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Agreeable Tiger Moth Caterpillar
I took this image of an Agreeable Tiger Moth Caterpillar (Spilosoma congrua) a couple days ago. Agreeable Tiger Moths can be found throughout eastern North America. Their caterpillars eat Dandelions, Plantain, and a species of Amaranthus, called Pigweed. It was a surprise to look at this image, after loading the pictures onto my computer. The…
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Bounty Of Summer
The bounty of summer. Radish, zucchini and jalapeño pepper, and soon to be on the dinner table. These from the garden. Tomatoes of all sorts. This just a day’s harvest. Potatoes. Colors of all sorts. Another day. Another harvest. Another harvest. Peppers. Some hot, some not. All good! Oh, and I see a couple tomatoes…
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Dots Dots And More Dots
So many dots on the Hackberry Emperor (Asterocampa celtis). Host plant? Of course it is Hackberry trees (Celtis). As adults the butterflies live 6 to 14 days. During that very short period of time they seldom visit flowers for sustenance but instead get nutrients from rotting fruits and vegetables, carrion, scat, damp sand, tree sap…
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Plain Brown Butterfly With Sparkle
A little brown butterfly with a wingspan of about 1.5 inches. Not a moth, I did say butterfly. A Gemmed Satyr (Cyllopsis gemma), which can be found in the southeastern United States and northeastern Mexico. On the ventral, or underside, of this butterfly’s wings, on the outer edges, there are lines of four round “gems”…
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Flowers Of Scarlet
Stunning scarlet flowers, an invitation to butterflies and hummingbirds. Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis). Native to North America, Central America, and South America. And here in Virginia it is native to all of our counties. Here the brilliance of the flowers attract a Pipevine Swallowtail (Papilio troilus). These tubular flowers are the perfect design for hummingbirds,…
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Up Close
Under the blazing midday sun a Great Spangled Fritillary (Speyeria cybele) uses its long proboscis to sip nectar from a Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea). _______________________________________________________________________ If you would like to receive my daily blog posts by email, sign up here!
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Cicada Killer
Quite an impressive wasp, due to its size, a Cicada Killer (Sphecius speciosus). Its size is between 1.125 to 2 inches long. Females are larger than males. Though what seems like an intimidating size, they are not to be feared. The males don’t have stingers and females are intent on using their stingers for paralyzing…
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Joe Pye Weed
Native to eastern and central North America, Joe Pye Weed (Eutrochium) blooms for us toward the end of summer. A tall one, often growing to between 5 and 7 feet tall. And if you’re curious, as I was, there is this from the New York Times. “AS the story goes, there once was an Indian medicine…
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Sunflowers and Goldfinches
The perfect combination. Sunflowers (Helianthus) and Goldfinches (Spinus tristis). Goldfinches eat mostly seeds. Little seeds. Though Sunflower seeds are a bit larger than they often eat, they love to come to my Sunflowers as they droop, seeds maturing. They do eat other seeds, primarily in the composite family, and also seeds of weed and grasses,…
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Banded Tussock Moth Caterpillar
Don’t miss the little things when you are out in nature. Little things in nature can be so cute, like this Banded Tussock moth caterpillar (Halysidota tessellaris). They look like tiny Yorkshire Terriers to me. Cute as they are though, don’t pick one up. Their furry coat can cause an itchy rash that will last…