October 4 was a stay-at-home day in order to nurse our Covid and Influenza vaccine-related fatigue, malaise, and soreness. Cloudy and sunlit skies took turns and were punctuated by brief periods of rain. During one of the sunny intervals, a Monarch Butterfly was seen flitting from cosmos to cosmos in our driveway, which has turned … Continue reading Insects Welcome!
The moisture in May’s late and only significant precipitation event, as devastating as it was on some levels, nonetheless brought sustenance to the surviving vegetation and assured the growth and blossoming of several flowers, even if they were endowed with less vigor than following a wet spring. Having encouraged a number of wildflower patches in … Continue reading June’s Gifts
Various comments to my previous post prove how many of us appreciate not only butterflies’ beauty but also the idea that the beating of their wings has far-reaching consequences. While seeing them flutter from flower to flower is grounds for celebration, the relative scarcity of all insects is noticeable and has been commented on by … Continue reading Welcome to the Insect Hotel
One scientist, who would have taken issue with last week’s “ignorance is bliss” statement is Maria Sybilla Merian (1647-1717). This powerhouse of a woman, of whom I knew nothing until the recent fortuitous find of her 2018 biography The Girl Who Drew Butterflies by Joyce Sidman, not only sought knowledge at every turn, it was … Continue reading Maria Merian
If you think this otherworldly creature is elevating its foremost extremities into the sky in supplication, you are not alone, as those who first lay eyes on it shared your impression and named it Praying Mantis. Falls Du den Eindruck hast, daß diese ungwöhnliche Kreatur ihre Vorderbeine im Gebet gen Himmel streckt, bist Du nicht … Continue reading Praying? Or Preying?
tanja britton 