Continuing a Pattern

I feel a bit like today's bug walk was about filling in the gaps from the last couple of days. I didn't see a lot of bugs, but they were some that were missing from the last couple of days of finding a lot of species. It's like a continuing demonstration of the massive variety of insects.

But before we get to that, Backyard Bug of the Day:

 I was eating lunch at the picnic table when I saw this moth zoom in and land on the nearby patch of goldenrod. I happened to have my camera on the table, so I got up to take pictures of the moth. Then I finished my lunch, went inside to change my clothes, and came back out to do my bug walk. By the end of my bug walk, which was about an hour later (maybe more), the moth was still there, feeding on the flowers.

 It's not the most exciting specimen, though it's a little on the large side. Not luna moth kind of large, but still. Without looking it up I was thinking hawk moth, but it's not big enough for that. Anyway, I did try to look it up, but I couldn't find it in my books. None of them are really comprehensive for moths. So... I don't know what it is. It could be a new species for me, but there are a million brown moths, so I would never be able to say for sure. Anyway, when I was trying to find out what it was I found a moth in one of the books that is called Confused Woodgrain, and I am just sort of happy knowing that there is a moth with that name. But it's not this one.

 

What I didn't see in the last two days:

 Okay, I did see these. And I tried hard to get a picture of one. They did not want to cooperate. I think this is an ichneumon wasp.

 Weevil

 

 There were definitely some katydids missing from the "collection" of the last two days, and I finally found this one today, which I think is a greater anglewing.

 They always look annoyed.

In the same order of the katydids, Orthopterta, I heard tree crickets the last two days, but didn't see them until today.

 Ailanthus webworm in that in-between phase of going from caterpillar to chrysalis.

 Spotted apatelodes

 Spotted apatelodes have pink feet.

 

 Another caterpillar (that I don't know the name of).

 Winter firefly

As I was walking around today I was thinking about how few frogs I have seen this summer...

 

... and then this one hopped into view.

Arachnid Appreciation:
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

 

 Orchard spider. I walked right through this spider's web the last two days because it was built across a path and the days were so dark and overcast I didn't see the web. Today I knew that it might be in that spot (having learned from experience), and also it was sunny-ish, so I could see it. It's a terrible inconvenience for me when spiders build their webs across paths, but I do try to accommodate them and work around them. I didn't see the spider on either occasion when I walked through the web (which is always disconcerting, because you feel the web stuck to you, and can't find the spider, and you can't help but wonder WHERE IS THE SPIDER IF THE WEB IS STUCK TO ME?!), so this makes one more species added to the list of Many Things Seen In My Backyard This Week Since The Rain.

Daddy-long-legs