Backyard and Beyond

That has such creatures in’t! These are all new discoveries for me, excepting the last, because there’s one thing the arthropods prove, and that’s ever-new discoveries.The aptly-named named Saddleback caterpillar (Acharia stimulea), about 2cm long. The adult moth is one of the fuzzy indistinguishable brown jobs, but this larval stage form is amazingly unique. The sting from these spines “may be the most potent of any North American caterpillar” says Wagner. The most elaborate caterpillars generally are giving you a warning. Spotted at the Charleston Cemetery, far western Staten Island, and untouched, although I wasn’t aware of the nasty sting at the time.Yellow-collared Scape Moth (Cisseps fulvicollis) seen in Green-Wood. A day-flyer, gathering nectar amid masses of wasps it vaguely mimics. The image in Peterson’s field guide shows an orange collar and Bugguide.net notes that the vast majority are orange-collared, so the common name is a little less than helpful. Another wasp-like non-wasp. This is one of the robber flies in the family Aslidae. It hunts bees and wasps and was patrolling the path along the Marine Park Salt Marsh trail. It would fly low, land, and stare at me until I got too close, then fly forward to land again and stare back at me. Those whiskers would do a hipster proud. Mating Thread-waisted Wasps (Eremnophila aureonotata) at Mt Loretto. I’ve since seen a few solo of the species flying, trailing that long, long waist.Bald-faced Hornet (Dolichovespula maculata) nest in Green-Wood. Their paper nests are usually hiding up in the trees, but recently I’ve seen pictures of them in the grass, and built around the supports of a basketball net.Yes, they are at home. No, they are not taking any visitors.