Re: [cobirds] re hungry Say's Phoebes in winter

Hi Dave,

I don't have information about birds feasting on wasps under eves (I will now keep my eyes open for them), but I do have a question about "yellow jackets" that make the big ball-shaped nests in trees. I've always thought that the common name for these wasps was "bald-faced hornet".  Are they actually a type of "yellow jacket?"  I know common names are misleading and would be interested in the scientific names, too. (I'm fascinated by paper wasps and their ability to make such beautiful paper, which I have used in fiber wall hangings in the past.)

Carol Kampert, Boulder  

On Wed, Feb 3, 2016 at 10:43 AM, DAVID A LEATHERMAN <daleatherman@msn.com> wrote:

Recently Bob Righter posed some interesting questions on COBIRDS about what an individual Say's Phoebe he observed recently in the Denver area might be getting to eat under eaves.  Once I got past my amazement that Bob is related by marriage to someone 103 years old, my private response to Bob guessed the answer might include European Paper Wasps (Polistes dominula), an introduced black-and-yellow wasp closely resembling a typical "yellowjacket" that reached CO in the early 2000s.  They form small combs under eaves and have become quite common.  By contrast, most yellowjacket wasps species nest in the ground, with two nesting in aerial "hives" in trees with the combs being surrounded by an elaborate, round, gray paper mache covering.  Unhatched immature European Paper Wasps, dead or alive, in white-capped cells of these combs would seem the most likely source of nutrition for a curious insectivore investigating eaves.  Flycatchers are known to favor bees and wasps, in some situations as much or more than flies.  My reply to Bob included photos of the wasp and a related situation of a pewee with a yellowjacket in it bill.  Bob suggested I post this to COBIRDS.  Thinking the photos were a significant part of the response, and since photo sharing on COBIRDS is difficult (why is that?), I didn't take him up on his suggestion.  Then he wondered further if perhaps what seems like more wintering Say's Phoebes this year than normal could be directly tied to the increasing presence of European Paper Wasps on our scene.  I told him without direct evidence, it was a stretch, but a question worth continuing to investigate. 

So, I am asking, has anyone out there seen a Say's Phoebe visiting a little wasp comb under an eave?  Have you seen any other bird species tearing apart a wasp comb under an eave (flicker, barn swallow, etc.)?  Inquiring minds want to know.  Assuming, hoping, some meaty anecdotes are out there, this might be the subject of a future "The Hungry Bird" column in "Colorado Birds".  Thanks.

Dave Leatherman
Fort Collins

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/SNT148-W2773D0BD9313289BB62A3C1D00%40phx.gbl.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CAGdTUTZ8V8tJbdqr-VubRKnTxDM9MehVt7tfjckH_fr95rPGfQ%40mail.gmail.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.