From my garden series - Interesting insects part 2

I've been experimenting with my twin flash, Canon 100 mm f/2.8L lens, and two extension tubes. It's much more challenging to maneuver close to an insect with such a large contraption on the end of the camera, and I've discovered that the long legged flies do not like the flash at all. Everytime I click the shutter button and the flash begins, the flies jump. Sometimes I get lucky and the fly is still in focus, as you'll see below. 

Here's what I saw yesterday evening:

Lucilia sp. - a beneficial insect for the garden.

longhorn grasshopper - aka tree cricket. This is a nymph.

Red aphids - fortunately, I've only seen these on a weed that has taken over some brickwork.

Condylostylus sipho - female - long legged flies do not like the flash!

Flesh fly - Sarcophaga sp.

Harvestman - aka Daddy Longlegs. Not a spider - closer to a scorpion than a spider.

Bombus impatiens - visiting my purple coneflowers

I've never seen a dragonfly in the garden before, so this was a welcome addition to my collection...

Another harvestman

Cute leaf hopper - I've learned where these guys hang out in the front garden.

No clue as to the moth or butterfly species, but this caterpillar is happily chomping on my crassula in the front garden.

From my garden series - interesting insects

Since dusting off my Canon 100mm/f2.8 L macro lens last week, I've been finding a lot of interesting bugs in the garden.  I'm particularly interested in the diversity of fly species - most of them predatory on other insects, some are nectar or pollen feeders, though.  I showed some of these photos to my son and he was creeped out.  I guess some people aren't into interesting critters, eh? When you look closely at insects, you see how marvelously they are adapted to their realm. The specialized mouth parts, defense structures, eyes, antennae, genitalia - all are so different than what we're used to seeing in mammals, birds, fish, and insects. Viva la différence!

Here's a sampling of my bug menagerie that inhabits my garden:

Hover Fly aka Syrphid Fly - larvae are predators, adults feed on nectar and/or pollen. Are used as biocontrol agents for aphids. In other words - a good insect for the garden.

Bombus impatiens - one of the bumblebee species found in Ohio. All pollinators are welcome to my garden.

Another hover fly or syrphid fly - Toxomerus marginatus

Long legged fly - Condylostylus sipho - male. This is another predatory fly. They like to hang out on leaves.

Female long legged fly - Condylostylus sipho

Snipe fly - don't know which species, but this is another predatory insect.

Cluster fly - a species of Pollenia. The larvae of cluster flies are parasites of earthworms. The adults can be pests in the house in that they like to overwinter in homes. Although they resemble house flies, they are not harmful to humans or pets. Notice how the wings are folded as the fly is at rest? This is a big difference from house flies.

Lonhorn grasshopper nymph - female. Scudderia sp. These are also known as bush katydids. They chomp on garden plants, so they're not particularly helpful to the garden. They are kind of cute, though.

Toxomerus marginatus - I like the dramatic setting with the light on my boxwood - lots of shade in the background.

Japanese beetle - Popillia japonica - definitely a garden pest. They eat everything! I actually think they're beautiful to look at, but they are not welcome in my garden.

Red aphids - I've only seen them on weeds thus far, but they are not welcome on my vegetables and ornamentals.

This is a nymph of the brown marmorated stinkbug - another invasive garden pest. They are definitely interesting in appearance, though.

Orb weaver spider (Neoscona crucifera?) eating a scarab beetle. It's hanging out on one of my crassula plants.

I've received most of my insect identifications from BugGuide.

Some more insects are posted here: Scenes from my garden - July 2014

Scenes from my garden - July 2014

I've spent the past few years building up my perennial collection in the front and back gardens. The nice thing about perennials is that you can divide them after a few years to increase the number of flowering plants. This is great for attracting all sorts of insects and the local birds. Every-once-in-awhile I take some time to do some macro photography, or to just photograph the flowers. Here's a sampling from July 1, 2014:

Purple cone flower

Purple cone flower

Purple cone flower

Purple cone flower

Red Rocks penstemon and a cerotina bee

Red Rocks penstemon and cerotina bee

Gooseneck loosestrife

Lucilia spp fly on gooseneck loosestrife

Lucilia spp fly on gooseneck loosestrife

Hurray for nicer weather

We had snow last Monday - an April 15 snow storm? How very strange this year's weather has been - brutally cold for months and then some oscillations of warm, spring-like days with freezing ones. My spring flowers are holding up, despite the weird conditions. The crocuses are pretty much done, though. They were pretty while they lasted.

It finally feels like Spring around here.

Winter was long and brutally cold this year. This past week the weather has changed and it feels as if Spring will be here for awhile. My crocus and daffodils are in bloom. Some of the early spring ephemerals are blooming along the rivers and in the Metro parks. I wish I had more time to get out for some photo walks. Alas, one more week of classes and lecture prep. More grading, writing a final midterm exam, and then the semester will be done.

Here's a look at some of my flowers in the garden this week:

Hard work pays off - Spider on the night shift, part 2

 This evening Steve and I did a hike at Highbanks Metro park. The main motivation was to try out my new hiking boots before I head to South Africa next week. The good news is that the boots fit well and I had no hotspots or other issues after a three mile hike.

The other good news is that our friend, the orb weaver spider, had made a new web in the same spot as last night. This time the dogs stayed inside while I went to fetch my camera gear. I was able to make a photo without worrying about whether the dogs would snap one of the anchor lines. This spider is about two inches long (including the legs).

I still do not know the name of the species, but she's beautiful. I hate to admit it, but when I looked at her through the macro lens, my first thoughts were of king crab legs.....

Update: 18 Aug 2013 - This is Neoscona crucifera, the Variable Orbweaver. Ohio Department of Natural Resources has a pdf on the common spiders of Ohio, which gives a lot of natural history about the spiders we most often see in the state.  For example, orbweaver spiders spin a new web every day. The sticky strands are the spiral ones. The spider is nocturnal and eats mostly moths. The web is gone by morning, and the spider eats the strands (to recycle the proteins in the silk), and then hides during the day.  

From my garden

From my garden, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Along the driveway, where we have our bird feeders, I have a small garden featuring purple cone flowers, shasta daisies, and volunteer sunflowers. The cone flowers are in full bloom. In a few weeks the seeds will be developing and the goldfinches will feast to their hearts content...

Katydid

Katydid, a photo by andiwolfe (temporarily busy) on Flickr.

From my garden

Flower predator

Flower predator, a photo by andiwolfe (temporarily busy) on Flickr.

This caterpillar is well camouflaged against the flower head of the Mariposa Daisy. I don't know what insect it is, but I was fascinated by its behavior. It pokes its head into each individual flower and chomps the reproductive structures.

Unidentified garden plant

Unidentified garden plant, a photo by andiwolfe (temporarily busy) on Flickr.

This is growing in my front garden and I don't know what it is. Help?

Hover fly

Hoverfly, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I'm starting a summer project to discover the insects that inhabit my garden. This is a hover fly. It looks similar to a bee, and it does pollinate some plants, but it's definitely a fly. There is one set of primary wings and the nubs of remnant wings (the small yellow paddles just above the abdomen). The eyes are humongous and probably give this insect a 360° view of the world.

Stamens at attention!

Stamens at attention!, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Yesterday morning there was no breeze and so I did some photographic studies in the garden. This is a macro photo of the stamens of a yellow day lily I have growing in the back garden. I like to covert images to black and white by using Silver Efex Pro. Black and white photos can bring out details that are lost in the colors of a regular digital image.

The close-up of the anthers reveals individual pollen grains ready to be dispersed by a pollinator.

Whazzit?

Whazzit?, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

There was no wind this morning so I decided to do some macro photography in the garden. I've been seeing a lot of interesting insect photos on Flickr recently, so I was inspired to go on a bug hunt. I came across this interesting insect in the front garden. I've no clue as to what it is. Identification assistance would be appreciated.

Mertensia virginica

Mertensia virginica, originally uploaded by andiwolfe.

Yes, I can't get enough of these beautiful spring flowers that are all over my front garden.

Lilacs

Lilacs, originally uploaded by andiwolfe.

I have several old lilac bushes lining the driveway at my house. I really need to cut them back this year after flowering has finished. I love the scent that flows off these blooms. I usually get a good whiff as I walk from the garage to the back gate when I get home from work. These offer a natural pick-me-up - especially after a particularly challenging day in the lab or classroom.

Virginia bluebells

Virginia bluebells, originally uploaded by andiwolfe.

Another image from my spring garden. I really look forward to seeing how many of the plants come up from seed, and how the ones that were growing the previous year are doing the next one.

Mertensia virginica

Mertensia virginica, originally uploaded by andiwolfe.

aka Virginia Bluebells. When we moved to our current house, there were a few of these plants growing in the front garden. Each spring I've collected seed and spread them around the garden so that now I have a literal prairie of these beautiful spring plants in my yard. I'm so lucky!

Awakening

Awakening, originally uploaded by andiwolfe.

This is one of the Viriginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica) growing in my yard. I took the photo April 9, but now the plants are in full bloom. I need to find time to take a photo when the rain lets up. We've had some tremendous thunderstorms today.

Daffodil

Daffodil, originally uploaded by andiwolfe.

Macro shot of the corona of one of the varieties of Daffodil currently blooming in my yard.