April 19th, 2007
Twice-stabbed Lady Beetle
I’ve been watching for the first appearance of Twice-stabbed Lady Beetles (Chilocorus stigma) for several days. They’re very tiny and not so easy to find unless you know where to look. As it happens, they may be found wandering over the lichen-covered bark of Trembling Aspen, which we have quite a lot of here at the farm. This is a native species and may be easily recognized by its all-black pronotum and black elytra marked with two brilliant red spots. So, it seems that I will actually have at least one insect to record for the Blogger Bioblitz that begins this weekend.
If you’re a blogger and you want to participate, be sure to register now. Jeremy Bruno has just mailed out the Excel data sheets that we’ll be using to record and report species, so if you haven’t received his email and instructions as yet, do contact him (go to the above link and you’ll find info there regarding how to register and contact him). Even if you can’t run Excel in your computer, you can simply upload the Excel file into Google Spreadsheets and work on it there.
The weather is really warming up here. As mentioned yesterday, the temperature went up to 12C (54F) — and actually, by late afternoon, it was even warmer. This weekend, the temperature is supposed to reach a high of about 23C (73F) on Sunday – which will be quite a change from last Sunday. I spent the later part of yesterday afternoon sawing up the top section of one of the Sugar Maple trees in our yard as it broke off during the heavy snowfall on Sunday night. The large wheelbarrow is now filled with maple sticks which I’ll let dry and then use for outdoor cookouts this summer. Being a vegetarian, I’m not much for barbecues and such, but I do like to grille marinated vegetables over maple or applewood fires from time to time, so I like to save small sticks to burn in a little fire for that purpose.
Yesterday, as mentioned, the air was filled with birdsong everywhere around the farm. With the rise in temperatures, the land is really starting to wake up all of a sudden. Sabrina and I made several trips around the farm listening for frog calls and recording bird song. That’s when I spied the tiny black and red lady beetle on the aspen bark. As I was listening to the birds belting out songs to claim their territory and mates, I was thinking of what civilized creatures birds are — to use their song as a means of establishing and defending their territory. How superior to the savage means employed by humans.
While I worked taking photos and making video and sound clips, Sabrina found a shady spot and waited patiently nearby. As you can see, she likes to stake out a spot where she can keep an eye on me while I work.
April 19th, 2007 at 9:14 am
Thank you for my Sabrina fix. She is really such a sweetheart.
I’d never heard the term twice-stabbed. I love these common names for critters and always wonder where they originated. ‘Twice Stabbed’ sounds Shakespearean.
Bev, I’d somehow missed that you are vegetarian. I can not tell you how much I admire the will-power of people who choose this life-style. May I ask what led you to make this difficult choice?
April 19th, 2007 at 9:45 am
Cathy – Yes, she is a sweetheart. She almost never lets me out of her sight during the day. All of the Rough Collies I’ve had have been the same way.
I love the common names as well. So many are very descriptive, but then, the same can also be said of many scientific names.
Being a vegetarian has never been at all difficult for me. I actually pretty much became one when I was about 5 or 6 years old. I suppose it happened when I realized where meat came from. My parents didn’t hassle me much about that choice as I did continue to eat dairy products and eggs, so I was getting protein, calcium, etc… I did continue to eat a bit of meat from time to time, but totally stopped by the time I was about 18, and I have not eaten meat since. The one “exception” is that I will sometimes eat scallops, although I’m sort of off of them too now. Don eats very little meat now too. For years, we raised a few chickens, a beef cow, or whatever, to put in the freezer — we wanted to know that the animals had been properly cared for and fed good food, etc.. I cooked that meat for him, but about 15 years ago, he began telling me not to bother, so we stopped raising livestock for the freezer. Once in awhile, he’ll buy some cut of meat if he gets a craving, and we do cook cuts of meat for Sabrina as we prepare all of her food ourselves, but that’s about it. He says he doesn’t miss it too much. I definitely don’t miss having to cook meat as I’m somewhat repelled by the odor of cooking meat, especially in winter when I can’t open a bunch of windows! (-:
April 19th, 2007 at 2:48 pm
So your choice to forgo meat is an ethical one. You were a rather unusual little girl. It took me 50 years to achieve and act on those insights. I’ve managed to rationalize that poultry does not experience emotional anguish as is the evolutionary legacy of mammals. So I allow myself poultry. If scientists demonstrate that chickens and fish have ‘feelings’ – I’m down to beans.
I agree with you that Sabrina should have an exemption :0)
April 20th, 2007 at 5:41 am
That lady beetle is as cute as her name. I’ve never seen one – we have two-spotted, but black spots on orange background. “Twice stabbed” is a perfect description, and Cathy’s evocation of Shakespearean is perfect.
Glad to hear that you’re hearing birdsong. Sounds like the long, unsatisfactory winter is coming to a close up there in the far north, and just in time for tomorrow’s first day of the bioblitz! Hope those logs will unfreeze from the ground within the week.
Interesting about the collection of sticks for grilling – I’ve been using pignut hickory droppings (sounds nasty, I know) for that for some time.