Every Sunday there is also a new episode of the Stuifmail podcast. Listen to it here:
Waiting for privacy settings…
One more time about Marjolein Deryckere’s bird
Someone tells me the following: “As for the ‘unknown’ bird. I don’t think it is a snow bunting in winter plumage. I think it is an escaped female hybrid goldfinch. The bird in the photo has some yellow in her wing, that has a not snow bunting.”
Carel Sanden also thinks it is not a snow bunting: “If you enlarge the photo properly you will see a yellow haze on the wing feathers and a red haze on the head. This and the wing markings lead me to a hybrid goldfinch or a color deviation of a goldfinch. A photo with the head on would be easier.”
Male blackbird with a black beak, is that possible?
Roelie Albers has been seeing a male blackbird with a black beak in her garden for years. Now she wonders whether that beak is a sign of old age or a sign of inbreeding. According to Roelie, male blackbirds have a yellow-orange beak.
The latter is correct, but at birth young male blackbirds develop a black beak and look more like female blackbirds. Later in the autumn the males first acquire black plumage and when they are a bit older, in winter, their beaks change color from black to yellow. Older blackbirds basically get a longer bill and the yellow-orange color becomes a red color, not black.
The age of blackbirds is also limited, because on average blackbirds only live two to three years. In addition, blackbirds do not always breed in the same location, but roam around the area. So the question is whether new young blackbirds can always be seen in Roelie’s garden or whether it is actually an old male blackbird with a black beak.
Empty and hard shell found on a tile path
Angele van Eekeren came across a hard shell on her tiled path. She sent me a photo of it and asked what it is. As additional information, she wrote in her message that she has a pond. Even without the extra information, I immediately saw that it was an empty shell of a newt. Newts molt when they look for a wintering place in the autumn.
How does such a molting process happen? In principle, the skin near the head of newts tears open and the skin is stripped off in one piece. That’s the casing that was on the tile path. Newts also molt in the spring, when they return to their wintering place on land in search of water. How does such a molting process happen? In principle, the skin near the head of newts tears open and the skin is stripped off in one piece.
Why don’t birds’ feet freeze in winter?
Monique Spooren sent a photo of a male great tit on such a branch. She wonders how the legs of birds do not freeze while they are sitting on frozen or snow-covered branches.
Birds’ feet do not freeze because they carry antifreeze. The legs are covered with a layer of scales. These scales contain the substance keratin. That is the same substance that is in our hair and fingernails. That keratin is in fact a very stiff protein that cannot freeze. And voilà: the bird’s feet do not get hot or cold from such a frozen branch.
Unknown creature flies through the room, what is it?
At Marlies Leentvaar, an animal flew through the room that she had never seen before. Luckily she was able to take a picture of it and send it to me. I think a reddish-brown heather hoverfly flew through her room. This beautiful species of fly belongs to the woolly hoverfly family. Woolly gliders usually have a hairy body and are often colored brown, red or yellow. The food of these insects is nectar, which they suck with their long snouts while floating.
In addition, all woolly gliders are brood parasites. This also applies to the red-brown heath gliders. They are mainly found on sandy soils and especially on heathlands. Females of these woolly floaters shoot their eggs into the nest tunnels of parasitic wasps. The eggs, camouflaged with sand, hatch in these tunnels and the larvae first attack the food collected by the parasitic wasps. They then eat the larvae of the parasitic wasps. Here’s one nice video by Roy Kleukers of how a relative of the heath bum, the common woolly bum, lays eggs in the nest tunnels of a colony of sand bees.
What animal is crawling over my living room wall?
In Ria de Vries’s photo you can clearly see a bug. During the winter period you often encounter leaf-legged bugs, also called leaf-legged bugs, in houses. But that creature is not a leaf-legged bug. Leaf-legged bugs have a thickening at the hind legs and the bug in Ria’s photo does not have that.
We are dealing with a species that looks similar. This is the gray field bug or the gray shield bug. Gray scale insects can grow up to sixteen millimeters in size. These bugs were once rare in Brabant, but that is no longer the case. You come across them more and more and they climb up everything, even windows. They look for a suitable place to hibernate in our homes – just like leaf-legged bugs and ladybirds. They prefer to do this in dry and dark places. But don’t be afraid of these houseguests: they’re certainly not dangerous.
