invertebrates
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Mourning Cloak
One of the earliest butterflies of spring, the mourning cloak, Nymphalis antiopa. Appropriately enough for its mournful name, this one was photographed today in Green-Wood Cemetery.
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Mud daubing neighbors
The Back 40, my tiny backyard, is dominated by the overhang of the balconies the upstairs neighbors enjoy. Rusting I-beams support this addition to the building. I recently glanced up and found that one of the beams supports something else entirely. Thanks to the good people at Bug Guide, I can tell you that this…
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Another interior denizen
I’ve seen these around the apartment a couple of times. This one I found in the tub. Naturally, I was curious… This is a spider beetle, a member of the family Ptinidae; there are about 50 species in the U.S., mostly in the Southwest. But wait, a spider beetle? Does that compute? Spiders, you’ll remember,…
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Winter I
This is the season of potential. All around us in natural nooks and crannies are the seeds, eggs, and larvae of the spring’s renaissance. These are egg masses, I presume of some kind of insect. Another nearby mass was wrapped with a leaf. Ha, that old trick!
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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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Architecture
Now that most of the leaves have fallen, it’s a good time to start looking for bald-faced hornet nests. These two samples are from Prospect Park. These nests are abandoned each year, so they are harmless in winter. Wasp queens are the only ones who survive the winter, and they do it underground, or deep…
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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…
Backyard and Beyond 