Reminiscing

I don't think I have mentioned this, because I was feeling too sad about it, but after that first couple of weeks, maybe less, of firefly season, when most nights I was seeing only one firefly, I didn't see any at all for over a week. But tonight, the fireflies are back, and I am happy and relieved to see them. I don't know why they were gone, though I suspect it may have something to do with all the nights in the 40s and low 50s, but somehow that doesn't seem right. Whatever the reason, they are shining tonight, and I am smiling.

Backyard Bug of the Day:

 A pretty beetle - not in my book

Random Bugs:

 Grasshopper nymph. Note the tiny, underdeveloped wings

 Net winged beetle

This is an insect with terrific antennae.

The flowers on the raspberry bushes are blooming, and attracting a lot of bees. The bees are very busy, so this is mostly what you get when you are trying to take a picture of one.

 Lucky shot!

 Bees of several species were around the bushes.

 I was just thinking the other day that I have not seen a candy striped leaf hopper in a while, and here it is.

 About a week ago, I think, I happened to see a green caterpillar in this crevice in a tree trunk. Today I noticed that there was something else in there, not green, so I figured it was not the caterpillar, but looking closer I think it used to be! It looks like this is a chrysalis.

 More Ichneumon wasps on that branch again today...

Here's one of the dilemmas of bug blogging:

 Do you use the picture that is well lit, clear, but not very close?

 Do you use the dramatic lighting, because it's artsy?

 Today it was obvious that the caterpillar from yesterday was, in fact, dead, and that bug is, in fact, feeding on it.

 Fish fly. I was awake just after dawn this morning (don't ask why), and happened to see this fish fly on the wall in the bedroom. It was kind of a funny coincidence because yesterday I was looking at some old pictures and came across on from 10 years ago of a fish fly. It was taken before I got my macro lens - years before. In fact, I was still using a film camera. It was also taken before I started learning about bugs. I didn't know it was a fish fly then; I didn't even know there was something called a fish fly - I thought it was some kind of dragonfly. The funny coincidence is not just that I happened to find that picture yesterday, but that the fish fly in the picture was also found in my house. That one was in the cupola at the top of the house, and it was very hot, and the fish fly was trying desperately to get out the window, bashing itself against the glass. I caught it and brought it outside, and put it on a flower, because what else would you do with a bug, of course they all like flowers, right? I actually still have no ideas what fish flies eat, but at least now I know they exist.

 

 Speaking of knowing that things exist, I watched this one fly away after I released it out the window, and it really put me in mind of a fairy when it flew off into the morning light...

Arachnid Appreciation:
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 This was a small web, probably no more than 2 inches across. So you can judge from that how tiny this spider is...

 A closer look at the spider