Backyard Edutainment

Today was a highly entertaining, educational, and interesting day in the backyard. For me, anyway, and it is possible that I am easily entertained, educated, and interested. Where to begin?

How about the weirdly entertaining Backyard Amphibian of the Day:

 This probably just proves I am easily entertained, because this is just a toad sitting on a rock. But for some reason I found that amusing; I was walking my backyard paths, turned a corner, and there was a toad sitting on a big rock. It just looked odd to me; what was it doing up there? I wish I had seen it jump up.

 Also odd, but not in an entertaining way, was that it looked... ill? I don't know why its side is sunken in like that.

 Also odd was the fact that it didn't care how close I got with my camera.

 Didn't care at all.

 Not one bit. And this, I should remind you, is with a macro lens–to get a close-up picture with a macro lens you actually have to get up close.

 

 It hopped off the rock after I moved back, but even then it just hopped in the grass and sat there.

Mildly strange:

 

 These flowers have been in bloom for weeks, and I never see insects on them. Usually these attract huge bumblebees, butterflies, and hummingbird moths. This year... nothing.

Now for some entertaining Backyard Co-Bugs of the Day#1:

 Barklouse nymphs. I spotted this as a clump of tiny dots on a tree trunk. I thought it might be insect eggs, or newly hatched stinkbugs. Up close I recognized them. I took a couple of shots, and then pulled back to adjust my camera, and that is when they got entertaining...

 Even though they didn't move while I was getting up close to take the first picture, when I moved back they suddenly zoomed apart...

 ... and after a moment's disorganized, scattered rushing they started to move back together...

 ... and then started moving sort of like a herd. I don't think I have ever seen insects move quite like that.

 Also intriguing: why is there one that is so much smaller than the others?

 Backyard Co-Bug of the Day #2:

 I don't care what anyone says about Paul McCartney, the red milkweed beetle is the cutest beetle. I have been on the lookout for these, and am happy to have finally found one.

Other Bugs:

 Cocoon on black-eyed Susan.

 This was another entertaining scene. Sure, it's just a bee on goldenrod...

 ... but what was amusing to me was the moment it walked right over an ambush bug. Not the ambush bug's best moment, I would think.

 Leaf hopper. I can never remember the name...

 Thick-headed fly

 Leaf hopper

This is an entertaining creature as well:

 It looks like just a blob of fluff in the picture, but this is a walking blob of fluff, and that is always amusing.

 It is a lacewing larva; it carries all that detritus as camouflage.

Now for an educational moment:

 I spotted this moth on the underside of a milkweed leaf...

 ... and realized she was laying eggs. Interesting, but not necessarily educational, except for seeing insect eggs that look unlike any I have seen before.

 The educational part came about an hour later, when I was done with my bug walk and and done some yard work, and was just sitting on the back porch steps, cooling off...

 ... and that is when I found out that wasps eat moths. I never knew that before. I am not sure I even knew that wasps were insectivorious at all in their adult stages.

 Robber fly

 I have seen this fly hanging around on the side of the house for the last week or so. Here it is on a tarp.

More educational moments:

 I mentioned that I am taking an online course about insects; last week's unit was about insect locomotion, and one of the chapters was about specialized insect legs, such as saltatorial legs for jumping, and natatorial legs for swimming. There are also fossorial legs for digging–front legs that are sort of wide and scoop-like. The example given was the mole cricket, but then it said that cicada nymphs also have them–cicadas spend most of their lives in the nymph stage, living underground, so digging is what they do. I didn't know this at the time I found a cicada case last week, but when I found this one today I made sure to check out its fossorial legs.

 Hopper nymph

 I learned about wings, too, but to explain about this wing would be too much work right now. Suffice to say, it doesn't fold up.

Caterpillar on black-eyed Susan.