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April 2008
Categories
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Recently in butterflies, bugs and spiders CategoryCool caterpillar
What is this bug? Name this bug! My son found one of these as he was pulling chard in the garden this past weekend. I didn't think much of it at the time -- except to point out its color and explain that it was an insect -- until my husband spotted another one on the olive tree we were pruning. I did a little Internet searching, and "Assassin bug" kept popping up as an option, but I don't think it is. Continue reading "What is this bug?" » Caterpillar fun!
I was gathering pecans one weekend afternoon and came across this little caterpillar in the garden. I have been searching through catalogs to figure out what it is for the past few weeks, but I still can't figure out what it is. Monarch migrationMonarch butterflies moved through Austin on their yearly fall migration to Mexico in October. I really enjoyed watching them flutter around my front yard garden among the Queen butterflies. Continue reading "Monarch migration" » Building for butterflies
I checked out the Fall Plant Festival at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center over the weekend and walked away with almost a dozen native plants and a couple of ideas for my own garden. We first walked around the center and stumbled across the butterfly garden. Lately, I've been especially interested in planting for the butterflies, so this was an area I lingered in. There was one spot that had been built up with rocks and soil and other plants. The placard said the rocky outcrop was great for giving butterflies a sunny, dry area to hang out. Continue reading "Building for butterflies" » Really cool insect site
I found the COOLEST website the other day while trying to identify that little worm that was devouring my bean plants. Whatsthatbug.com is site full of photos and letters from people who have found interesting, creepy and weird bugs and need help identifying them. The folks at What's that Bug? do the research and even label some bug encounters as "unnecessary carnage." I found myself cruising the site for a few hours looking at photos or caterpillars and butterflies -- not even scratching the surface of all that's on the site. And I love the message -- learning to appreciate the beauty of insects and other creatures, rather than just mindlessly killing what we don't understand. It was while look through What's that Bug? that I finally identified a butterfly that has been hanging out in my front yard by the dozens for the past several months. The Queen butterfly has some of the same markings as a Monarch on the underside of its wings, but when it spreads them out, you can really see the difference. Continue reading "Really cool insect site" » Name that worm
I've been keeping a close eye on my bean plants for the past week after noticing something had been eating them. One day I found this (the worm in the photo on the right). Well, they were actually a little smaller (I guess they grew since I first discovered them). They were on every leaf, but I had to look really carefully for them because they had curled an edge of the leaves over themselves and made a little tunnel to hide in. They had made mincemeat of the leaves. Continue reading "Name that worm" » Attracting butterflies
I've discovered a new love in my garden... butterflies. Last spring, a friend gave me some Gregg's Blue Mist from her garden, which I promptly planted between the olive trees in my front yard. It was kind of scraggly at first, but the shot of rain we had through most of the first part of the summer really made it take off. (Not surprising because mistflower loves moist conditions.) Now, it calls butterflies and moths of all kinds. I've seen Swallowtails, but I've especially enjoyed watching the Monarch butterflies that whip around it. I've tried to take pictures of them, but so far they haven't let me get close enough before they take off and wait for me to leave before landing again. Continue reading "Attracting butterflies" » |
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