CLOSED: Who made this nest?

There were several of these not far from a pond. Found them intriguing. Do you know what made them?

I don't know, but I sure am curious!!!!

I was back there today and they are still there but I didn't see anything coming or going. I'm afraid it is some kind of wasp so I'm not disturbing them at all. My imagination gets the better of me. These nests are so tiny, just a few inches, but I picture hordes of stinging insects coming after me, lol.

Strange looking. Is the dark spot a hole or a dark leaf? What is the diameter of it ?

Hi Sheila, the dark spot is a hole. I'll try to remember to take a ruler with me because I am terrible at estimating size but really the whole thing was no more than 4 inches across.. maybe 5 tops but I wouldn't be surprised if it was only 3 inches. The hole was smaller than a pencil or drinking straw - maybe 1/2 that size. Good grief I am awful at this and heaven help you if you ever need directions from me!!!

wonder if it is a spiders den, like some kind of trap door spider???

no sign that this top hole is used as an entrance... perhaps a ventilation hole..??... wasps don't use loose-sticks for nest material... why don't you 'dissect' one of these..??.. you will no doubt find more clues inside... perhaps an entrance tunnel thru the ground debris. The construction makes me think of a water vole.
http://www.watervoles.com/gallery/water_vole_gallery.htm

you should cross-post this in the bird ID forum... I don't think it's a bird nest... but somebody there may have an idea.

There are wasps that carry stems and blades of grass through the air and build nests out them, but I don't know if they'd nest on the ground like that. They're really small wasps, maybe 3/4".

The nest shown in the water vole link looks just like that one. You may have it there; since they are next to a pond too.

I agree the vole nest is similar in appearance but it is much much larger. This nest was just a few inches. I will try to take a photo with a ruler in it for comparison. The man's arm in the vole nest photo is how I can tell that it is much larger than what I saw.
I sure do appreciate the input and efforts you all are making.

Agreed, I looked at it too quickly.

I think you may find the actual nest inside... what you photographed may just be a protective covering... just like a beaver lodge has a top vent-hole... did you look for other vole-indicators..??... green droppings, entrance holes near water, gnawed vegetation, water slides.

I will certainly look closely for those things when I go back Leo, but no I don't remember seeing anything like those things.

Find anything out yet? ^_^

hehe, no not yet. Sheila has sent the picture off to someone who might know. I'm hoping she will come back with the answer.

I sent your photo to a friend who works for the DNR in Santa Fe... he made the same suggestion I did.... tear one apart, & see what's inside/ underneath. If these things aren't too far away... grab a flashlite, & check for nocturnal activity. Have you ever tried just sitting down & watching for awhile..??...you said there were several of these; it shouldn't take long to see some activity... unless it's nocturnal. How about taking another photo of a different nest... maybe a closeup of the hole.

Well my request was a dead end. No ideas.

Thank you Sheila for your effort, you too Leo.
Leo, I haven't had an opportunity to go back though this spot is just a few miles from my home. I'm afraid I am too tenderhearted (nuts?) to be a scientist. I imagine how I would feel if someone came along and destroyed my hard work and I just can't bring myself to tear apart things I find in nature. LOl, now I'm imagining all of you rolling your eyes at me
:-)

I do think it would be a good idea to observe these for awhile. We have had some torrential rains as recently as yesterday & I wonder if they are still there.
Here is a closer view of the opening at the top.

Faery wigwams perhaps? :-)

ooh, I like that morrigan :-))

Maybe you can just ever so gently pry it open a bit then wiggle it back together after you see what's inside?
This is killing me. LOL :-P

if you knew someone with a fiber-optic borescope, you could look inside right thru the top opening..!! ..LOL.

you should be able to lift up one side of this an inch or 2...enough to look inside w/a flashlite.... cause minimal damage. If this was a 'brood' nest... it may be abandoned anyway... but it appears well-kept. I still tend to think the actual nest will be inside.

do you have a local wildlife/conservation office to call..??... maybe a college or university biology department..??... they love this stuff..!!.. at least our school did.

I am dying to know what it is...but I still like my faery wigwams idea...it is most appealing. :-) OR, maybe its where our garden gnomes go in winter????

or mini trolls :O

I emailed the Nature Center here to see if they had any idea, or could put us onto someone who would.

Saw something about an Australian twig-mound ant. Iridomyrmex conifer. Can't find a picture of a nest though. I wonder if there is a NM version?

I went back yesterday morning, watched for a bit and did a little investigating too. The nest felt very solid when poked with a twig - the twig broke without doing any damage whatsoever. I didn't see any activity at the first nest so watched another for a bit. I wish I could say I saw a beautiful faery. I did see some rather large reddish-black ants around. One ant went into the nest and came back out again. So you may be on to something mwlgood.

suggestion... University of New Mexico Biology dept. has a program in wetlands ecology... they're right in your neighborhood... I bet someone there would help you out... the biology department Phone: (505) 277-3411... just ask who in the zoology department is knowledgeable in local wildlife identification... you could then email them your photo[s]... the faculty email directory is below... good luck... be sure to let us know if you find out anything.
http://biology.unm.edu/people/facultybyresearch.html

I for one am about to die with all this suspense. :-P