Temperature: 73°Humidity: 50%
Cloudy
Cloudy
Todays walk was cut extremely short due to the outrageous mosquito problem. Seriously, I have always been a tough girl who felt that a few bug bites were really not that big of a deal. I give up! I am going to break down and actually buy some mosquito repellent. Maybe then I can take a walk without flailing my arms and scaring all of the animals away.
Because of the shortened walk, my time spent outside was fairly uneventful. I did see two things worth noting.
First, I came across an insect that I haven't seen before. As of right now, I have not identified it. It was definitely an insect (six legs, antenna). The body look very ant-like but much larger. It had long wings. Its head, abdomen, and wings were all a shiny black but its thorax was a reddish-orange color. The most identifiable part of its body was a single long tail (think mayfly larvae). It looks exactly like a master blister beetle (Lytta magister) except it has a tail and its colors are reversed. Finding insects you don't already have a name for is really hard on the internet. Who knows why it is?
Second, I spotted "The Elusive Butterfly" again. You would think I would walk with a camera or a notebook to get the finer details of what I see, but to be honest, I feel that not taking those items helps to sharpen my memory and observation skills. Case in point... this butterfly. I saw a dozen of them my first week here. When I got back to my desk I remembered that they were mainly brown with orange at the bottom (from the dorsal view point). Well, I couldn't find it in any guide books. The rangers were stumped. Over the next few days I started to notice more details. It was in fact black, not brown with orange. It had a very specific spot pattern on the edges of the wings. I was beginning to suspect it was a black swallow tail (Papilio) but I wasn't sure which one! Today I looked VERY closely as it flew over my head. It most definitely has the distinctive swallow tail shaped wings, so I am on the right track. Is it a male eastern swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes asterius) like the one pictured above? Maybe. I just haven't seen any blue between the yellow spots. However, that does vary......
Because of the shortened walk, my time spent outside was fairly uneventful. I did see two things worth noting.
First, I came across an insect that I haven't seen before. As of right now, I have not identified it. It was definitely an insect (six legs, antenna). The body look very ant-like but much larger. It had long wings. Its head, abdomen, and wings were all a shiny black but its thorax was a reddish-orange color. The most identifiable part of its body was a single long tail (think mayfly larvae). It looks exactly like a master blister beetle (Lytta magister) except it has a tail and its colors are reversed. Finding insects you don't already have a name for is really hard on the internet. Who knows why it is?
Second, I spotted "The Elusive Butterfly" again. You would think I would walk with a camera or a notebook to get the finer details of what I see, but to be honest, I feel that not taking those items helps to sharpen my memory and observation skills. Case in point... this butterfly. I saw a dozen of them my first week here. When I got back to my desk I remembered that they were mainly brown with orange at the bottom (from the dorsal view point). Well, I couldn't find it in any guide books. The rangers were stumped. Over the next few days I started to notice more details. It was in fact black, not brown with orange. It had a very specific spot pattern on the edges of the wings. I was beginning to suspect it was a black swallow tail (Papilio) but I wasn't sure which one! Today I looked VERY closely as it flew over my head. It most definitely has the distinctive swallow tail shaped wings, so I am on the right track. Is it a male eastern swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes asterius) like the one pictured above? Maybe. I just haven't seen any blue between the yellow spots. However, that does vary......
Picture found at: Digital Images
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