Saturday, October 9, 2021

So little

 Down by the river, on a ledge of the walkway, sat a small stick with the end cap, or cupule with scales, of an acorn. There was a tiny dark speck on it. I had brought my camera in hopes of getting a picture of one of the noisy birds there today, but I wanted to see what the speck was. Surprise! It was some sort of flying insect. A fly? Check out the wings that are naked to the eye of a human. There is always something fascinating out there in nature.  



Sunday, May 2, 2021

Another Dragonfly: View from the top.

 


New Dragonfly

 This one has a stubby white abdomen and white and black wings.




Thursday, October 29, 2020

Tuesday, September 29, 2020

Wednesday, August 5, 2020

Dragonfly 2020

Not sure what kind this is. A paler blue body (thorax and abdomen) and at least three inches with wings spread.

Tuesday, July 16, 2019

Golden Silk Orb Weaver

Six weeks later, the big spider is still there, but today is different. He has a cicada in his web. 


Thursday, May 19, 2016

Sunday, October 18, 2015

Saturday, September 5, 2015

Giant Leopard Moth

The front half.

I chose this photograph to post because you can see the feathering of its hair-sized antenna.

Saturday, July 11, 2015

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Monday, September 23, 2013

Web of caterpillars

My new home in Wilmington has a small backyard, then a white fence, then the undisturbed wetland. In a branch of a small tree, or at least some sort of green growth that hung over the fence, were several white webs filled with black dots and wiggly things. On closer look, I saw hundreds of caterpillars in and out of the web. I must learn more about them, like what they eat and what kind of moths they will become, and if they will be back.

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Such a Pretty Color

I saw a flash of a beautiful aqua color land on the grass in front of me. On very close look, I saw that it was a tiny, lovely moth - possibly.

Curious

This little bug outsmarted me. He would not come fully out from under the leaf  so I could take a picture. I think he was following my eyes. I wonder what it is.

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Long-tailed Skipper

The top of its body is a pretty teal blue.
In this picture you can see its proboscis. It works like a straw that goes deep into the flower to suck out the nectar.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

hmmm...

I wonder why she is so fat.

Friday, March 23, 2012

Inchworm

This little guy was climbing up a tulip leaf. I can see why inchworms move as they do; they have feet only on the front and back ends. If all goes well, by summer this one will have turned into a pretty, brown geometer moth. I have seen lots of them around.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

A Nymph

On the edge of a periwinkle petal was this baby insect, a nymph. Its wings are almost transparent, reflecting the blue of the flower. A human changes a lot from three months old to twenty-one years, and an insect also changes a lot before it becomes an adult. Can you tell what it is?

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Cicada Killer

Trip took this cool picture this summer. It is a big cicada killer wasp with her even bigger prey.

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Writing Spider @ Work

This pretty female writing spider was hanging in the branches of my big, sweet smelling gardenia bush. I took her picture. Then about fifteen minutes later, I went to see her again. She had just captured what, I believe, must be a bee. Apparently she rolled her long, thick, zigzagged web around the big bee body as a shroud.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Saturday, July 16, 2011

pretty colors

It may be another leafhopper.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

what??

I know it is an insect because I watched it hop - or fly - several times. But where is its face? Do you think it is a type of moth?

Sunday, July 10, 2011

I think . . .

this is a male writing spider. They are brownish and smaller than the colorful females.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Good job, Wasp!

As you can tell by the wasp's shadow, it is about noon on this sunny summer day. He had found something on this sunflower leaf to enjoy for lunch, and I think it was a hornworm. They are pesky creatures, and now I know they were responsible for the munching of the sunflower leaves.

Monday, June 13, 2011

Designed by the Creator

On a sunflower leaf. I can see why stinkbugs are also called mosaic bugs.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

One of the millions of tiny insects

This is one of those tiny flying moth creatures, here staying still on a mint leaf looking curiously at me. I think the fuzzy tusk-like appendages are interesting. I wonder if it is a young insect or a mature one, and what is it?