest cavity, usually self-excavated in an arboreal termite nest of the termite species Nasutitermes nigriceps, but sometimes in an old woodpecker hole or natural cavity.
Both the male and female half-moon conures excavate a cavity in the termite mound using their beaks (the male doing the majority of the digging) over the course of about a week. Following this, the birds leave the new cavity alone for 7-10 days, to allow time for the termites to seal off and abandon the damaged area. They then return and proceed to nest inside. Conure activity often causes the eventual disintegration of the termite nest due to irreparable structural damage, which provides an opportunity to predatory ants to enter the colony.


The orange-fronted parakeet is 23–25 cm (9.1–9.8 in) long and weighs 68–80 grams (2.4–2.8 oz). The adult is mainly green, paler and yellower below and with an olive tone to the breast. The wings have blue outer primaries and yellow linings, and the pointed tail is tipped with blue. The head is distinctive, with a blue crown, orange forehead, bare yellow eye-ring, yellow iris and white bill. Young birds are similar to the adults, but with much less orange on the forehead.


The southern gatekeeper, like many in subspecies Satyrinae, exhibits sexual dimorphism. The male is smaller than the female, the front wing of the male is 15 to 16 mm whereas a female front wing is 20 mm, and has a patch of scent-producing scales known as the androconia, which can be seen as a dark patch on the upperside of the forewing.


Food plants are grasses including Deschampsia cespitosa


The southern gatekeeper likes hot localities and is found in northern Africa and southern Europe; in Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Portugal, Spain including Mallorca and Menorca, south-eastern France, Corsica, Sardinia, Elba, Italy, Sicily, Croatia, Albania, Greece and Turkey. It is usually found in rough, open areas in lowland regions although in some areas it occurs up to 2000 m.


Closely resembles Tirumala limniace, Cramer, but is always sufficiently distinct to be easily recognized, even on the wing. From T. limniace it differs on the upperside in the ground colour being darker and the semihyaline markings narrower, more distinct, and of a bluer tint, In the forewing, in interspace 1 the two streaks are narrower, never coalescent, the upper one forming an oval detached spot; the short streaks above vein 5 are outwardly never truncate, always acute. In the hindwing the two streaks if the discoidal cell united at base are wide apart at their apices, the lower one never formed into a hook. On the underside this species is generally darker, the apex of the forewing and the whole of the ground colour of the hindwing not being of the conspicuous golden brown that they are in T. limniace.
Wingspan 80–115 mm.


Tirumala septentrionis, the dark blue tiger, is a danaid butterfly found in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia.


The larvae have yellow-orange heads and bodies covered with hair, and they can grow to approximately 25–35 mm in length. They exhibit two pairs of long, orange hair-pencils and two pairs of white hair-pencils towards the front of their body. They also exhibit one pair of white hair-pencils near the back of their body.
The adults are pale yellow with dark bands on the forewings. Each forewing is 24–26 mm in length, making the wingspan approximately 50 mm. As adults, they are almost indistinguishable from the closely related Halysidota tesselaris.


The sycamore tussock moth produces two generations each year. Moths emerge from overwintering cocoons from May to June. After mating, they lay egg masses on bark the underside of leaves. The larvae feed on the American sycamore tree, Platanus occidentalis. They pupate in late June and July, and emerge as moths in July and August. The offspring of this generation spins cocoons in late September and October and overwinters as pupae.


Halysidota harrisii, the sycamore tussock moth, is a moth of the family Erebidae and the tribe Arctiini, the tiger moths. The species was first described by Benjamin Dann Walsh in 1864. It is found in southeastern Canada, the eastern parts of the United States, and northeastern Mexico.


Nathalis iole, the dainty sulphur or dwarf yellow, is a North American butterfly in the family Pieridae.


The hazel grouse (Tetrastes bonasia), sometimes called the hazel hen, is one of the smaller members of the grouse family of birds. It is a sedentary species, breeding across the Palearctic as far east as Hokkaido, and as far west as eastern and central Europe, in dense, damp, mixed coniferous woodland, preferably with some spruce. The bird is sometimes referred to as "rabchick" (from рябчик) by early 20th century English speaking travellers to Russia.


The nest is on the ground, and 3–6 eggs is the normal clutch size. The female incubates the eggs and cares for the chicks alone, as is typical with gamebirds.


Vipera berus has a wide range. It can be found across the Eurasian land-mass; from northwestern Europe (Great Britain, Belgium, Netherlands, Scandinavia, Germany, France) across southern Europe (Italy, Serbia, Albania, Croatia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Bulgaria, and northern Greece) and eastern Europe to north of the Arctic Circle, and Russia to the Pacific Ocean, Sakhalin Island, North Korea, northern Mongolia and northern China. It is found farther north than any other snake species. The type locality was originally listed as 'Europa'. Mertens and Müller (1940) proposed restricting the type locality to 'Upsala, Schweden' (Uppsala, Sweden) and it was eventually restricted to Berthåga, Uppsala by designation of a neotype by Krecsák & Wahlgren (2008).
In several European countries, it is notable as being the only native venomous snake. It is one of only three snake species native to Britain. The other two, the barred grass snake and the smooth snake, are non-venomous.
Sufficient habitat complexity is a crucial requirement for the presence of this species, in order to support its various behaviours—basking, foraging, and hibernation—as well as to offer some protection from predators and human harassment. It is found in a variety of habitats, including: chalky downs, rocky hillsides, moors, sandy heaths, meadows, rough commons, edges of woods, sunny glades and clearings, bushy slopes and hedgerows, dumps, coastal dunes, and stone quarries. It will venture into wetlands if dry ground is available nearby and thus may be found on the banks of streams, lakes, and ponds.
In much of southern Europe, such as southern France and northern Italy, it is found in either low lying wetlands or at high altitudes. In the Swiss Alps, it may ascend to about 3,000 m (9,800 ft). In Hungary and Russia, it avoids open steppeland; a habitat in which V. ursinii is more likely to occur. In Russia, however, it does occur in the forest steppe zone.


Diet consists mainly of small mammals, such as mice, rats, voles, and shrews, as well as lizards. Sometimes, slow worms are taken, and even weasels and moles. Adders also feed on amphibians, such as frogs, newts, and salamanders. Birds are also reported to be consumed, especially nestlings and even eggs, for which they will climb into shrubbery and bushes. Generally, diet varies depending on locality. Juveniles will eat nestling mammals, small lizards and frogs as well as worms and spiders. Once they reach about 30 cm (0.98 ft) in length, their diet begins to resemble that of the adults.


