 Eastern Bluebird cooling off in Princeton 8/14/16. |  A recently-fledged young bluebird waits to take its turn after the adult, presumably its parent. Princeton 8/14/16 |
 Although skipper species butterflies occurred in low numbers throughout the season, Peck's Skipper was noted on many field trips in August. This one was nectaring on Hoary Vervain (Verbena stricta) in Hardwick on 8/21/16. |  American toad (Anaxyrus a. americanus, formerly Bufo americanus ). The toad will get enough moisture by absorbing water through an area on its lower abdomen called a seat patch. |  Baltimore Checkerspots breed in wet meadows such as Wendemuth Meadow in North Brookfield, where many were present at the beginning of July. |
 Snowberry Clearwing (Hemaris diffinis), a species of sphinx moth, nectaring on Verbena bonariensis 8/14/16. Like other "hummingbird" moths, it flies mostly during daylight hours. |  This very wet warbler is hard to identify in this condition. It's a Blue-winged Warbler in Princeton, 8/14/16. |
 A Slaty Skimmer (Libellula incesta) becomes the unfortunate victim of a Dragonhunter (Hagenius brevistylus) at the edge of the East Branch of the Ware River, Hubbardston/Princeton on August 6th. The Dragonhunter is the largest clubtail dragonfly species in North America and is so-named because its primary prey is other dragonflies. |  If you keep your birdfeeders up in the summer, you are pretty much guaranteed visits by squirrels. This American Red Squirrel was in Hubbardston in June. On the hottest days of summer, red squirrels are more active at twilight. |  This Painted Turtle with a hitchhiking freshwater leech--fastened to the back end of the shell--was observed in Rutland in June. Judging by the extent to which the leech was engorged, and its stubborn resistance to removal, it likely would continue to remain attached to the turtle indefinitely and thus have easy access to future blood meals. |
 Raise your hand if you feed Ruby-throated Hummingbirds in summer. It was a lot more work keeping the solution fresh for the birds this summer. Princeton, 8/14/16.  Spicebush Swallowtail caterpillar on Spicebush (Lindera benzoin) in Hardwick, August. Spicebush Swallowtail butterflies also lay their eggs on Sassafras (Sassafras albidum). This seemed to be a "good " year for this species, with higher-than-average numbers on some counts and field trips.  Virginia Creeper Sphinx moth (Darapsa myron), one of the many species that turned up at the Moth Ball in Athol on 6/25/16. The "bald spot" is the result of worn-off thorasic scales. |  Aphrodite Fritillary 8/23/16, Hubbardston.  This Common Yellowthroat is attracted to water dripping into the birdbath on a hot summer evening. Princeton, 8/14/16  Remnants of a predated Painted Turtle nest in Hardwick in August. Turtles face many challenges besides predation. The dessicated pre-hatchling turtle suggests that drought may have contributed to nest failure. |