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This Used To Be Turf
A meadow, a-roaring with crickets. Just listening was enough to be get through all the terrible noise of the day, the terrifying state of the nation, the unending human assault on the planet’s life. Get thee to a meadow these early autumnal days! Bonus here is that this hillside in Green-Wood Cemetery was reclaimed from…
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Mole Cricket
Jumpin’ creepers! A mole cricket: the European Mole Cricket Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa? iNaturalist seems to think so. Found on the NY/CT border recently. There is a Northern Mole Cricket (Neocurtilla hexadactyla) found in Massachusetts and, belying its name, further south, but there are no Westchester Co. iNaturalist reports for it. Is this the song that Henry David Thoreau referred…
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Wetlands
An early morning in September, still warm and humid but not oppressively so. The wetland is rather quiet, though above me a couple squirrels gnaw away at hickories.I am delighted to see a spreadwing, the first I’ve seen in the Bronx. Slender Spreadwing, Lestes rectangularis, I think. He has caught a fly and is eating…
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Black Tupelo
Blackgum, sourgum, pepperidge, bee gum: Nyssa sylvatica. These berries, ripe now, are savored by birds and mammals, in the tree or on the ground. *** You may have noticed a dearth of bird photos in the midst of fall migration. My camera has died, after a lot of hard work (and getting smashed up during…
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Spiders
An Argiope genus spider. There was some iNaturalist/bugguide.net debate about the specific identity of this beauty, seen this past weekend on the NY/CT border at the home of friends. There were a lot of spiders, and much else. In fact, the family is cataloging lifeforms around the property (1,200+ observations on iNaturalist; hundreds of species),…
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Backswimmer
Notonectidae family backswimmer, so named because they swim upside-down. They pack a bite — more of a tube-like harpoon’s jab — belying their size. These bugs go after prey bigger than themselves. Some species hunt tadpoles and fish, others other insects. I understand their bite stings like the dickens. Their hid legs are like oars…
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Death Comes for the Monarch
There are some ants on the remains of this Monarch larva. Waste not, want not. I’ve seen a couple caterpillars in this position, suspended in preparation for starting the pupa, who didn’t make it. The Spined Soldier Bugs (nymphs and adults) are one enemy, but I wonder what other creatures or diseases strike these plump…
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Monarchs: The Next Generation
Chrysalis down! It was still attached, so I positioned this leaf in the thicket so that the pupa would hang down.Half of the newly emerged adults seen Friday.Larval stage still at it.This early instar was as long as a dime across.Milkweeds make butterflies. These have been completely stripped of leaves. This tiny patch had two…
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Return of the Return of Monarchy
I hope you didn’t think you were going to get away from these things, did you? I’ve had an unparalleled experience watching these critters for two-three weeks now. Missed all this in school, by the way, but must say, the wild is more appealing. A variation on the pattern; I’ve seen similar once before. ***…
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Smeared Dagger!
The Smartweed Caterpillar is also known after its adult moth form, the Smeared Dagger (Acronicta oblinita). According to Wagner’s Caterpillars of Eastern North America, these are quite variable.Here’s another, missing the red highlights. Excellent opportunity to see the morphology here: the three pairs of thoracic legs (with simple claws) on the left, the four pairs…
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Backyard and Beyond 