Relatively thick-bodied, adults usually grow to 60 cm (24 in) in total length (including tail), with an average of 55 cm (22 in). Maximum size varies by region. The largest, at over 90 cm (35 in), are found in Scandinavia; specimens of 104 cm (41 in) have been observed there on two occasions. In France and Great Britain, the maximum size is 80–87 cm (31–34 in). Mass ranges from 50 g (1.8 oz) to about 180 grams (6.3 oz).
The head is fairly large and distinct and its sides are almost flat and vertical. The edge of the snout is usually raised into a low ridge. Seen from above, the rostral scale is not visible, or only just. Immediately behind the rostral, there are two (rarely one) small scales.
Dorsally, there are usually five large plates: a squarish frontal (longer than wide, sometimes rectangular), two parietals (sometimes with a tiny scale between the frontal and the parietals), and two long and narrow supraoculars. The latter are large and distinct, each separated from the frontal by one to four small scales. The nostril is situated in a shallow depression within a large nasal scale.
The eye is relatively large—equal in size or slightly larger than the nasal scale—but often smaller in females. Below the supraoculars are six to 13 (usually eight to 10) small circumorbital scales. The temporal scales are smooth (rarely weakly keeled). There are 10–12 sublabials and six to 10 (usually eight or 9) supralabials. Of the latter, the numbers 3 and 4 are the largest, while 4 and 5 (rarely 3 and 4) are separated from the eye by a single row of small scales (sometimes two rows in alpine specimens).
Midbody there are 21 dorsal scales rows (rarely 19, 20, 22, or 23). These are strongly keeled scales, except for those bordering the ventral scales. These scales seem loosely attached to the skin and lower rows become increasingly wide; those closest to the ventral scales are twice as wide as the ones along the midline. The ventral scales number 132–150 in males and 132–158 in females. The anal plate is single. The subcaudals are paired, numbering 32–46 in males and 23–38 in females.
The colour pattern varies, ranging from very light-coloured specimens with small, incomplete, dark dorsal crossbars to entirely brown ones with faint or clear, darker brown markings, and on to melanistic individuals that are entirely dark and lack any apparent dorsal pattern. However, most have some kind of zigzag dorsal pattern down the entire length of their bodies and tails. The head usually has a distinctive dark V or X on the back. A dark streak runs from the eye to the neck and continues as a longitudinal series of spots along the flanks.
Unusually for snakes, it is often possible to distinguish the sexes by their colour. Females are usually brownish in hue with dark-brown markings, the males are pure grey with black markings. The basal colour of males will often be slightly lighter than that of the females, making the black zigzag pattern stand out. The melanistic individuals are often females.


Because of the rapid rate of human expansion throughout the range of this species, bites are relatively common. Domestic animals and livestock are frequent victims. In Great Britain, most instances occur in March–October. In Sweden, there are about 1,300 bites a year, with an estimated 12% that require hospitalisation. At least eight different antivenoms are available against bites from this species.
Mallow et al. (2003) describe the venom toxicity as being relatively low compared to other viper species. They cite Minton (1974) who reported the LD₅₀ values for mice to be 0.55 mg/kg IV, 0.80 mg/kg IP and 6.45 mg/kg SC. As a comparison, in one test the minimum lethal dose of venom for a guinea pig was 40–67 mg, but only 1.7 mg was necessary when Daboia russelii venom was used. Brown (1973) gives a higher subcutaneous LD₅₀ range of 1.0–4.0 mg/kg. All agree that the venom yield is low: Minton (1974) mentions 10–18 mg for specimens 48–62 cm (19–24.5 in) in length, while Brown (1973) lists only 6 mg.
Relatively speaking, bites from this species are not highly dangerous. In Britain there were only 14 known fatalities between 1876 and 2005—the last a 5-year-old child in 1975—and one nearly fatal bite of a 39-year-old woman in Essex in 1998. An 82-year-old woman died following a bite in Germany in 2004, although it is not clear whether her death was due to the effect of the venom. A 44-year-old British man was left seriously injured after he was bitten by an adder in the Dalby Forest, Yorkshire. Even so, professional medical help should always be sought as soon as possible after any bite. Very occasionally bites can be life-threatening, particularly in small children, while adults may experience discomfort and disability long after the bite. The length of recovery varies, but may take up to a year. Surprisingly, Norway has on average registered one death from the snake every 10 years, despite only having 200-500 reports of bites a year.
Local symptoms include immediate and intense pain, followed after a few minutes (but perhaps by as much as 30 minutes) by swelling and a tingling sensation. Blisters containing blood are not common. The pain may spread within a few hours, along with tenderness and inflammation. Reddish lymphangitic lines and bruising may appear, and the whole limb can become swollen and bruised within 24 hours. Swelling may also spread to the trunk, and with children, throughout the entire body. Necrosis and intracompartmental syndromes are very rare.
Systemic symptoms resulting from anaphylaxis can be dramatic. These may appear within 5 minutes post bite, or can be delayed for many hours. Such symptoms include nausea, retching and vomiting, abdominal colic and diarrhoea, incontinence of urine and faeces, sweating, fever, vasoconstriction, tachycardia, lightheadedness, loss of consciousness, blindness, shock, angioedema of the face, lips, gums, tongue, throat and epiglottis, urticaria and bronchospasm. If left untreated, these symptoms may persist or fluctuate for up to 48 hours. In severe cases, cardiovascular failure may occur.


There are very small resident populations of this species in north west Africa and Ethiopia, but the main breeding area of the bird is from southeast Europe across the Palearctic to Lake Baikal, Mongolia, and western China. Eastern populations are mostly migratory, wintering in the Indian subcontinent.  This species has colonised the island of Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands, first breeding there in 1994, and reaching a population of almost fifty pairs by 2008. The ruddy shelduck is a common winter visitor in India where it arrives by October and departs by April. Its typical breeding habitat is large wetlands and rivers with mud flats and shingle banks, and it is found in large numbers on lakes and reservoirs. It breeds in high altitude lakes and swamps in Jammu and Kashmir. Outside the breeding season it prefers lowland streams, sluggish rivers, ponds, flooded grassland, marshes and brackish lagoons.
Although becoming quite rare in southeast Europe and southern Spain, the ruddy shelduck is still common across much of its Asian range. It may be this population which gives rise to vagrants as far west as Iceland, Great Britain and Ireland. However, since the European population is declining, it is likely that most occurrences in western Europe in recent decades are escapes or feral birds. Although this bird is observed in the wild from time to time in eastern North America, no evidence has been found that this is a genuine case of vagrancy. Feral ruddy shelduck have bred successfully in several European countries. In Switzerland the ruddy shelduck is considered an invasive species that threatens to displace native birds. Despite actions taken to reduce numbers, the population of ruddy shelduck in Switzerland increased from 211 to 1250 individuals in the period from 2006 to 2016.
A stable population exists in Moscow, settling the city parks' ponds alongside the endemic mallards. It is theorized that the birds are feral descendants of escapees from the Moscow Zoo, the population most likely forming after 1948, when the policy of clipping the birds' wings was repealed. Unlike the wild population, these ducks are non-migratory, wintering instead in the non-freezing parts of the city's bodies of water.
This shelduck mostly frequents open locations on inland bodies of water such as lakes, reservoirs and rivers. It is seldom seen in forested areas but does occur in brackish water and saline lagoons. Though more common in the lowlands, it also inhabits higher altitudes and in central Asia is one of the few waterbirds, along with the bar-headed goose (Anser indicus), to be found on lakes at 5,000 m (16,400 ft).


