Monday 27 August 2012

Who's bugging you?

I love bugs. I think they are the most amazing creatures. They are so tightly evolved and integral to the cycle of life. They are each unique, beautiful, freaky, lovely beings.

And I like taking pictures of bugs. Ok. I like taking pictures of all kinds of things, but especially things that you can really get up close to and peer into a vastly other world than the one we perceive day to day.

Here are some of the visitors we have been graced with that I have managed to photograph.

Darner Dragonfly:

Predator par excellence. A sharp aerial hunter, they eat on the fly, clearing the air of mosquitoes.









Bumble Bees (possibly the Hunt's Bumble Bee?):
Bees are my favorite. What is not to love about bees? They make honey! They pollinate fruit and veggies. They are the watermark of the health of our environment. And the perceive the world in a very unusual manner. . They live in a fast world. They can see the beating of a bee's wing. They see the world 5 times faster than humans. I like to try to imagine what that would be like. Cool, but woah! Slow down!

And they dance to communicate. What is not to love about these guys?











and another kind, maybe the Bombus firgidus?



Here the two are sharing one flower. That's some nice intra-species diplomacy.

And of course spiders: I think this is a garden variety Orb Weaver. A most misunderstood creature- usually, with only a very few exceptions completely harmless, shy-- just think of Charlotte. Their web spinning is enough to cause me awe. I love walking outdoors early in the morning and catching the glimpse of dew on the freshly woven webs. Delicate beauties.





this wolf spider thought s/he was camoflauged:


And another graceful beauty- some sort of daddy long legs, for lack of a better name? Long jaw spider? I haven't been able to identify it:


Golden rod spider in my raspberries!


xo Jo

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