Giant Water Bug

This giant bug was in the water table in our backyard. It is about an inch and a half long and I was so shocked when I saw it. I didn't know we had such big bugs in this part of the world.

Even-Lined Sallow

This moth was also found on the wall of our porch.

Photo taken August 2014

Eye-Spotted Lady Beetle

I have never noticed a ladybug like this before. It really surprised me. The white rings around its black spots are unique to this species.

Checkered White Butterfly

The Checkered White Butterfly is also sometimes called the Southern Cabbage Butterfly. The gender is obvious because the butterflies' male and female patterns are actually very different from each other.

This butterfly is male. The female Checkered White Butterfly has many more dark markings on it than the male.

Prominent Moth: Notodonta Torva

This fuzzy moth was found on the wall of our house. I thought at first that it must be a Tussock Moth, but it turns out to have been a Prominent Moth. Both generally have fuzzy forelegs.

Lake Darner

This dragonfly landed on the baby's blanket while we were at the park. The mosaic-like patterns on its body are amazing.

photo taken August 2014

Many Plumed Moth: Alucita

This tiny moth was found on the wall of our house. It may not look so camouflaged, but it was so small that it really blended in well in the shadow of a crack. I passed it without seeing it the first time even though I was looking for moths.

photo taken August 2014

Red-Belted Bumble Bee

We found this bumble bee on these yellow tansy flowers. At first, we thought it must be a honey bee because of the red stripes on its back. I didn't know there were so many kinds of bumblebees! You should definitely take a second look the next time you see one.

Photo taken August 2014

There are actually a few different kinds of bumblebees with red stripes. 

Two-Spotted Looper Moth

Found this moth on our porch one day. Some moths are so interesting looking!

Primitive Minnow Mayfly: Siphlonurus

I found this mayfly in my backyard. Mayfly larvae live in water and we live near a river so I'm sure that's where it originated.

photo taken August 2014

Putnam's Looper Moth

This moth was by the light on our porch one morning. As well as Putnam's Looper Moth, it has also been called Lempke's Gold Spot. It caught my attention being bright gold coloured with white spots. 

Ichneumon Wasp: Itoplectis Conquisitor

This brightly coloured wasp was found in my backyard. Apparently this type of wasp is very common although I've never noticed such colours on a wasp before.

photo taken August 2014

Maple Spanworm Moth

This moth was found on the wall in the front of the house. We leave the light on overnight and often in the morning there are a variety of moths on the wall there nearby.

photo taken August 2014

Green Lacewing: Chysoperla rufilabris

Lately I've seen a lot of these insects around. These are a type of Green Lacewing. Their adult form here eats nectar, pollen and aphid honeydew, but in this genus their larvae prey on other small insects. 

photo taken August 2014

Forest Tent Caterpillar Moth

We had tons of tent caterpillars on the poplar tree in our backyard this summer. My 2 year old and I had lots of fun collecting them. I should have taken some pictures because it was amazing that there were so many. (Apparently they can be quite the pests.) Just before a rain they'd all gather in the elbows of the tree branches.

photo taken August 2014

I'd been watching for them to turn to chrysalises, but instead all these silky cocoons showed up. I hadn't realized they would turn into moths.

photo taken August 2014

All these moths showed up in our front porch and it was quite a while before I connected the dots and realized that these were the Forest Tent Caterpillar Moths. My children were again very excited to discover them all over our front wall outside our house.

Four-Spotted Ghost Moth

This moth showed up on the poplar tree in our backyard one evening. I thought it was actually really pretty for a moth. After doing some research I found out it is a Four-spotted Ghost Moth. They can come in two colour forms: yellow-brown (shown here) and purple-grey. 

photo taken August 2014

Wild Blueberry Country

We live in an area that is known for its wild blueberries and I had been planning to get out to pick some on my friend's property. So when I discovered that the bush just beyond my backyard is full of wild blueberries I was very excited! 

 Now that I know what a blueberry bush looks like, I'm seeing them everywhere here.

Rockiness

I love to go on walks and am always interested in all the strange things that are growing or some wierd insect or cool frog. We moved about a year ago and when we first were moving here, I thought all the rockiness was really ugly. But I've really changed my mind about that and have just found that it's a different kind of beauty. 

Spring is in the Air

It's amazing how one day can make such a difference on a plant in the spring.