mthew
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The Worm in the Bud
Larval stage of one of the Allantus rose sawflies. There were three of these on this cultivated rose. This one was curled under a bloom. (Life on a store-bought rose!) I’ve been dealing with some health problems and barely getting outside out lately, so my posts have been scanty. Hopefully picking up the pace…
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Dog Days
More frequently heard than seen, Dog Day cicadas (Neotibicen) are out there all around us. Half of them aren’t even heard: females, like this one, don’t make noise. The cicada’s mortal enemy, an Eastern Cicada-killer Wasp, pushing earth out of her nest backwards.
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Mill Creek
This stream runs besides the Staten Island Railway station at Pleasant Plains. You can stand on the platform and look down into the shallow waters. As it happened, the train that day was running in two parts, so at another station, this plant-hopper flittered in to land on the platform.
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Raptor Wednesday
Four Osprey at the city’s edges. They’ll all be heading south soon, alas. Two Red-tailed Hawks on Mike’s Spike. Good illustration of raptor sexual dimorphism: smaller male on left, larger female on right.
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Tree Swallows
A tree full of them at West Pond at Jamaica Bay. There’s at least one Barn Swallow in the mix, on the far right and a couple of Starlings at the top left, but otherwise it’s Tree Sparrow City!
Backyard and Beyond 