Backyard
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Housemates
Changing some bulbs — I suppose they should be called tubes now — reveals some fellow apartment dwellers who went towards the light. Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay, Rage, rage against the dying of the light. — Dylan Thomas
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Spider in the My Tub
Just think of all the animals that surround us, even in the city. Even in our homes. I usually have spiders, and I usually leave them alone. That inch-plus behemoth marching across the floor that one time I did put outside, but otherwise they’re free to do what they will in here. I used a…
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Fresh and organic
I thought that I might be posting less and less as fall turned into winter, spending more time as an armchair naturalist than as a field naturalist. But the inside of my apartment remains fecund and full of surprises. For instance: This lady beetle — I believe it’s a Multicolored Asian ladybug, Harmonia axyridis —…
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Through the window
That hearty urban mammal, the gray squirrel, Sciurus carolinensis, makes its way across the Back 40 Bypass between the abandoned house to the south and the half-abandoned house to the north. (It’s a bit of a slum corner, I’m afraid.) The squirrels have a condo in the upper stories of the half-abandoned house to the…
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An Ancient Enemy
Last week, I killed a mosquito with gorgeous emerald green eyes in my girlfriend’s apartment. It was 3:30 in the morning, and for perhaps obvious reasons I did not think to photograph the remains. I did, however, think it would be the last of the pestilent blood-suckers for the year. But alas, no; last night,…
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All Creatures Great and Small
Mostly small. And mostly slimy (cue Monty Python). More tidying up in the Back 40 in preparation for winter. My backyard is a Brutalist expanse of poured concrete, so I use numerous pots for planters. All were salvaged from the street. There’s also a found-on-the-sidewalk wooden box, festively decorated with painted balloons. While moving this…
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Tiny disk
Tidying up the Back 40 (inches) this time of year inevitably unearths some signs of life settling in for the winter. This is one of several very small disk snails I’ve found attached to brick or metal outside. I’ve seen these critters before and think they are probably Discus rotundatus, immigrants from Europe like many…
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Munch, munch, munch
Friends, gardeners, farmers! I come to praise the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta, not bury it. You, on the other hand, may be quick to go snicker-snack! That I leave up to you and your conscience. I had been wondering why my sweet frying pepper, a first time plant for me, had not made any fruit…
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Minor Produce
From the Back 40: a vest-pocket garden makes produce that fits into a chest pocket.
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Cicadas. Part III.
Found on the Cobble Hill sidewalk: the forewing of a dog day cicada. (Earlier posts about cicadas are here and here.) The size (1.5″ across) and green color identify it. You will, I believe, be pleased if you click on the image to open it up to see it larger. Cicadas, like most bugs, have…
Backyard and Beyond 