a place where nature, photography and writing meet
A couple of evenings ago, while out for our after dinner walk, Don pointed to a spot where the meadow grass was trodden down into an arc going off from the main path. He began to ask what could have made the new track. I smiled and said that it was me. It was the […]
A couple of days ago, I mentioned that I’d be posting about something that has occupied a bit of my time for the past week. This was the “suspense” that I talked about. Those of you who know your invasive species and are familiar with the dastardly Glossy Buckthorn bush (Rhamnus frangula), will understand the […]
This morning, while doing some yard work, I noticed this moderately large moth clutching a leaf in the garden. I thought, “I should go and get my camera,” but was soon distracted by my work. I noticed it again a little later in the morning, and realized I’d forgotten all about the moth. I finally […]
Dogbane Beetle (Chrysochus auratus) on Spreading Dogbane (Apocynum androsaemifolium) Yesterday, robin from Dharma Bums commented: Someday, if you haven’t already done so, maybe you could tell us what you planted to attract all these incredible spiders into your spider garden. You do have such an inspiring diversity of species there. Shortly after I began this […]
What do you think? Beautiful? Ugly? Fantastic? She seems fantastic to me — perhaps looking a bit like a mysterious, spiny asteroid in a sci-fi flick (click on photos for larger views). I found this Star-bellied Orbweaver (Acanthepeira stellata) hunkered down among the top leaves of a milkweed after following a strand of her tripline […]
Eight-spotted Forester moth caterpillar (Alypia octomaculata) Some of you may remember that, for a few weeks last summer, I raised Monarch caterpillars, then tagged and released the butterflies after they eclosed. I considered doing so again this summer, but we had plans to do a bit of traveling, so another Monarch rearing project seemed like […]
Until this week, most of the wildflowers around the farm have been white. Consequently, most of the Misumena vatia spiders I’ve been seeing have also been white. However, that has begun to change now that the Black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta) are in bloom. This week, I’ve been finding yellow phase spiders – those that have […]