Backyard and Beyond

Starting out from Brooklyn, an amateur naturalist explores our world.

As John Burroughs said, “The place to observe nature is where you are.”

  • Spiders With Prey

    Orbweaver with firefly. Crab with fly. Jumping with ant.

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    Spiders With Prey

  • Black Swallowtails

    Papilio polyxenes female on Butterfly Milkweed. How apropos. Here’s a male… or maybe two of them. ( Lots of flittering about when it comes to these things.) And two of the caterpillars.

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    Black Swallowtails

  • Raptor Wednesday Follow-Up

    Some more views of the young male seen included in yesterday’s post.

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    Raptor Wednesday Follow-Up

  • Raptor Wednesday

    This female American Kestrel is not the same as this one. I think this one is a daughter of the first. Daughter with her brother. Here is that brother with his father. A closer look at dad. (All this within 30 minutes!)

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    Raptor Wednesday

  • Once More into the Milkweed!

    An investigation revealed this to be a Bilobed Looper Moth/Megalographa biloba, dead of unknown causes, being recycled by ants. Just sitting out on a Common Milkweed leaf.

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    Once More into the Milkweed!

  • Ladybug

    My first sighting of a Fifteen-spotted lady Beetle/Anatis labiculata. Only a handful of these have been reported in Brooklyn on iNaturalist. On Common Milkweed…

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    Ladybug

  • Milkweed Madness III

    With their ample leaves, Common Milkweed plants are a convenient place to rest, recoup, and clean up.

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    Milkweed Madness III

  • Milkweed Madness II

    Now for some hunters found on Milkweeds, waiting for visitors. In this case, the wait is over…

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    Milkweed Madness II

  • Raptor Wednesday

    Northern Mockingbird trying to dislodge male American Kestrel. American Robin trying to do the same thing to female American Kestrel.

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    Raptor Wednesday

  • Milkweed Madness I

    Let’s check out all the invertebrates found on Milkweed in recent days. We’ll start with eaters: . Slurpers. Suckers. Chewers. OK, this Red Milkweed Beetle wasn’t on a milkweed in this photo, but was surrounded by them.

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