Friday, August 1, 2014

Business as Usual

The good news is, I was able to recover the pictures that were lost yesterday. The bad news is, you're not going to see them, because today is a new day, and I have a lot of pictures to post from today's bug walk. I got some of the same bugs from yesterday, so you're not missing everything. Not that I think this is going to keep anyone up nights...

Okay, starting with Backyard Bug of the Day:
 This is a new one for me. It's pretty small - about 1/4", maybe? I love the transparent wings and wing covers (I need to find out the word for that).


Backyard Bud of the Day:
Grass. It's getting really hard to find buds.

Remember the ambush bug nymph that was BBotD a while ago? The one that caught another bug by the proboscis? The all white bug?
 Here you can see through its translucent body a bit - either its food or its organs are visible.

 I think there are four of them in this picture. These are goldenrod flowers, so that will give you an idea of the size of the nymphs.

 Here is an adult. I don't know if it's the same species (though it would make sense). It is MUCH bigger - maybe a little more than half an inch?

 There were three of them together on this clump of butter and eggs flowers. I wonder if they don't eat each other out of professional courtesy.

Okay, I changed my mind about showing you yesterday's pictures.  Here are a couple of better shots of an adult that I got yesterday. I have always thought that in the front, the face and part of the body, they look like turtles.


We haven't had a lot of flowers on here lately...
 Pokeberries. Not flowers, actually, but there used to be flowers on this stem. And now there is fruit. Poisonous fruit.


Some random bugs from today and yesterday:
 Moth in the wild.

 Moths look amazing up close.


 Remember I said that Japanese beetles do acrobatics? I think these three have an act in Cirque du Soleil.

 I don't often get a view of the underside of a beetle.



 Mosquito. The males don't drink blood, they feed on plant juices.

 Exoskeleton of a leaf hopper.

 This was supposed to be Backyard Bug of the Day yesterday. It is an immature Hemiptera of some kind. Notice the wings just starting to develop.

I think this is a nymph of the candy striped leaf hopper. Again, notice the developing wings.

There is quite a bit to share for Arachnid Appreciation. Nothing terribly creepy, though:
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 Lying upside down?

 In this photo you can see the silk anchor thread coming from its spinneret.

 Hiding.

 These next two pictures are of the same spider (I assume) from yesterday.


 I found this interesting situation on the side of a tree. A spider has caught an ant, and all of these little flies are hanging around (one even ON the ant) for some reason.


I think this is a new one for me. Cute, little spider.

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