Polecat – Roger Dolk
Publication: January 24, 2024
“Good morning Frans, I saw this passing by on the camera. Is this a stone marten? They also crawl under cars, right? Greetings, Roger Dolk.
It is not a stone marten, but a polecat. If you want to know more about the polecat, read the Stuifmail of December 31, 2023.
Waiting for privacy settings…
A fungus or mold that smells like a hospital
Nelly de Beule saw a tree in a park in Tilburg with a lot of stuff on it and she wondered what it was. On the tree, in this case a beech, I mainly see crust-shaped fruiting bodies of a fungus. I think I know what fungus it is. This fungus, or fungus, has a beautiful name: the hospital tree fungus or the hospital tree crust fungus.
The last name contains the word crust and that is what the shape, crust shape, also looks like in Nelly’s photo. These fungi can be very variable in color, namely white, cream-colored or grayish. This hospital tree fungus mainly grows on deciduous wood and you can also see the fungus on oak, beech and birch. Besides being common, you can encounter them all year round, not just in the fall.
Unfortunately, Nelly was not able to sniff the fungus, because the fungus is too high on the tree trunk for that. If she had, she could have smelled a Lysol-like odor. This scent smells very much like disinfectants that we also smell in hospitals. Hence the name.
Bug on the wall in the living room, what is it and is it harmful?
Patty Profittlich saw a bug on her living room wall and wondered if it was a harmful bug. According to Patty, the animal is in a covering or cocoon. So we are dealing with a bag carrier.
The family of pouch moths, also called pouch caterpillar butterflies, have about 800 relatives around the world. The caterpillars of these pouch carriers start building their cocoon as soon as they hatch from the egg. Even before they start looking for food. The cocoons consist of silk threads and materials from the environment such as sand, soil, lichens or other plant material.
Of course, these caterpillars also grow and then they expand the cocoon at the front. The feces and shed skin disappear at the back of the cocoon. The caterpillars of the pouch carriers walk with their cocoon just like the snails do with their houses. You can also see that in Patty’s photo. The caterpillars pupate in their cocoon, but beforehand they attach themselves to a tree, wall or wall and close the cocoon with a lid. In short: a completely innocent, beautiful creature.
What kind of mushrooms were there in Beekbergen?
Monique Groenland found a number of mushrooms in Beekbergen that she did not recognize. In the photo you can see a few tan hats on the bottom. I think they grow on an old stump and this is the common brimstone. When these mushrooms are still fresh, they have a very beautiful sulfur-yellow cap that later turns into a beautiful orange-brown color in the center.
In general, the caps of these common sulfur heads are initially cone-shaped and later become more convex and flatter. They are true saprophytes and so they live on dead wood. You most often encounter them in mixed forests. There they grow at the foot of deciduous or coniferous trees. Of course you can also find them in gardens or public areas where there are dead trees or old stumps.
Beautiful photos section
Unbelievable but true: in the photo a merlin at Bergsediepsluis (Schakelopolder). Photo by Marianne Wijten.
Nature tip
Go on a historical walk through Liempde. Many characteristic village views have been preserved in Liempde. The arable land still encroaches on the village center in many places, creating a rural atmosphere and beautiful views. Liempde has many national monuments, municipal monuments and iconic buildings. Picturesque spots such as the Raadhuisplein and Kapelstraat are rightly a protected village sight. A guide specially trained by SPPiLL will walk with you through the Liempd village center and tell the most surprising stories.
The historical walks are organized all year round.
More information
• On the website of the D’n Liempdsen Herd visitor center
• Address visitor center D’n Liempdsen Herd Barrierweg 4, Liempde
• Opening hours on Tuesday, Saturday and Sunday from 10am – 1pm, on Wednesday from 8.30am – 12pm
• Costs: five euros per person
• Lasts 2.5 hours
• Group size minimum 10 maximum 15
• You can also book via [email protected]
• If desired, coffee, tea and/or soup can be served (for a fee).