The ruddy shelduck is a mainly nocturnal bird. It is omnivorous and feeds on grasses, the young shoots of plants, grain and water plants as well as both aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates. On land it grazes on the foliage, in the water it dabbles in the shallows, and at greater depths, it up-ends, but it does not dive.
The ruddy shelduck is usually found in pairs or small groups and rarely forms large flocks. However, moulting and wintering gatherings on chosen lakes or slow rivers can be very large. Gatherings of over four thousand birds have been recorded on the Koshi Barrage and in the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve in Nepal, and over ten thousand at Lake Gölü in Turkey.
The birds arrive at their main breeding locations in central Asia in March and April. There is a strong pair bond between the male and female and it is thought they pair for life. In their breeding quarters, the birds are very aggressive towards their own kind and towards other species. The female in particular approaches intruders with head lowered and neck outstretched, uttering anger calls. If the intruder stands its ground, the female returns to the male and runs round him, inciting him to attack. He may or may not do so. Mating takes place on the water after a brief courtship ritual involving neck stretching, head dipping and tail raising. The nesting site is often far away from water in a hole in a tree or ruined building, a crevice in a cliff, among sand-dunes or in an animal burrow. The nest is constructed by the female using feathers and down and some grasses.
A clutch of about eight eggs (range six to twelve) is laid between late April and early June. These have a dull gloss and are creamy-white, averaging 68 by 47 mm (2.68 by 1.85 in). Incubation is done by the female while the male stands in attendance nearby. The eggs hatch after about twenty-eight days and both parents care for the young, which fledge in a further fifty-five days. After breeding the adults moult, losing the power of flight for about a month while they do so. Before moulting they move to large water bodies where they can more easily avoid predation while they are flightless. The family may stay together as a group for some time; the autumn migration starts around September and the young may mature in their second year. North African birds breed about five weeks earlier, and their breeding success is greater in wet summers.


The ruddy shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea), known in India as the Brahminy duck, is a member of the family Anatidae. It is a distinctive waterfowl, 58 to 70 cm (23 to 28 in) in length with a wingspan of 110 to 135 cm (43 to 53 in). It has orange-brown body plumage with a paler head, while the tail and the flight feathers in the wings are black, contrasting with the white wing-coverts. It is a migratory bird, wintering in the Indian subcontinent and breeding in southeastern Europe and central Asia, though there are small resident populations in North Africa. It has a loud honking call.
The ruddy shelduck mostly inhabits inland water-bodies such as lakes, reservoirs and rivers. The male and female form a lasting pair bond and the nest may be well away from water, in a crevice or hole in a cliff, tree or similar site. A clutch of about eight eggs is laid and is incubated solely by the female for about four weeks. The young are cared for by both parents and fledge about eight weeks after hatching.
In central and eastern Asia, populations are steady or rising, but in Europe they are generally in decline. Altogether, the birds have a wide range and large total population, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed their conservation status as being of least concern.


Belenois creona, the African common white or African caper, is a butterfly in the family Pieridae. It is found in the Afrotropical realm.


The wingspan is 40–45 mm.  The sexes are dimorphic.


The larvae feed on Capparis and Maerua species.


The gilded flicker (Colaptes chrysoides) is a large-sized woodpecker (mean length of 29 cm (11 in)) of the Sonoran, Yuma, and eastern Colorado Desert regions of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, including all of Baja California, except the extreme northwestern region.  Golden-yellow underwings distinguish the gilded flicker from the northern flicker found within the same region, which has red underwings.


The gilded flicker most frequently builds its nest hole in a saguaro cactus, excavating a nest hole nearer to the top than to the ground. The cactus defends itself against water loss into the cavity of the nesting hole by secreting sap that hardens into a waterproof structure that is known as a saguaro boot. Northern flickers, on the other hand, nest in riparian trees and very rarely inhabit saguaros. Gilded flickers occasionally hybridize with northern flickers in the narrow zones where their ranges and habitats overlap.


Phlebia incarnata is a species of polypore fungus in the family Meruliaceae. It is inedible.


Butyriboletus frostii (formerly Boletus frostii), commonly known as Frost's bolete or the apple bolete, is a bolete fungus first described scientifically in 1874. A member of the family Boletaceae, the mushrooms produced by the fungus have tubes and pores instead of gills on the underside of their caps. Butyriboletus frostii is distributed in the eastern United States from Maine to Georgia, and in the southwest from Arizona extending south to Mexico and Costa Rica. A mycorrhizal species, its fruit bodies are typically found growing near hardwood trees, especially oak.
Butyriboletus frostii mushrooms can be recognized by their dark red sticky caps, the red pores, the network-like pattern of the stipe, and the bluing reaction to tissue injury. Another characteristic of young, moist fruit bodies is the amber-colored drops exuded on the pore surface. Although the mushrooms are considered edible, they are generally not recommended for consumption because of the risk of confusion with other poisonous red-pored, blue-bruising boletes. B. frostii may be distinguished from other superficially similar red-capped boletes by differences in distribution, associated tree species, bluing reaction, or morphology.


Butyriboletus frostii is a mycorrhizal species, meaning that the fungus forms associations with the roots of various species of trees. These associations are mutualistic, because the fungus absorbs mineral nutrients from the soil and channels these into the plant, while the plant provides the fungus with sugars, a product of photosynthesis. The characteristic feature of the mycorrhiza is the presence of a sheath of fungal tissue that encases the terminal, nutrient-absorbing rootlets of the host plant. The fungus forms an extensive underground network of hyphae that radiate outward from the surface of the root sheath, effectively increasing the surface area for nutrient absorption. The hyphae also invade between the root cortical cells to form a Hartig net. Using pure culture techniques, Butyriboletus frostii has been shown to form mycorrhizae with Virginia pine (Pinus virginiana), while a field study confirms a similar association with the oak Quercus laurina.
The fruit bodies grow solitarily, scattered, or in groups on the ground under hardwood trees; the fungus fruits in summer to early autumn. William Murrill noted its preference for growing in "thin oak woods, where the light is sufficient to enable grass to grow", and Alexander H. Smith mentioned its preference for growing in "thin, sandy soil under scrub oak." In the United States, it is distributed from Maine south to Georgia, extending west to Tennessee and Michigan, and in southern Arizona. In Mexico, it is often found under Madrone. It has also been collected in Costa Rica, where it associates with the oak species Quercus copeyensis, Q. costaricensis, Q. rapurahuensis, and Q. seemanii. A 1980 publication tentatively suggested that the fungus was also present in Italy, but the author later determined that the putative E. frostii was actually Boletus siculus.
Fruit bodies can be parasitized by the mold-like fungus Sepedonium ampullosporum. Infection results in necrosis of the mushroom tissue, and a yellow color caused by the formation of large amounts of pigmented aleurioconidia (single-celled conidia produced by extrusion from the conidiophores).


