Category Archives: Biological diversity

Butterflies and Storm Water Management

Posted on May 21, 2013 by

Some fairly recent changes in building codes and storm water regulation present what I consider to be some pretty good opportunities for butterfly conservation. Storm water detention basins are engineered structures, designed to detain water from heavy rains for a … Continue reading →

Posted in Biological diversity, butterflies, butterfly surveys, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Everything Gets More Colorful

Posted on May 16, 2013 by

I love the way the trees are getting flowers and the grass is getting greener.  Every thing is more colorful than it was a few weeks ago.  Even the bugs are more colorful. This small fly is probably a chironomid.

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Visiting Old Friends

Posted on April 26, 2013 by

I took the day off from work today, and spent the day crawling on the forest floor taking pictures.  It was like visiting old friends. This flower is called Dutchman’s breeches. I had hoped to see some butterflies, but it … Continue reading →

Posted in Biological diversity, invertebrates, snails | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Small (very small) Signs of Spring

Posted on March 27, 2013 by

We had some slightly warmer weather today.  We still have areas of snow on the ground, but it is melting.  I wandered around our lawn looking for invertebrates. I had to look under some firewood before I found anything.  This … Continue reading →

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A Wet Lichen

Posted on January 12, 2013 by

This lichen is on the bark of a tree in our yard.  Lichens take on stronger colors when they are wet, as this one was. I leafed through my book Lichens of North America, by Brodo, Sharnoff, and Sharnoff.  It … Continue reading →

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Deer from the Window

Posted on December 26, 2012 by

We had a deer right outside our window tonight.  It was too dark to take a good picture, so this badly underexposed photo was digitally lightened. I think it was looking for the pods of the black locust trees we … Continue reading →

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Biodiversity Events

Posted on November 22, 2012 by

I haven’t posted as frequently to this blog recently as I had been earlier.  Part of the reason is the weather–when it turns cold there are not as many opportunities to take bug photos.  Part of the reason is the season–it … Continue reading →

Posted in Biological diversity, insects, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

A Really Big Fly

Posted on September 6, 2012 by

One of the largest and scariest flies you will see around here is the black horse fly, Tabanus atratus.  This one is a male, and therefore won’t bite, but the females do.  I have never been bitten by one, and … Continue reading →

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Like a Wet Car

Posted on September 3, 2012 by

This morning I took some photos of some shiny black beetles on a New England aster flower. I was surprised to see the reflections of the flower’s petals in the beetles.  

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The Spider, the Bee, and the Fly

Posted on September 1, 2012 by

I stopped by Conard Environmental Research Area, a prairie/savannah reconstruction and restoration owned by Grinnell College.  It is a pretty good area to find butterflies, but today was a little too overcast and windy for them.  I still had a … Continue reading →

Posted in Biological diversity, diptera, insects | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments