The Chill

We had our first frost last night. Contrary to what I once believed, or at least assumed, that doesn't mean that all the insects outside just up and die. Granted, I didn't find many of them today, but that probably has a lot to do with the weather during the day, which was cold (well, it topped out at 51ºF), dark, and kind of rainy–it sprinkled for most of the day. But the fact that I didn't find many bugs doesn't mean they died. It's silly that I used to assume that cold weather killed all the bugs, because how would there then be more bugs next year? In reality most of them just find somewhere to stay cozy for the winter, or hibernate. But they're not dead. Still when I went out looking for them I knew it would be a challenge to find any because the chorus of crickets was reduced to a couple of them plaintively calling in the distance. I swear one of them sounded like it was shivering. And I don't have a Backyard Bug of the Day today, because everything I found has been one already this year.

But here's what was out there:

 One March fly

 One hover fly, not hovering, just sitting on a catalpa leaf.

 I saw three ants. Here's one of them. On a catalpa leaf.

One beetle

One wood louse

And two spiders for Arachnid Appreciation:
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 Six-spotted orb weaver

And one tick, loathsome creature: