Category Archives: Insects et al

Shelob and Frodo

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Wednesday, September 27, 2017,

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Dear reader, after two flowery posts of, well, flowers, I felt we needed something a bit grittier. Something to keep us all grounded. I never promised anyone a rose garden, or all Asters either. Beauty comes in all shapes, even gruesome ones. I came across this scene in one of the fields at Avalon Park and Preserve. I had just seen a mother Goldfinch feeding one of her fledglings and I was thinking that was a cool thing to see when Mother Nature presented me with another treat.

20170908093300 (1)-5x7wtww30 This spider and her prey put me in mind of Shelob, the spider from the Lord of the Rings story. For those of you who didn’t read the books or see the movies, Shelob is a monstrous spider that pretty much captures and eats anyone or anything that comes her way. She captures Frodo, one of the heroes of the story and then she…. She tells you to read the book ’cause it’s a great tale.

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Honeybee In A Bindweed Flower

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Thursday, September 7, 2017,

20170709090420-5x7awtww30This is a honeybee in a bind. A Bindweed Flower, that is. This flower looks remarkably like the Morning Glory which is a very close relation. First cousins, if you will. In fact a couple of people that I showed these pics to thought it was a Morning Glory. Luckily, I have a Master Gardener in my corner, the amazing Sue Avery, who makes most of my plant IDs. Without Sue, this post reads, “This is a bee in a white flower.” Sue is one of the folks that let me sound informed and somewhat interesting. It takes a whole team to accomplish this task and Sue is a key player on that team. Anytime I mention a plant or flower by name, it’s a safe bet that I’ve run it past Sue first. 

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