Sense of Place

Tag: insects

  • What Happens to a Nut on the Forest Floor?

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    by Nicolette L. Cagle, June 1, 2026 What happens to a hickory nut or walnut after it falls to the forest floor? At first, it can seem like a simple thing, a stored future released from the canopy and left beneath the tree that made it. Imagine a hickory nut resting inside its husk, a…

  •  Öskjuhlíð, Iceland

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    We woke up and took a taxi to Öskjuhlíð with a driver named Viktor. We walked the waters edge, stepped on a sandy beach, climbed rocks to photograph Campions. We explored the edge of a runway, catching sight of a Whimbrel and Meadow Pipits. We turned around, tracing our steps along with shore and walking…

  • Weevil Pests of North Carolina Trees

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    Weevils are beetles (order Coleoptera) in a superfamily (Cuculionoidea) of beetles with long snouts that host chewing mouthparts. These species tend to be quite small – less than a quarter inch in length, and they notable as economically significant insect pests. In North Carolina, Conotrachelus nenuphar is most commonly seen in April and May, with…

  • Fringetree

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    This week’s plant feature is the fringetree (Chionanthus virginicus), also known as old man’s beard because of the way its pretty, white petals droop when it blooms in April. According to Donald Culross Peattie, the fringetree “contributes to the higher things of life: it is a raving beauty when in mid-spring it is loaded from…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: September in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    BirdsSeptember brings an early pulse of winter residents back to the Piedmont, including Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, occasional Red-breasted Nuthatches, and a suite of wrens (Winter, Sedge, and Marsh) and sparrows (Swamp and White-throated). Ruby-crowned Kinglets—tiny olive-gray birds with a bright red crown patch (usually hidden)—also return this month after spending the summer in conifer forests of…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: April in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    BirdsApril launches spring migration in earnest, and the next couple of months can bring a steady stream of northbound travelers. Watch for wood-warblers (including Golden-winged, Nashville, Chestnut-sided, Magnolia, Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, Bay-breasted, and Blackpoll), along with herons (such as Little Blue Herons, Black-crowned Night-Herons, and Cattle Egrets), thrushes (Veery, Gray-cheeked, and Swainson’s), and sandpipers…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: February in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    BirdsIn 1936, writer and naturalist Donald Culross Peattie opined that “February is a good month in which to make friends with the birds of a great city.” In North Carolina, he may be right: winter still holds steady in February, and the bird community changes more slowly than it will later in spring. Some of…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: October in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    Birds.− October marks the beginning of food-caching — a food storage strategy developed to sustain year-round avian residents throughout the lean winter. Caching strategies vary by species: red-bellied woodpeckers might store acorns in holes high up in the cracks and cavities of trees, while American crows might simply thrust a left-over meal into the loose soil…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: August in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    BirdsIn August, early migrants—including Chestnut-sided, Magnolia, and Blackburnian Warblers—begin passing through North Carolina as they head toward the Neotropics for the winter. Most will look duller than they did in spring, having molted out of their vibrant breeding plumage and into drabber winter attire. Many insect-eating (“vermivorous”) warblers stop briefly in the Piedmont to refuel,…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: July in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    BirdsThis month, lucky birdwatchers may catch a glimpse of uncommon visitors such as Common Mergansers, Tricolored Herons, Little Blue Herons, and Snowy Egrets. Sandpipers also begin returning to the Piedmont. As summer deepens, the melodious songs of many birds fade, though Indigo Buntings can still be heard singing from high perches. Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea)…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: June in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    BirdsThis month, watch for sunning birds. Common backyard species—like Northern Cardinals and American Robins—may perch with feathers fluffed and bills agape, soaking in the sun. This behavior may help with molting and may also reduce ticks, lice, and other parasite loads. Fledging season continues, too. Second broods of Eastern Bluebirds often fledge in June, and…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: March in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    BirdsAs spring arrives in the Piedmont this month, we begin to see profound changes in the composition of our avifauna. Wood Ducks, Blue-winged Teal (local breeders), Double-crested Cormorants, and Ospreys become more abundant. Expect to start seeing vireos, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, Purple Martins, and other swallows as well. Lucky observers may even spot a Snowy Egret,…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: December in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    BirdsBy December, fall migration has decidedly ended, and the brief celebration that follows the arrival of winter juncos, kinglets, and creepers has faded. Woods and brush can feel eerily quiet, punctuated by the sharp warning calls of Northern Cardinals and the quick flitting of sparrows. The most common sparrows that visit the Piedmont in winter—often…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: November in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    BirdsBy November, fall migration has usually ended. Wood Thrushes have disappeared, replaced by the melodic Hermit Thrush, which will remain until spring. November also marks the return of juncos and several sparrow species, including Tree, Fox, White-throated, and White-crowned Sparrows. You can also expect to see a greater diversity of ducks, especially Common Goldeneyes and…

  • GREAT EXPECTATIONS: May in the Piedmont

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    BirdsMigration season continues this month. Many of the brilliantly colored warblers are just passing through, but some migrants stop and stay to breed in North Carolina. Local breeders include Scarlet and Summer Tanagers, Ovenbirds, and Prairie Warblers. May may also be your last good chance (at least for a couple of months) to catch some…

  • REVISITED: Historic Occoneechee Speedway Trail (Hillsborough, North Carolina)

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    Nicolette Cagle
    in

    Overview: The Historic Occoneechee Speedway Trail (HOST) is a 44-acre preserve and historical site with about three miles of trails. The route takes visitors around the footprint of the original Occoneechee Speedway (open from 1948–1968) and, alternatively, along the banks of the Eno River. The trail is slated to join the statewide Mountains-to-Sea Trail. Directions:…

  • West Point on the Eno (Durham, North Carolina)

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    Overview: On Sunday, November 2, my husband and I took a long walk at West Point on the Eno, a 388-acre park bordering the Eno River in Durham, NC. Our walk emphasized local geology and was taken from an excellent publication produced by the North Carolina Geologic Survey (see pages 49–56 for the guide to…

  • Johnston Mill Nature Preserve (Orange County, North Carolina)

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    Nicolette Cagle
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    Overview: Located in Orange County, near the Duke Forest, Johnston Mill Nature Preserve is a Triangle Land Conservancy property that offers a quick getaway from the urban grind of Durham and Chapel Hill. The preserve consists of two trails—Robin’s Trail (1.5 miles one-way) and the Bluff Trail (1 mile loop) on the TLC map—though they…