Dwindling Summer

The autumnal equinox is in two days, and that means it's still summer, and today really felt like it. It only looks like autumn because of the kinds of flowers that are blooming; the leaves have not changed. And... hm. I don't really have a point here, not one that I can relate somehow back to bugs. So let's get on with it.

Backyard Co-Bug of the Day #1:

 Carpenter bee. I think this same bee spent most of the afternoon on the autumn joy sedum, with occasional visits to the bluebeard, which is growing nearby.

 I have trouble remembering what makes a carpenter bee a carpenter bee instead of a bumblebee, and so I looked it up. The carpenter bee does not have a fuzzy abdomen (the back end) like a bumblebee.

Backyard Co-Bug of the Day #2:

 I finally decided that I would look this up, and didn't find it in the two books I looked in. Since I am tired, I am not going to try the other books. This will, for the time being, remain a mystery.

Other Bugs:

 Sweat bee

 I don't know if this is the same individual caterpillar that was climbing up the house in this spot yesterday, but it appears to be the same species, and today I got better pictures of the stripes, and am almost positive that this is an Angus's datana. I have now lost track of how many datana species I have seen in my backyard this year, but I think it's either 4 or 5, which is interesting because I don't think I have seen any before this year. And yet, they are still different species, with different host plants. I don't know why I am suddenly finding them.

 I got too close, and it went into its defensive posture.

 Grasshopper

 Sharpshooters

 Another look at the cherry dagger moth. Its name comes from its preferred host plant, the cherry tree, but the tree it is on in my backyard is not a cherry tree. I don't know what kind of tree it is, but it has never had any cherries on it, or flowers (that I have noticed. Many trees have very subtle flowers). It must have other plants it is willing to eat; there are no cherry trees at all in my backyard.

 

 

 Green stinkbug

 Katydid

 Like I need to tell you anymore that this is a banded tussock moth caterpillar

 Geometer caterpillar of some kind

Buffalo tree hopper

Arachnid Appreciation:
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I think these two are the same species of spider, though I only saw each of them from one side:

Flower crab spider on goldenrod, with wasp prey

Nursery web spider