The shape of the cap of the young fruit body ranges from a half sphere to convex, later becoming broadly convex to flat or shallowly depressed, with a diameter of 5–15 cm (2.0–5.9 in). The edge of the cap is curved inward, although as it ages it can uncurl and turn upward. In moist conditions, the cap surface is sticky as a result of its cuticle, which is made of gelatinized hyphae. If the fruit body has dried out after a rain, the cap is especially shiny, sometimes appearing finely areolate (having a pattern of block-like areas similar to cracked, dried mud). Young mushrooms have a whitish bloom on the cap surface.
The color is bright red initially, but fades with age. The flesh is up to 2.5 cm (1.0 in) thick, and ranges in color from pallid to pale yellow to lemon yellow. The flesh has a variable staining reaction in response to bruising, so some specimens may turn deep blue almost immediately, while others turn blue weakly and slowly.
The tubes comprising the pore surface (the hymenium) are 9–15 mm deep, yellow to olivaceous yellow (mustard yellow), turning dingy blue when bruised. The pores are small (2 to 3 per mm), circular, and until old age a deep red color that eventually becomes paler. The pore surface is often beaded with yellowish droplets when young (a distinguishing characteristic), and readily stains blue when bruised. The stipe is 4 to 12 cm (1.6 to 4.7 in) long, and 1 to 2.5 cm (0.4 to 1.0 in) thick at its apex. It is roughly equal in thickness throughout its length, though it may taper somewhat toward the top; some specimens may appear ventricose (swollen in the middle). The stipe surface is mostly red, or yellowish near the base; it is reticulate—characterized by ridges arranged in the form of a net-like pattern. Mycelia, visible at the base of the stipe, are yellowish white to light yellow.
The spore print of B. frostii is olive brown. The spores are thick walled, smooth, and spindle shaped, with dimensions of 11–15 by 4–5 µm. Longer spores up to 18 µm long may also be present. The cap cuticle, or pileipellis, is made of a tangled layer of gelatinized hyphae that are 3–6 µm wide. The spore-bearing cells, the basidia, are four spored and measure 26–35 by 10.5–11.5 µm. Cystidia are non-fertile cells interspersed among the basidia, and they are prevalent in the hymenial tissue of E. frostii. These hyaline (translucent) cells measure 30–53 long by 7.5–14 µm wide, and range in shape from somewhat like a spindle (tapering at each end, but with one end typically rounded) to subampullaceous—shaped somewhat like a swollen bottle.


Other red-capped boletes include the poisonous B. flammans and B. rubroflammeus; the former grows most commonly under conifers, the latter in association with hardwoods in eastern North America and southern Arizona. Often confused with E. frostii are E. permagnificus and B. siculus, but the latter two species are known only from Europe and always grow in association with oaks. The fruit bodies of young specimens of B. kermesinus, newly described from Japan in 2011, are similar in appearance to E. frostii. In addition to its distribution, B. kermesinus can be distinguished from E. frostii by having flesh that does not bruise blue and a stipe in which the reticulum is not as deep and coarse. B. pseudofrostii, found in Belize, produces smaller caps that are 1.7 to 2.0 cm (0.7 to 0.8 in) in diameter. Boletus russelli, found in eastern North America, has a red to reddish-brown cap and reticulate stipe, but its pore surface is yellow, and the fruit body does not bruise blue.
Exsudoporus floridanus differs from Butyriboletus. frostii in having a lighter cap color and in the texture of the cap surface: it is tomentose (covered with dense, short, soft, matted hairs) or velutinous (like velvet), compared to the relatively smooth surface of B. frostii. Singer notes that although the physical characteristics between the two taxa may be blurred and are hard to define, the area of origin can reliably distinguish them: E. floridanus is found on shaded lawns and scrubland in open oak stands in non-tropical regions of Florida, typically on grassy or sandy soil, where it fruits between May and October.


Anticarsia gemmatalis is a tropical species of caterpillar and moth that migrates north each season. The species can commonly be found in the Gulf states, north as far as Wisconsin. The adults have wings that are grayish brown, crossed with brown or black zigzag lines. The caterpillars are black or green, with narrow lighter stripes on the back and sides. They spit out a brownish substance, spring into the air and wriggle a lot when they are disturbed. The species eats velvet beans, peanut, soybeans, cotton, kudzu, alfalfa, cowpeas, horse beans, snap beans, lima beans, and coffeeweeds. Its common name is velvetbean caterpillar and velvetbean moth.
Egg viability was highest at 25 °C (77 °F) and adaptation to higher temperatures did not occur over a three generation observation. This suggests global warming will reduce A. gemmatalis losses on soybeans in tropical areas that are already at 25 °C (77 °F) but increase predation on soybeans in areas currently below that temperature, thus in fact only shifting the affected area.


The spotted cucumber beetle has three subspecies, each with a different common name:
Diabrotica undecimpunctata howardi – spotted cucumber beetle or southern corn rootworm
Diabrotica undecimpunctata tenella – western cucumber beetle
Diabrotica undecimpunctata undecimpunctata – western spotted cucumber beetle
In the adult form, it eats leaves of many crops, including squash, cucumbers, soybeans, cotton, beans, and corn. Adult beetles lay eggs in the soil near a cucurbit plant.  The eggs hatch around mid spring and take 6–9 days to hatch under favorable conditions. The larval stage lasts around 2–3 weeks and the larvae are yellowish and wormlike. After the larval stage insects become pupae, this stage lasts for 6–10 days.  After 6–10 days the adult beetle emerges.  Adult beetles are greenish-yellow with six large black spots on each elytron. They are about 0.5 cm long.


This species is found throughout southern Canada, the continental USA, and the central highlands of Mexico.


Diabrotica undecimpunctata, the spotted cucumber beetle or southern corn rootworm, is a species of cucumber beetle that is native to North America. The species can be a major agricultural pest insect in North America. Spotted cucumber beetles cause damage to crops in the larval and adult stages of their life cycle.  Larvae feed on the roots of the emerging plants, which causes the most damage since the young plants are more vulnerable. In the adult stage the beetles cause damage by eating the flowers, leaves, stems, and fruits of the plant The beetles can also spread diseases such as bacterial wilt and mosaic virus.


