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In partial answer to your question, leatherleaf is common around acidic bogs. I’ve often seen winterberry in coastal areas of New England.

As per usual, Mr. Saul’s Week Two article is detailed and accurate.  Keep up the fine writing & research.

Wow!  What an amazing amount of information Paul and Denise hold. Hopefully someone is cataloguing their knowledge.  Also, great kudos to them for taking on the leadership roles and providing the time and energy to share their findings with everyone that would to know this.  Their work surely greatly appreciated.  Thank you Paul and Denise!

I saw one of these in a flower bed I was pruning late August. She had about 5-6 little piles of sand outside a small hole. We watched her drag/shove a small catydid into the hole. I thought I heard some chattering/chirping sounds coming from the hole. But maybe that was my imagination. Very interesting bug.

  A very informative article! As I read about swamps dominated respectively by alder, buttonbush, and sweet gale, I thought of wetlands in my area that are dominated by each of those.  And there are other shrub swamps around that seem to be dominated by leatherleaf.  Do other shrubs, such as winterberry, become dominant in some shrub swamps?
 

Your garden looks amazing! Did you figure out what works best to deter the deer? We have 2 pollinator gardens at the forest where I work, but the deer seem to like everything! They even eat the plants that are supposed to be “deer-resistant”. It’s so frustrating! TIA for any help/advice.

Thank you for this wonderful detail.  Sometimes it’s sitting and waiting for nature to show up and other times it’s just a matter of looking closer.

Thanks so much for this detailed bit of botanic history.

I have a suspicion that wide-spread establishment of beavers, creating their meadows, would serve as a check on extensive wildfires.  Any comment on that idea?

What interesting and useful work so well explained!!

I am so inspired by your journey to study all of the different bees and their habitat! I have noticed in the last few years how many different insects that resemble the honey bee are on the flowers, vegetables, apple and pear trees, blueberries, and canes that are grown here on my property. Now I’m going to pay attention to the trees that I have not planted, but that populate my 15 acres of forest. How exciting! Thank you very much for sharing your story and knowledge.

It was really cool reading your article, as a kid I hoped that someday I would get to see one of these elusive insects but never did. I had bug books galore and it was my favorite pastime. As an adult I still find them interesting and enjoy finding interesting insects that are not commonly seen.

Today is August 27th, 2025 at about 5:30 in the morning. I woke up and could not go back to sleep so I went outside to have a few puffs off my black and mild cigar, while sitting outside I was looking around at all the moths and other creatures scurrying and flying around the porchlight.

As I’m scanning around I happen to notice on the camp chair I sit on, a wasp which startled me cause I’m allergic and if it would have stung me that would not be a great start to the day! After looking at it a little more I’m like, that’s not a wasp, it has a different head section that’s a little bulkier than a usual paper wasp. Then it moved its arms away from its head and I realized it was a paper wasp mantidfly!!!!! My surprise turned into excitement because I’ve always wanted to see one of these!! I’m now 37 going on 38 so it’s been a long time coming!

On a google search to read more about these guys, their location and regions I have found that Montana usually you don’t typically see them so I feel especially lucky. I came across your article and I must say it was a great read so thank you for putting this out there! I will enjoy hanging with this little guy until he decides to carry on with his trek! Thanks again and take care!

Great article Will, very interesting.

I found my first one with her litter in one of my bluebird houses. She has way more than 3 I think there’s at least 8 of them. Definitely a Lemming. At first I thought it was a baby rabbit and wondered how it got in there. She didn’t bite me and let me take a picture of her and her little ones. I’ll leave her alone and instruct the new owners to leave her alone too. I never knew they existed in my area till now. And I’ve never seen one in my life and have lived between south western MI and north Western IN all my life. There is a small swampy area not far from me that she may have been living in. Not sure why she picked my bluebird house. But that’s OK She seemed very content.

8/11/2025, 3:00 pm, Mendon, MA: in our stone wall connected to granite boulders, overgrown with grapes and vines and huckleberries. Lots of chipmunk, rabbit, squirrel and bird activity here, I just saw a pine marten slink along and under a large rock. We’re near the lake and lots of wildlife come through here.

Excellent article!  I knew just barely enough to tell a syrphid fly from a bee, but that was it.  Thank you for so much good information, presented in such interesting writing.

Thank you for this wonderful vision of the intricacy and beauty of this tiny natural phenomenon.

I have a perfect habitat for Common Yellowthroats and so enjoy the wickety wickety wick in June. I first became aware of them a few years ago when I observed these little gems hanging on the tops of grasses and hanging on as the grasses bent with a breeze. But I haven’t seen that this summer, although the air was filled with their song earlier this year. When might I observe these golden miracles atop grasses again? I know they are here but silent.
Thanks

Are the cone blooms every year?

Thanks for such a wonderful article.