Summertime

June 1st is the first day of meteorological summer (as opposed to astronomical summer, which begins on the solstice), so today was a first day of summer. It didn't really feel like it, but two of the quintessential summer bugs were out in my backyard today. One of them was a cricket. I didn't see one, but I did hear a couple of them in different areas. The tricky thing about finding crickets is that you can try to follow the sound, but when you get close, they go quiet. I was not successful in seeing one today, but it was wonderful to hear them.

The other quintessential summer insect is today's Backyard Bug of the Day:

 Firefly. Unfortunately, they have not started their summer light show yet, though this is around when they usually start. It has been really cold the last couple of nights, though, so they may be waiting for summer to actually feel like summer. It did last week, but now... Anyway, I look forward to seeing fireflies blinking in the darkness. But it's not happening yet (and yes, I did go outside several times this evening to check).

Other Bugs:

 Leaf hopper

Ants and their herd of aphids:

 Honey bee on clematis flower

 Fly

 Sawfly larvae

There is a multiflora rose in front of the rocks where I think some katydid eggs must have hatched, because I have seen katydid nymphs there the last few days. It may be the same two nymphs, but the fact that there are two of them makes me think they must have come from eggs in that vicinity:

 Long-legged fly

Arachnid Appreciation:
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