Tirumala limniace is a large butterfly with wide wings. It has a wingspan of 90 to 100 millimeters, with the males being smaller than the females. The upper side of the wing is dark brown to black and patterned with bluish-white, semi-transparent spots and lines. The blue of the bluish-white spots consists of the pigment pterobilin. In general, all butterflies can directly absorb heat from the sun via their wings to facilitate autonomous flight. Studies on blue tiger butterflies show that high-intensity light significantly increased flight activity. Blue tiger butterflies have a wing surface color that is composed of both light and dark colors. The dark areas on the wing surfaces are the heat absorption areas that allow for the facilitation of autonomous flight.
In cell 1b of the forewing, which, like all the others, is an area on the wing bounded by veins, run two strips, sometimes connected, after which there is a large spot. A stripe runs from the base of the discoid cell, followed by a large spot that is notched from the wing tip (apex). A large oval spot sits at the base of cell 2, a significantly smaller spot is at the base of cell 3, followed by a small spot. Five short stripes can be seen in the post-disk region on the leading edge, only two of which are clearly defined. Two rows of irregular points run submarginally, the inner ones being larger than the outer ones. There is a stripe in cell 1a on the hind wing. A strip that divides from the base also runs through cells 1b and 1c. In the discoid cell there is a wide dividing strip. The lower branch hooks or has a short spur-like base. At the base of cells 2 and 3 there is a thin, V-shaped arch. In cells 2 and 5 there is a strong, wide stripe at the base. Two rows of scattered, irregular points also run submarginally, the inner ones being larger than the outer ones.
The males differ from the females by a black pocket filled with scented scales in cell 1c, near the discoid cell on the upper side of the hind wings. The pockets are only created after hatching while the moth inflates its wings by turning up scented flakes. They play an important role in courtship, along with tufts of hair that can be turned out on the abdomen. The hairs sprout almost only from the rear third of the tuft of hair, a typical feature of the Danaini genera grouped under the clade Danaina.
The underside of the forewing is black, only the apex, like the underside of the hind wings, is olive-brown. The pattern largely corresponds to the top.
The antennae are black, as are the head and thorax, these two still bearing white dots and lines. The top of the abdomen is dark, the underside is pale brownish yellow colored with white shimmering underneath at the segment boundaries


The butterfly larva generally feed on plants of family Asclepiadaceae. The recorded host plants are:
Asclepias
Calotropis
Heterostemma
Marsdenia
Dregea volubilis
Heterostemma cuspidatum
Hoya viridiflora
Marsdenia tenacissima
Crotalaria spp.
Epibaterium spp.
Soya


Tirumala limniace, the blue tiger, is a butterfly found in South Asia, and Southeast Asiathat belongs to the crows and tigers, that is, the danaid group of the brush-footed butterfly family. This butterfly shows gregarious migratory behaviour in southern India. In some places, it may be found in congregations with Danaus genutia, Tirumala septentrionis, Euploea sylvester, Euploea core, Parantica aglea, and at high elevations, with Parantica nilgiriensis, on Crotalaria.


This is a fairly large, heavy-bodied species with a wingspan of 55–68 mm. The forewings are grey with a large prominent buff patch at the apex. As the thoracic hair is also buff, the moth resembles a broken twig when at rest. The hindwings are creamy white. This moth flies at night in June and July and sometimes comes to light, although it is not generally strongly attracted.
The young larvae are gregarious, becoming solitary later. The older larva is very striking, black with white and yellow lines. It feeds on many trees and shrubs (see list below). The species overwinters as a pupa.
The flight season refers to the British Isles. This may vary in other parts of the range.


The buff-tip (Phalera bucephala) is a moth of the family Notodontidae. It is found throughout Europe and in Asia to eastern Siberia. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.


Anasa tristis is a species of bug in the family Coreidae. It is a major pest of squash and pumpkins, found throughout North America, and is a vector of the cucurbit yellow vine disease bacterium. These bugs can emit an unpleasant odor when disturbed. It is commonly known as the squash bug but shares this name with certain other species.


Anasa tristis is a true bug that feeds by sucking sap, mainly from the leaves, but sometimes also the fruit. Historically, at least as far back as 1902, some gardeners believed that Anasa tristis had toxic saliva, however more recent research from 1993 suggests the process of harming plants does not involve any toxins. What happens is that the insects physically damage the xylem and leaves of the plant, which causes them to wilt, darken in colour and die.   The heavier the infestation, the greater the damage to the plant. Sometimes one plant or part of a plant can be heavily attacked while surrounding plants are untouched. Besides the direct damage their feeding causes to the plant, these insects can act as vectors for cucurbit yellow vine disease caused by the bacterium Serratia marcescens. This disease can kill the plants.


Anasa tristis can be found on various members of the gourd family Cucurbitaceae, but most often occurs on pumpkins and squashes. Some varieties and cultivars are more susceptible to attack than others. Research has shown that nymphs can grow to adulthood with varying degrees of success on different host plants; 70%, 49%, 14%, 0.3% and 0% survived to maturity on pumpkin, squash, watermelon, cucumber and cantaloupe melon respectively. Larvae that primarily fed on cucumbers were more likely to live longer than those who fed on water alone, although these larvae didn't gain any substantial amount of weight in its developmental stage.


Red-tailed bumblebees typically eat pollen and nectar. Workers will sometimes attempt to eat the eggs that the queen has laid. The queen makes a valiant effort to prevent this from happening, but the workers are frequently successful in this attempt. Though the queen would not attempt to hurt or injure workers engaging in this activity, she does threaten them with her mandible or sometimes hits the workers with her head. Though this is not well understood, it provides an interesting question for further study.
Further, bees are found to move between specific species of flower, but ignore other species that could be equally as rewarding.
One study showed that these bees will stay at a particular flower or food source longer with increased levels of nectar available. However, time at any particular flower did not change with different levels of pollen.


Bombus lapidarius is often found throughout Europe, including Britain and Ireland as well as parts of Greece, Germany, Sweden and Finland. This species typically has a fairly wide distribution. As described in the foraging patterns section, they can fly over 1500 meters to better forage for food. They typically are found in temperate regions. Further, colonies are often found in open terrain.
B. lapidarius nests have been found in many different habitats, but the bees typically prefer open terrain as opposed to more heavily forested landscapes.


Red-tailed bumblebees typically appear in the summer months of June, July, and August. Colonies are initiated via the queen, where workers and males follow roles to keep the colony thriving. Though there is a hierarchy between the queen and the rest of the colony, there does not appear to be a hierarchy between the workers themselves.


