Beastly Beauty

Even among the people whom I have, over the last couple of years, convinced that bugs are fascinating and beautiful probably have their limits in insect admiration. Even I have my limits; I don't like EVERY insect. Mostly what I don't like are things that bite me. Mosquitoes, for instance. Nobody likes those. And they're not just annoying, they are dangerous–the most dangerous animals in the world, in fact. As vectors of disease, they cause the deaths of millions of people every year. Even in the state where I live they carry a dangerous disease, and the news has lately been reporting that infected mosquitoes have been found in a number of towns across the state. I have personally been stricken by a mosquito-borne disease, though I obviously did not die from it, even though it is a disease that can be fatal (I don't actually remember it. I was very young). Still, not all species of mosquitoes bite humans. And only the females bite; the males feed on flower nectar. So, they're not all bad, right?

Some of them are quite pretty, in fact, like today's Backyard Co-Bug of the Day #1:

 Now, I am not 100% sure this is a mosquito. It looks like one, but it is quite a bit larger than any mosquito I have seen before. It's not in my bug books, either, but there aren't a lot of mosquitoes in the books. It definitely looks like a mosquito. Note that it is feeding on flower nectar. I don't think that necessarily means it's a male; while males only feed on nectar, I think females feed on nectar AND blood.

 Here's a zoomed in look at those great colors.

 I had another moment of loveliness while I was taking pictures of this mosquito, when a hummingbird came and hovered near me for a couple of seconds. No, I didn't get pictures of it, but it gave me joy to see it.

Backyard Co-Bug of the Day #2:

 I just decided to make this a Co-Bug of the Day because it's so pretty.

When I went outside this morning yesterday's butterfly was no longer on the milkweed plant where it was yesterday into last night, so I figured it had flown off early this morning. Well, I think it might have just flown to another spot in the backyard, because:

 Now, I don't know for sure this is the same butterfly. But it could be. It did appear to still be working on its flying skills, because I watched it fly from place to place in the backyard, stopping to rest in various places. Bonus points if you can see the other bug in this picture.

 It let me get really close to take this picture (and by the bye, it is very lucky the big spider did not build a web last night in the deluge of rain, because in this particular spot it would have been caught in the web!).

 Flown to a nearby tree...

 ...and then to another.

Other Bugs:

 Bee

 Jagged ambush bug... surrounded by slug slime?

I just decided to make this a Backyard Co-Bug #3:

 At first glance I thought this was a white hickory tussock moth caterpillar, but it's not. I don't know what it is, though, and I can't look it up because I am not writing this blog at home, and there is no way that Googling "white fuzzy caterpillar" is going to give me the answer.

 

 

 The sawfly larvae have grown.

 Viceroy caterpillar (I think). It's weird that I see these caterpillars in the backyard, but I have only seen a viceroy butterfly a couple of times in my life.

 Cranefly

 Grasshopper and katydid

 Assassin bug nymph with aphid prey

 Ladybeetles

 Cricket

 Skipper

The blog is going to take a break for a couple of days because I am traveling to see something I cannot see in my backyard. So, go outside and look for your own bugs!