There are small natural happenings in my yard where I spend 30% of my time. I spend 50% indoors and the rest I am at the Postal SERVICE using their great talented services. But I will share what is happening outside. It is sometimes so beautiful it should be in the national news.
If you squint you can see autumn in the not-too-far distance and thus the orb-weaver spiders become more abundant in my garden. I do not know what they eat earlier in the summer. They can be small or quite large. They can look intimidating, but if I weed near the web, they will scurry away and wait until I am done. I read this fascinating fact about these spiders: "Generally, towards evening, the spider will consume the old web, rest for approximately an hour, then spin a new web in the same general location. Thus, the webs of orb-weavers are generally free of the accumulation of detritus common to other species, such as black widow spiders." I guess I am thankful I do not have to eat my house each day and build it anew.
I love the common name "orb-weaver." It sounds like some ancient magical spirit who lives in the woods and creates fire-works worthy shows.
This is a fallen crepe myrtle blossom that was caught in the web of one of my spiders. There are sticky parts to the web and non-sticky lines of silk where the spider walks carefully.
You must know how strong those sticky strings of web silk are if you catch them across your face or in your hair!
Another magical creature is the dragonfly. What another perfect "common" name. They dart and spin and glide, and while I do not have as many this year as last, I welcome them because they eat mosquitoes! Go Dragon, go.
I planted native mountain mint a year ago and it has taken over, of course. The flowers are meek and small, but pollinators love it!! I have seen many odd and unusual visitors...too many to post here. You can stand beside this silver-gray mint and wave your arms gently above the plant and not a single wasp or bee or insect will rise up and declare war. The wasps are busy collecting nectar to take back to their babies.
Can you see the assassin bug (wheel bug) on the right? He/she eats other bugs and I am wondering if it was waiting for that bee to make a mistake. I did not see it when I was taking this photo.
And the bumblers are everywhere!!
It is nice to stop and recognize the perfection of the little things in life.
Great post. You will have me taking a closer look at my garden bugs. The little spiders are everywhere, but i don't think I have any as exotic as yours.
ReplyDeleteYou have to be more than patient to get these photos. Nice post.
ReplyDeleteToday in the grocery store I saw a spider hanging from a single strand from the very high ceiling at least two floors up. Then a guy walked into it before I could take a phone shot.
ReplyDeleteWas that guy you?
DeleteThe perfection of each tiny creature is amazing when you take the time to notice. I have been fascinated with dragonflies recently too. There are dozens of then near the end of the boardwalk. We watch them for a few minutes every day.
ReplyDeleteTake care!
A perfect little world out there!
ReplyDeleteI do love insects. Such architecture. I just got a little handbook to learn more about them. Thank you for the pictures. I'm a fan of dragonflies and demoiselles too.
ReplyDeleteGreat post and photos!Recylcing spiders, learned something new. The crepe myrtle blossom and spider web is stunning.
ReplyDeleteInsects, flying or other, have been scarce this year except for ants, beetles, and tiny spiders. The mint attracting so many bees and wasps than the flowers do puzzles me.
Yes, it sure is. I don't have a garden per se, but I do have a small collection of succulents.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful
ReplyDeleteFascinating! Reminds me of my first memorable spider encounter when I was preschool age. My older brother drove us to my grandparents in his model T Ford. The next morning we came out to find a web spun by the occupying spider at the driver's side window edge. My brother told me to not disturb the web as we then became preoccupied observing the large spider at work. I don't recall what happened to the spider and web since later in the day we did have to drive home, but for some reason this has been a strong visual memory remaining with me all these years.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful photos, I have been surrounded by lots of butterflies as they feed on the buddleia bushes. We used to have golden eyed dragonflies that patrolled up and down the pathway and damsel flies over the ponds, all dainty and colourful.
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