Convergent Emergence
The hillsides are looking increasingly brown and many of the plants that bloomed in Spring are now withered and dry. And still — they host new life!
While inspecting a small stand of dried-up mustard plants, I was lucky enough to find a Convergent Lady Beetle (Hippodamia convergens) that had just recently emerged from its pupa. Initially after this adult transformation, the beetle’s shell is fairly soft and its coloration much paler than normal. If I had been able to sit and observe for long enough, I would have seen the beetle’s markings and underside of the abdomen darken considerably and its elytral color mature to a deeper shade of orange or red (as demonstrated by this pair that I photographed mating last April).
I know that everyone struggles with their fair share of pesky summertime critters — ants, ticks, mosquitoes, bitey flies. But, I’m curious to hear what some of your FAVORITE summertime insects are? Cicadas? Butterflies? Bees? Dragonflies?
These are magnificent, Harsi! The colors in both are so rich. And the “adult” shot is another great image for that bug porn calendar just waiting to be published. These sightings inspire me to be more observant.
Thank you, thank you, dear Ruth! I’m so pleased that you enjoyed my lady beetle images. And as for the “bug porn”… I’ve got waaay more than enough images of arthropods engaged in the act to fill a 12-month calendar… Give me another year or two and I might have enough images for a daily (365) tear-off style calendar. Ha ha! “These sightings inspire me to be more observant.” Be still my heart. Ruth, this is one of the best compliments I could ever receive! Inspiring others to look more closely at nature, or (for some) to just even start exploring in the first place is extremely gratifying for me. *GRIN* I probably should divulge that it can take a lot (A LOT!) of looking closely at bare stems and inside empty flowers in order to eventually find a little something wonderful. But the discoveries, much like buried treasure, wouldn’t be nearly so rewarding if there wasn’t a bit of work involved in finding them!