The yellow-faced honeyeater (Caligavis chrysops) is a small to medium-sized bird in the honeyeater family, Meliphagidae. It takes its common and scientific names from the distinctive yellow stripes on the sides of its head. Its loud, clear call often begins twenty or thirty minutes before dawn. It is widespread across eastern and southeastern Australia, in open sclerophyll forests from coastal dunes to high-altitude subalpine areas, and woodlands along creeks and rivers. Comparatively short-billed for a honeyeater, it is thought to have adapted to a diet of flies, spiders, and beetles, as well as nectar and pollen from the flowers of plants, such as Banksia and Grevillea, and soft fruits. It catches insects in flight as well as gleaning them from the foliage of trees and shrubs.
Some yellow-faced honeyeaters are sedentary, but hundreds of thousands migrate northwards between March and May to spend the winter in southern Queensland, and return in July and August to breed in southern New South Wales and Victoria. They form socially monogamous pairs and lay two or three eggs in a delicate cup-shaped nest. The success rate can be low, and the pairs nest several times during the breeding season.
Honeyeaters' preferred woodland habitat is vulnerable to the effects of land-clearing, grazing, and weeds. As it is common and widespread, the yellow-faced honeyeater is considered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to be of least concern for conservation. It is considered a pest in orchards in some areas.


Comparatively short-billed for a honeyeater, the yellow-faced honeyeater is thought to have adapted to a mixed diet. Its diet consists of nectar, pollen, fruit, seeds, honeydew, and insects. It is arboreal, foraging primarily among the foliage and flowers of trees, shrubs, and mistletoes, less often on branches and tree-trunk, and rarely on the ground. Yellow-faced honeyeaters feed on nectar around 40% of the time, and on insects around 60% of the time. The yellow-faced honeyeater feeds on insects by gleaning, sallying, catching in flight, or probing in bark crevices. The insects eaten are primarily Diptera (flies, mosquitoes, maggots, gnats, and midges), beetles, and spiders. A study of the pollen on the bills and foreheads of captured birds found that 70% carried pollen from silver banksia (Banksia marginata), 61% from heath-leaved banksia (Banksia ericifolia), and 22% carried pollen from other plants in the area including fern-leaved banksia (Banksia oblongifolia), mountain devil (Lambertia formosa), and green spider-flower (Grevillea mucronulata).
In April and May, before the autumn migration, the yellow-faced honeyeater increases its nectar consumption, which increases its body mass. The average body mass in late autumn of 17.5 grams (0.62 oz) is 13% higher than the average recorded between January and April, and the yellow-faced honeyeater begins the migration with healthy fat reserves.


Across its range, the yellow-faced honeyeater is found in a variety of habitats—in open sclerophyll forests from coastal dunes to high-altitude subalpine areas, and often in riparian woodlands. It most commonly dwells in open forests dominated by spotted gum (Corymbia maculata) with ironbarks and stringybarks, such as narrow-leaved ironbark (Eucalyptus crebra) and silver-leaved ironbark (E. melanophloia), with a light, shrubby understorey, and less often in dry, open forests and woodlands dominated by Angophora, Acacia, Banksia, Casuarina or Callitris, or in high-altitude, tall, open forests of alpine ash (Eucalyptus delegatensis) and woodlands dominated by snow gum (E. pauciflora) or white box (E. albens). It has been recorded in coastal heath when banksias are blooming, and among flowering mangroves. It occupies areas infested with weeds, such as Scotch broom (Cytisus scoparius) and blackberries, and in developed areas including orchards, parks and gardens, where it feeds on cultivated fruit and flowers. It can be found in forests regenerating after fire or logging, though it is more common in mature forests. Where it is found in woodland, it is usually woodland near forest or with an understory of sclerophyll plants.


The yellow-faced honeyeater breeds in monogamous pairs in a breeding season that extends from July to March, with migrating birds nesting later than sedentary birds. They nest solitarily in all-purpose territories that both parents defend against conspecifics and other species including thornbills, spinebills and silvereyes, although the male is involved in more aggressive interactions than the female. Within a breeding season, females lay two or three clutches of eggs, re-nesting with the same partner in the same territory. Banded birds have been identified in the same territory for periods of up to five years.
The nest is built in the understorey shrubs, relatively close to the ground. Nests have been recorded in prickly coprosma (Coprosma quadrifida), Cassinia, tea-trees (Melaleuca), eucalypts and acacias, as well as in garden shrubs. The nest is a fragile, cup-shaped structure, swollen at the sides and narrower at the rim. The female builds the nest, but is often accompanied by the male as she gathers nesting material. Most nests are built of greenish material, which varies with the location; in coastal areas, grass is the primary material; in mountain forests, the nest is often covered with moss. One bird was recorded repeatedly flying between the nest and a koala 36 metres (118 ft) away and plucking the long hair near its ears to incorporate in the nest. The nests are very fine, with the eggs visible through the gauze-like walls, and they sometimes fall apart. They have been known to disintegrate with eggs and nestlings falling through the bottom.
The female undertakes the incubation alone. Eggs are oval, approximately 21 millimetres (0.83 in) long and 14 millimetres (0.55 in) wide, and pinkish white in colour with spots and blotches of dark reddish-brown. The clutch size varies from one to three eggs, and eggs take around two weeks to hatch. Upon hatching, both parents feed the nestlings and remove faecal pellets. The chicks fledge after thirteen days, and leave the parental territory after a further two weeks. The success rate can be as low as 16% of eggs developing into fledged young, with nest failure, hot weather, heavy rain, human activity (including fungicide spraying and nest damage), egg destruction by brood parasites, and predation by brown snakes, cats, and currawongs, all recorded as contributing to brood failure. Among the species that parasitize the nests of yellow-faced honeyeaters are fan-tailed cuckoos, brush cuckoos, pallid cuckoos, shining bronze-cuckoos, and Horsfield's bronze-cuckoos. The yellow-faced honeyeater promptly nests again after both successful and failed breeding attempts.
A paternity analysis of yellow-faced honeyeater nestlings found that 10 of 18 nestlings were fathered by the male of the nesting pair, with clear evidence for extra-pair paternity in the case of the remaining 44%. This conflicts with the usual pattern, where genetic monogamy is linked to the characteristics of strong social pairing, essential paternal contributions to brood-rearing, and to sexual monomorphism; characteristics that are exhibited by the yellow honeyeater, for example.


The yellow-faced honeyeater is a medium-small, greyish-brown bird that takes its common name from distinctive yellow stripes on the sides of the head. Yellow feathers form a narrow stripe above the gape, which broadens and curves below the eye to end in a small white patch of feathers on the ear coverts. Above the yellow stripe is a black eye stripe which is broken by a small yellow to off-white patch behind the eye, and below is another distinct black stripe running the length of the yellow line. The chin, throat, and breast are a pale greyish-brown, streaked with slightly darker grey, and the abdomen is light grey. The upper body is a dark greyish-brown to olive-brown. Olive-green outer edges on the remiges combine to form an olive panel on the folded wing. The bill is black and slightly down-curved, and the gape is cream. The legs and feet are grey-brown. The iris is a dusky blue in adult birds, and brown in juveniles. The juvenile is very similar to the adult, with slightly less streaking on the breast, an orange-brown tip on the bill, and a yellower gape; male and female birds are also similar, with the male being slightly larger (on average, 0.8 g (0.03 oz) heavier); and in the field there are no visible differences between the subspecies. The yellow-faced honeyeater averages 15–17.5 centimetres (5.9–6.9 in) in length, with a wingspan of 21.5–26 cm (8.5–10.2 in), and a weight of 12.5–20.5 grams (0.44–0.72 oz), with an average of 17 g (0.60 oz)).


