What is it Wednesday: March 27, 2019

Can you identify what's in this photo?

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on 

March 27, 2019.

And the answer is....

This striking burst of color is a male scarlet tanager. The female scarlet tanager is also beautiful, but looks very different - a greenish yellow, with olive colored wings. 

We see and hear scarlet tanagers at Lutherlyn near Chapel Rock, and around the Amphitheater, starting in May. 

They spend their summers here, but winter in South America! Right now, they are making their way across the continents. They will arrive in the southern edge of North America soon, along the Gulf Coast in early April. They continue to travel north following the emergence of spring foliage - scarlet tanagers are canopy birds, spending the majority of their lives high in the tops of the tallest trees, so they need to wait until the trees leaf out before they can move into an area. 

They prefer mature un-fragmented mixed hardwood forests with plenty of oak trees. Lutherlyn, and especially the area around Chapel Rock, makes a perfect home for them!

To learn more about the critters that come and go from Lutherlyn, and how ecosystems are connected even across continents, check out the many learning experiences offered by LEEP at www.lutherlyn.com/ee. 

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!