Missing

 One of the notable declines in insects in my backyard this year has been caterpillars. Though I have found caterpillars for the last few days for Backyard Bug of the Day, overall there has been a dramatic lack (is that a thing?) of caterpillars in my backyard. There are species that are usually abundant that I have only seen a few, or even one of. There are some species that I normally see every year that I have not seen at all. While I was extremely glad not to see a single gypsy moth caterpillar this year, it is disappointing and concerning to have entire species absent. The number of moths and butterflies seems decreased, too, which is probably an obvious statement, but I felt the need to point it out. Out of curiosity, I looked at my photo files to see what I saw in my backyard a year ago today, and not only did I take more than three times as many pictures, and see well more than three times as many insects, but I saw 6 or 7 species of caterpillars, and multiple specimens of some of them. That's quite a difference from this year. As usual, I have no answers, only a few speculations. And disappointment.

Backyard Bug of the Day:

I admit, I made only a desultory effort to look this up. It's small, probably only about an inch, so probably a pretty early instar, which means it could look very different when it gets bigger, and it is the late instars that are shown in the book. And there are quite a few caterpillars that look similar to this. If I had to guess, I would say it is probably a tussock or a tiger.

Other Bugs:

Katydids can still be heard, and occasionally seen in my backyard these days.

 

Planthopper

Crane fly

Large milkweed bug in the process of molting into adulthood:

It's interesting that the exuvia it is shedding is mostly clear, and when it comes out of it, it is very pale, but it is bright red before it comes out. Here you can see that its wing covers (I don't know if they are called elytra in Hemiptera) are not fully extended. It's such a strange thing that they develop inside the old skin and then stretch out when they get out. The insect that comes out of the skin is so much bigger, it's hard to wrap my mind around it.

Arachnid Appreciation:

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These spiders have been scarce this year, too. Usually they are all over the place, but this year I have only seen a few. This one is tiny; I would never have noticed it if I had not seen its web because a wild lettuce seed was caught in it.