The red-legged honeycreeper (Cyanerpes cyaneus) is a small songbird species in the tanager family (Thraupidae). It is found in the tropical New World from southern Mexico south to Peru, Bolivia and central Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago, and on Cuba, where possibly introduced. It is also rarely found in southern Texas.


This is a species of forest edge, open woodland, and cocoa and citrus plantations. The red-legged honeycreeper is often found in small groups. It feeds on insects and some fruit and nectar. It responds readily to the (easily imitated) call of the ferruginous pygmy owl (Glaucidium brasilianum).


In Costa Rica red-legged honeycreepers generally breed between April and June. The nest is built entirely by the female and is placed in a shrub or tree several meters above the ground. The cup-shaped nest has thin side walls and is formed of stiff fibres. It is attached to the supporting twigs with cobwebs. The clutch consists of two eggs that are laid in early morning on consecutive days. They are 13.4 mm × 19.1 mm (0.53 in × 0.75 in) in size and have a white background with brown speckles forming a ring around the larger end. The female incubates the eggs for 12 or 13 days. When they first hatch the nestlings have their eyes closed and are covered with tuffs of grey down. They are brooded by the female but fed by both parents. They fledge after around 14 days.
A specimen studied in the Parque Nacional de La Macarena of Colombia was found to be free of blood parasites.
Common and widespread, the red-legged honeycreeper is not considered a threatened species by the IUCN.


The red-legged honeycreeper is on average 12.2 cm (4.8 in) long, weighs 14 g (0.49 oz) and has a medium-long black, slightly decurved, bill. The male is violet-blue with black wings, tail and back, and bright red legs. The crown of its head is turquoise, and the underwing, visible only in flight, is lemon yellow. After the breeding season, the male moults into an eclipse plumage, mainly greenish with black wings.
Females and immatures are mainly green, with paler, faintly streaked underparts. The legs are red-brown in the female, and brown in young birds.
The call of red-legged honeycreeper is a thin, high-pitched tsip.
Several subspecies are known. Differences are generally slight, with the Tobago race  C. c. tobagensis being slightly larger than the mainland forms for example.
The purplish honeycreeper (Chlorophanes purpurascens), a bird from Venezuela known only from the type specimen, is considered to be an intergeneric hybrid between the green honeycreeper and either the red-legged honeycreeper or the blue dacnis.


The dark-eyed junco (Junco hyemalis) is a species of junco, a group of small, grayish New World sparrows. This bird is common across much of temperate North America and in summer ranges far into the Arctic. It is a very variable species, much like the related fox sparrow (Passerella iliaca), and its systematics are still not completely untangled.


The dark-eyed junco's breeding habitat is coniferous or mixed forest areas throughout North America. In otherwise optimal conditions it also utilizes other habitats, but at the southern margin of its range it can only persist in its favorite habitat. Northern birds migrate further south, arriving in their winter quarters between mid-September and November and leaving to breed from mid-March onwards, with almost all of them gone by the end of April or so. Many populations are permanent residents or altitudinal migrants, while in cold years they may choose to stay in their winter range and breed there. For example, in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of eastern California, J. hymealis populations will migrate to winter ranges 5,000–7,000 feet (1,500–2,100 m) lower than their summer range. In winter, juncos are familiar in and around towns, and in many places are the most common birds at feeders. The slate-colored dark-eyed junco is a rare vagrant to western Europe and may successfully winter in Great Britain, usually in domestic gardens.


These birds forage on the ground. In winter, they often forage in flocks that may contain several subspecies. They mainly eat seeds supplemented by the occasional insect. A flock has been known to be called a blizzard.


Adults generally have gray heads, necks, and breasts, gray or brown backs and wings, and a white belly, but show a confusing amount of variation in plumage details. The white outer tail feathers flash distinctively in flight and while hopping on the ground. The bill is usually pale pinkish.
Males tend to have darker, more conspicuous markings than the females. The dark-eyed junco is 13 to 17.5 cm (5.1 to 6.9 in) long and has a wingspan of 18 to 25 cm (7.1 to 9.8 in). Body mass can vary from 18 to 30 g (0.63 to 1.06 oz). Among standard measurements, the wing chord is 6.6 to 9.3 cm (2.6 to 3.7 in), the tail is 6.1 to 7.3 cm (2.4 to 2.9 in), the bill is 0.9 to 1.3 cm (0.35 to 0.51 in) and the tarsus is 1.9 to 2.3 cm (0.75 to 0.91 in). Juveniles often have pale streaks and may even be mistaken for vesper sparrows (Pooecetes gramineus) until they acquire adult plumage at 2 to 3 months, but junco fledglings' heads are generally quite uniform in color already, and initially their bills still have conspicuous yellowish edges to the gape, remains of the fleshy wattles that guide the parents when they feed the nestlings.
The song is a trill similar to the chipping sparrow's (Spizella passerina), except that the red-backed dark-eyed junco's (see below) song is more complex, similar to that of the yellow-eyed junco (Junco phaeonotus). The call also resembles that of the black-throated blue warbler's (Setophaga caerulescens) which is a member of the New World warbler family. Calls include tick sounds and very high-pitched tinkling chips. It is known among bird language practitioners as an excellent bird to study for learning "bird language."
A sample of the song can be heard at the USGS website (MP3) or at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology website.


The common whitetail or long-tailed skimmer (Plathemis lydia) is a common dragonfly across much of North America, with a striking and unusual appearance. The male's chunky white body (about 5 cm or 2 inches long), combined with the brownish-black bands on its otherwise translucent wings, give it a checkered look. Females have a brown body and a different pattern of wing spots, closely resembling that of female Libellula pulchella, the twelve-spotted skimmer. Whitetail females can be distinguished by their smaller size, shorter bodies, and white zigzag abdominal stripes; the abdominal stripes of L. puchella are straight and yellow.
The common whitetail can be seen hawking for mosquitoes and other small flying insects over ponds, marshes, and slow-moving rivers in most regions except the higher mountain regions. Periods of activity vary between regions; for example in California, the adults are active from April to September.
Like all perchers, common whitetails often rest on objects near the water, and sometimes on the ground. Males are territorial, holding a 10-to-30-metre stretch (33 to 98 ft) of the water's edge, and patrolling it to drive off other males.  The white pruinescence on the abdomen, found only in mature males, is displayed to other males as a territorial threat.
The nymphs are dark green or brown, but are usually found covered in algae. They feed on aquatic invertebrates such as mayfly larvae and small crayfish, and also on small aquatic vertebrates such as tadpoles and minnows. Because of their abundance, whitetail naiads are in turn an important food source for various fish, frogs, and birds, and also for other aquatic insects.
Some authorities classify the whitetails, including the common whitetail, in genus Libellula rather than Plathemis. This matter has been debated at least since the end of the nineteenth century. Recent molecular systematics evidence suggests that separation of the whitetails from the rest of Libellula may be appropriate.


