insects
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Butterfly Dependence
A short walk on the High Line yesterday morning:There were several Red Admirals (Vanessa atalanta); this one was all over the Purple Coneflower (Echinacea).Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus). Not as close to the camera: my first Monarch of the year. On Blazing Star (Liatris spicata).
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Lessons
1. It’s hard to focus an iPhone in the wind with one hand. 2. Looks like I need a manicure. Although I’ve have never had one, so I probably won’t ever get one. 3. Never believe anybody when they say the city is a sterile wasteland with nothing but pigeons and a surplus of rats.…
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Butterflies Galore
Over the weekend, I lost count of the number of species of butterflies I saw, most of them for the first time this year. This included a Monarch (predictably scouting out Milkweeds), so that’s a good start. American Ladies (Vanessa virginiensis), like the one above in Green-Wood, and Red Admirals were all over.There were at…
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Transition
This larval critter was snapping and bucking in the water. Because it clearly had places to go. Or something to become.
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Two-Spotted Sightings
My first ladybug of the year was spotted on the weekend. It was, no surprise, a Multicolored Asian, Harmonia axyridis, which you should expect to see just about everywhere. I also saw very small lady beetle I’m not yet sure of the identification of. But on Monday, I saw half a dozen Two-spotted, Adalia bipunctata,…
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Blooms, Bugs, Walks
Ornamental quince with pollinator butt. Which reminds me: I will be doing a Blooms and Bugs walk in Brooklyn Bridge Park on May 11th for NYC Wildflower Week. I’ll also be doing a sunrise Listening Tour for them on May 9th. And while we’re on the topic of walks, it’s the Jane’s Walk weekend (NYC…
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Fly
I found this dead fly inside the convoluted head of an organically-raised cauliflower from Salinas, CA, with its brain-like flowerets. Brassica! Diptera! The first day of spring!
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Paper
All that remains of that Bald-faced Hornet (Dolichovespula maculata) nest on the memorial I photographed in September. While examining the amazing paper the wasps make to cover their comb, I found something elsenesting between the layers. Oops, sorry about that!
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VLB in BBP
Two of the gardeners at Brooklyn Bridge Park showed me the evidence of Viburnum Leaf Beetle that they were hunting down. The pits in the twig are egg cavities, dug into the tree by the mature beetle. The tiny larvae can just be seen. The destructive invasive beetle is rampant through most city parks, but…
Backyard and Beyond 