Wednesday, October 6, 2010

backyard creatures















8 comments:

  1. My faves are the hawk and the spider with all the babies on its back. What about Andy?

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  2. That spider with its babies is so cool...and so creepy. I like that grasshopper-y guy in the fourth photo, gripping the blades of grass.

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  3. I know I always say this, but you've outdone yourself again with these spectacular shots. I don't believe I've ever seen anything like the mama spider.

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  4. goneferal--how could i forget andy?? silly me.

    tammy--thank you!

    amy--the grasshoppery guy is a katydid. they're very sweet creatures, much less hyper than grasshoppers and less aggressive than praying mantises. and their leaf-mimic camouflage is amazing, especially the larger ones with more oval-shaped wings.

    andrea--the mama spider is a female wolf spider. they carry their egg sac behind them constantly until the babies hatch, then everybody climbs up on the mom's back and rides around for a while. they're generally non-aggressive toward humans and beneficial in the garden. and they're HUGE. they're also very common so you might be able to find one if you go into a nature area at night, shine a light around and watch for shiny little eyes--they're nocturnal hunters and their eyes reflect light like a wolf's.

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  5. wow! how amazing! xaria really loved these pics:) <3

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  6. My close up the are pretty scary. I am so glad they are small. I'd run fast if they were huge :D

    Have a good weekend.

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  7. be--aww sweet, i'm glad she liked them! we need to play with bugs together sometime. you can watch from a safe distance, hehe.

    mangocheeks--yeah, i'm pretty glad they're small too. i could definitely see the wolf spider as a monster in a horror movie--she hunts people down, immobilizes them, then her babies swarm and devour. i'd watch that movie.

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