The bridled titmouse (Baeolophus wollweberi) is a small songbird, a passerine bird in the tit family Paridae.
These birds range from 11.5 – 12.7 cm. (4.5 to 5 in.) long. It is small, crested and gray with a black and white patterned face, a black bib. Its crest is boarded with black and white (sometimes gray) underparts. A standard nest ranges from 5 – 9 eggs colored white, speckled, or reddish brown.
Their preferred habitat are oak or oak-juniper mixed woodland riparian areas of mountains in eastern and southeastern Arizona – (the Mogollon Plateau and White Mountains of Arizona), and extreme southwestern New Mexico – (the Madrean sky islands region of the eastern Sonora Desert) in the United States to southern Mexico. They nest in a hole in a tree, either a natural cavity or sometimes an old woodpecker nest found 4 – 28 ft. off the ground. They line the nest with soft materials. Usually built from loose cups of cottonwood down, stems, leaves, and grass.
These birds are permanent residents and may join small mixed flocks in winter. They forage actively on branches, sometimes on the ground, mainly eating insects, especially caterpillars, but also seeds, nuts and berries. They will store food for later use. The song is usually described as a whistled pidi-pidi-pidi-pidi.  They make a variety of different sounds, most having a similar tone quality.


The malachite sunbird (Nectarinia famosa) is a small nectarivorous bird found from the highlands of Ethiopia southwards to South Africa. They pollinate many flowering plants, particularly those with long corolla tubes, in the Fynbos.


This large sunbird is found in hilly fynbos (including protea stands as well as areas with aloes) and cool montane and coastal scrub, up to 2,800m altitude in South Africa. It also occurs in parks and gardens (often nesting within those located in the Highveld). It is resident, but may move downhill in winter.
This species, like most sunbirds, feed mainly on nectar, although they will also take insects, especially when feeding young. This sunbird may hunt in a similar manner to a flycatcher, hawking for insect prey from a perch.
Most sunbird species can take nectar by hovering like a hummingbird, but usually perch to feed most of the time. As a fairly large sunbird, the malachite sunbird is no exception. They have long thin down-curved bills and brush-tipped tubular tongues, both adaptations to nectar feeding. Some plant species from which malachite sunbirds feed include many Aloe species, such as Aloe broomii, Aloe ferox and Aloe arborescens, and Protea species, such as Protea roupelliae as well as various other bird-pollinated plants such as Leonotis and Strelitzia. It has been suggested that their behaviour of guarding flowering plants may have led to the selection and evolution of long-tubed flowers that would otherwise tend to be robbed (nectar taken but not pollinated) by short-billed sunbird species.


This species is monogamous. The oval nest is usually suspended, as with most sunbirds, or constructed inside a bush. The female incubates one to three dark-blotched, greenish eggs for two weeks. The chicks are fed by both parents until fledging time, and the chicks will for a time return to the nest to roost. The malachite sunbird is often double-brooded, and may be parasitised by Klaas's cuckoo or red-chested cuckoo. It is territorial and aggressive when nesting, but highly gregarious when not breeding, forming flocks of over 1,000 birds.
The call is a loud tseep-tseep, and the male malachite sunbird has a twittering song, often accompanied by pointing its head upward and displaying his yellow pectoral tufts with his wings half open. Males also have an elaborate display flight. It was found that male birds display their pectoral tufts almost continuously throughout the night, whilst asleep, and one hypothesis is that these function as eyespots to deter nocturnal predators.


Ogdoconta cinereola, the common pinkband moth, is a moth in the family Noctuidae. It is found in eastern, central, and south-western North America. It occurs from southern Ontario and Quebec south to southern Florida. At the western edge of its distribution, it occurs from Manitoba southward through the Great Plains of Nebraska and Iowa, south throughout most of Texas, and westward through southern New Mexico to south-eastern Arizona (Santa Cruz County). The distribution extends south to the state of Coahuila in northern Mexico.
The length of the forewings is 9.5–14.5 mm. The forewing is light fuscous brown, and the subterminal region (between the postmedial and subterminal lines) is suffused with a pinkish tinge. The medial and basal areas are minutely speckled with white. The antemedial line is an obscure, scalloped white line. The reniform and orbicular spots are obscure but often discernible by fine white outlines. The claviform spot is absent. The postmedial line is a white, almost straight, oblique line with a slight basally directed bend. The subterminal line is marked primarily as a brown shade terminating the pink suffusion of the subterminal region. The hindwings are suffused with brown. Males and females are similar in appearance, although the female hindwing usually is darker. Adults are on wing from May to September
in the northern part of the range and from April to October in Texas and Florida.
The larvae feed on Amaranthaceae, Asteraceae (especially Ambrosia species), Fabaceae, Labiatae and Poaceae species.


The white-browed sparrow-weaver (Plocepasser mahali) is a predominantly brown, sparrow-sized bird found throughout central and north-central southern Africa. It is found in groups of two to eleven individuals consisting of one breeding pair and other non-reproductive individuals.


The white-browed sparrow-weaver is found in greatest numbers in north-central southern Africa. While this species most densely populates dry regions with woodland or wooded grassland at northern South Africa, its range includes Botswana, northern and central Namibia, and western Zimbabwe. It is seen very often in South Luangwa National Park, Zambia and southern Malawi. Populations may be found as far north as Ethiopia. Populations are sedentary.
This species nests in colonies along thornveld and scrubby, dry riverbanks.


This species has a typically Mediterranean distribution. It is present in Europe, in the Near East and in North Africa.


Crematogaster scutellaris establish independent monogynous colonies, but with the possibility of oligogyny (multiple queens are accepted by the workers in the colony, but the queens are aggressive among them). Winged males and queens can be found at the end of summer, but sometimes even until the end of October, if it is not very cold.
They usually build their colonies mainly in stumps and fallen logs or dead branches. The nest are made with a mixture of chewed wood and humus. Between March and October workers collect and carry mainly sugary liquid substances and solid materials (remains of arthropods, small insects, etc. ).
Spawning usually takes place during the summer. This species is very prolific. The larvae hatch primarily in September and overwinter in the second stage, from November to February at about 10 °C. The following spring the third instar larvae develop, pupating in the summer. By mid to late summer the worker appear, while sexed individuals appear in late August.
These ants are natural predators of Thaumetopoea pityocampa, a moth that is a devastating pest of Mediterranean pines (especially Pinus halepensis).
They also transport live aphids into oak-gall nests. Currently there is no evidence of immediate predation of these aphids inside the galls, so they are likely stored to overwinter due to a mutualistic relationship and/or serve as food storage.