Can you guess what this is? Plus last week's answer and winner!

View this email in your browser ([link removed])
[link removed]


** Monday Nature Mystery
------------------------------------------------------------
04/15/24

We are pleased to announce the winner of our most recent Monday Nature Mystery, Seth Sweigard. (Please email your snail mail address and preference for a hat or tote bag to [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) ).

Congratulations to Seth for identifying the Holly Leafminer (Phytomyza ilicis). According to Penn State Extension ([link removed]) , this species overwinters as larvae within the leaf mine. Three larvae are present per leaf on average, but in some cases 12 or more larvae have been found in an individual leaf. During the spring these maggots pupate. Adults emerge from leaves in May, mate, and females deposit eggs in small slits on the underside of newly developing leaves. Heavily infested plants may prematurely drop their leaves and be almost devoid of leaves until new growth begins the following spring.
Last Week's Mystery: Holly Leafminer (Phytomyza ilicis) Photo: Judy Gallagher
Each Monday we’ll post a new photo and identify the previous week’s winner. They’ll receive an ASNV hat or tote bag.

Be sure to post your answer on our Facebook page @AudubonVA ([link removed]) under the Monday Mystery post...do not reply to this email with your guess! We only accept entries from our Facebook page, not via email.

Please remember to write the common name, being mindful of hyphens, uppercase and lowercase letters and always include the Latin name in parentheses. To learn more about bird names click here ([link removed]) .

What is this? Photo: Ivar Leidus, CC BY-SA 4.0 ([link removed]) , via Wikimedia Commons

This week’s Mystery: What is this?


Post your guess (please list both common name and Latin name) on our Facebook page @AudubonVA ([link removed]) under this week's Monday Nature Mystery. Remember, we only accept entries from our Facebook page, not via email!

Good luck!

-Audubon Society of Northern Virginia

Please note that we only accept entries on our Facebook page where they are date- and time-stamped. Remember that, if you need to correct your entry, you should make a new posting instead of correcting the old one so that we get a correct time stamp for your correction. Winners are limited to one prize every 90 days, maximum 2 per person. If you have already won twice, please let newer people have a chance and refrain from answering first.

Know someone who might enjoy our Monday Nature Mystery series? Forward this email on!
Enjoy the Monday Nature Mystery Series? Please consider supporting ASNV so we can continue to bring you educational (and fun!) programs like this.
SUPPORT ASNV ([link removed])
[link removed]

============================================================
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Instagram ([link removed])
** Website ([link removed])
** Twitter ([link removed])
Copyright © 2024 Audubon Society of Northern Virginia, All rights reserved.
You subscribed to this list when you joined the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia directly, joined the National Audubon Society and live in the Northern Virginia area, are an ASNV volunteer, or asked to receive our email updates.

Our mailing address is:
Audubon Society of Northern Virginia
11100 Wildlife Center Drive
Ste. 100
Reston, VA 20190
USA
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
.