Observations

I gambled on the caterpillar from yesterday and lost. There were actually two of them on the same tree trunk yesterday, a big one and a small one, and I had hoped they would still be there today, but they were not. That tree has branches that are fairly low, so I was able to look at the leaves to see if I could find the caterpillars, but I did not. I don't know why I thought they would still be there, but I had hoped.

No problem, I found other bugs. Backyard Bug of the Day:

Acanalonia bivittata. A planthopper.

Backyard Bud of the Day

These buds are tiny, and what is really interesting about them is that they are clustered on the stem.

Remember yesterday there was an encounter between a Hemiptera and a beetle, and I wasn't sure at first how the Hemiptera would react, whether it was an assassin or a plant sucker? Well, there was another face-off today, between a Hemiptera and a fly (sorry, some of the pictures are blurry, the wind was blowing the stem, and I had no way to steady it):

 In this case I am sure that the bug on the right is an immature assassin bug (a nymph). The fly approaches.

 The picture doesn't really show it, but the assassin bug moved its front legs and really gave a vibe of readiness.

 But the fly scooted to the bottom of the vine!

 Here you can really see the front legs raised, ready to grab. The legs are spiky for holding onto prey.

 Eventually the assassin turned around, and the fly started back in its direction.

Then the fly flew away. No lunch for assassin bug.

And speaking of predators:

Baby ambush bug caught something.

Other bugs get along better:

 Cabbage white butterfly and a wasp share a flower.

 Soon there will be the pitter patter of little ladybug larva feet.

And speaking of future bugs:

I got excited when I spotted this tiny egg on the bottom of a milkweed leaf, but it's not a monarch egg. I shouldn't be disappointed by that, but I am. But maybe whatever is in there is cool, too. I just wish we had some monarchs - I haven't seen a single monarch caterpillar all summer.

And while we are on the subject of Lepidoptera:

 Pearl crescent.

 It very obligingly showed me both sides of its wings.

The color in the middle isn't right, but this looks like a woolly bear caterpillar. A really, really tiny one - about half an inch. I have never seen one that small. Of course, it could be something else, too...

I never would have spotted this tiny moth (about half an inch, if that) if I had not seen it flying and watched it land on the tree.

A few interesting things:

 These lines appear to have been made by something burrowing inside the leaf.

 A glimpse of blue wings.

 At first I thought this was a brown marmorated stinkbug, but it doesn't quite look like it, so I checked my book, and it's a spined soldier bug. Also a stink bug, and a predator.

 I found this empty exoskeleton standing (standing!) on my front porch. It looks more like it was eaten than that it shed its skin, but I don't really know. The really interesting thing is that I don't think I have ever seen this kind of bug before, from what little I can see from the remains.

 Also, I have no idea if the blob of dirt is in any way related to the fact that there is an empty exoskeleton standing there.

For Arachnid Appreciation today we have video! Remember that orb weaver that I posted pictures of recently? Well, there's another one now, and this video is of the two of them building webs in the middle of the night about two feet away from each other (and perpendicular to each other). And yes, I was standing outside in my backyard in the dark, filming with a flashlight as light, at 1:30 in the morning. I didn't even get any mosquito bites, which is astounding. It is cool to see, but DON'T WATCH THIS IF YOU ARE AFRAID OF SPIDERS! Seriously, you'll have nightmares tonight.

Click HERE to watch video of two orb weaver spiders building webs in the middle of the night