Not the best picture, but in person, we were able to count ten points.
Unfortunately, that magnificent rack is apparently a signal of great nutrition: This fellow (along with the harem of does he undoubtedly has) has been devastating Mom’s garden.
A couple of days ago, I was thrilled to find this guy on my driveway…a real live dung beetle! I had never seen one in the wild before. He’s very tiny, but he’s got his shit together.
I also took this picture of a very scary spider in the rafters of our barn. She only comes out in the evening and the light’s not very good. It may be a marbled orb weaver.
Excellent!
And… Today, whilst climbing a steepish hill on the bike, a roe deer crashed out of the hedge on the left and ran across the road about ten meters in front of me. I bet there’s another, I mused (this not being my first rodeo). Indeed there was, closer this time as I was moving (slowly) up the hill, Which close encounter was all very charming. Only later did it occur to me, if I had been going down the hill that would have been terrifying and extremely dangerous.
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Where are you? I didn’t know there were any dung beetles native to North America.
Indeed he does.
There are dung beetles found all over the U.S. (though of course our @Dung_Beetle is one of a kind!). Naturally they like to hang out where livestock do.
North Florida. I didn’t know we had them either!
If it’s late July in Maryland, purple passionflowers are blooming.
At the same spot, I also saw some American goldfinch in full breeding plumage, so it was a good day. Unfortunately no photos of the birds though.
Those are so awesome. Like, did Dr. Seuss create these flowers?
Around 90 species.
With (traditionally) massive numbers of bison it would be weird if we didn’t have them. My grandmother’s generation called them tumble-turds.
They always look fake to me, like they’re made of plastic. That they’re not always feels weird. They’re almost in the uncanny valley of flowers.
They truly are extraordinary plants.
And they are a native species in my area !
Forgot to update on Thursday, we saw a bald eagle soaring around above my inner-ring suburb. Don’t have any good pictures, but it was pretty clear what it was in person.
In the picture thread I thought that was a wild bergamot flower. Very pretty I don’t believe passion flowers would survive Michigan winters.
Today I saw, actually don’t know what it was I saw it moved so fast. Too big for a squirrel too agile for a woodchuck or raccoon, while it gave feline like attributes in a long tail and it’s low to ground slinking towards the den under the deck I really doubt it was a stray house cat. Coloring was mottled gray/brown, that tail was long and black tipped. Keeping an eye out for it. The den under the deck gets used by many species. This was a new one. IDK
Grey fox, perhaps?
Ears were not prominent, moved very close to the ground. It might’ve been a weasel!
Pine marten?
Elusive but a a rare possibility. And it’s also in the weasel family. At first my mind went to juvenile cougar, but DNR doesn’t think they are in the lower peninsula, I think they are here, but…
I hope I see the weasel faced critter again
Wednesday night, Mesa Verde Nat’l Park:
Gorgeous shot at one of my favorite places.
Holy crap. With all due respect.