Red, Green and Blue

©2024 Karen Richards

There have been a few days in the upper 50’s here recently, and I’ve gotten out for a couple of insect walks. Above is a member of the dirt-colored seed bug family, but this little bug with the oversized forearms must be from a place with rusty or red dirt. It’s hard to tell, because the insect was in the shade when I took this photo and I had to boost the exposure, but it’s actually quite a bright red color. In spite of its impressive front legs and attractive color, I wasn’t able to find much information about the species, which I’m fairly sure is Gastrodes pacificus.

©2024 Karen Richards

The other day I found these two alder leaf beetles sitting next to one another, and no matter what angle I looked at them from, they were definitely two different colors. Sources describe the species as “metallic blue.” And it’s true, most of the ones I’ve seen are deep blue (although the color is difficult to photograph), but the Altica ambiens on the left above is most definitely green. It was cool to see the two shades of beetle side by side. In researching their color, I learned from a UK source here that females will have a coating of orange under their hardened wings when they are ready to lay eggs.

Enjoy your bonus (leap) day this week!

The day the cats came out to play

©2024 Karen Richards

Over the past several days, it’s been unseasonably warm, but cloudy. On my walks to local trails I found several types of insects, but they were all quite small, and dark colored. Today, it’s not as warm, but the sun is out, and as a result, I’ve seen a variety of more colorful insects. I’m going to focus on three caterpillars. I think they’re all in different genuses, if not families.

Above is the caterpillar of (I’m fairly certain) a Yellow Underwing. It’s the largest of the three larval moths in today’s post. The adults have colorful lower wings–but I’d label them more orange than yellow. The pattern of dashes on the side you see here is mirrored on the other.

©2024 Karen Richards

This straw-colored cat blended in with the yellowed grass it was sitting on. iNaturalist tags it as a Rununculus moth larva. The adults are brown, and have some attractive light brown, gray and even burnt orange patterning.

By the way, I was curious about the derivation of the word “caterpillar.” Most sources agree it comes from the old French for “hairy cat.” Nowhere have I found why the domestic feline is associated with a wormy larva, but I’m going to make a guess that it has to do with the cat’s tail.

Consider the catkin, the dangling flower cluster on many birches, alders and willows this time of year. The word “catkin” is understood to come from its resemblance to a cat or kitten tail. Why don’t sources make the link between a cat’s tail and a caterpillar? (Slight left turn for a tangent here: I saw a bird with a catkin in its mouth the other day, and originally took it, the catkin, for a caterpillar).

©2024 Karen Richards

This last caterpillar was tough to photograph. It’s the smallest of the three, it was squished down into the grass blade, and was in dappled lighting. I believe it’s some sort of armyworm, but I don’t have a reliable i.d.

Happy February!