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Saturday, July 2, 2016

Friday's Hunt

Today I'm participating in Friday's Hunt, a themed post hosted by Eden Hills.

This week's categories are:  Starts with A, Week's Favourite, and Macro.

Starts with A
Here's one of the only things I don't really like about our new home.  ANTS!  In general, I don't particularly mind ants - they're part of a healthy ecosystem and they do a great job of keeping down other pest insects, aerating the soil, dispersing seed, and being a busy part of the soil recycling crew. However, these ants bite - painfully!  I believe they are thatching ants, which tend to be a species found in woodland areas.  They are known for being aggressive nest defenders.  I'll say!  Sometimes on my stroll along the driveway, I suddenly feel a sharp pain in my foot or ankle, and sure enough, there's an ant latched on to me.  I'm using borax bait to keep them somewhat at bay, but they are very plentiful here, and a bit of a nuisance.

Here they are farming a peony bud, as ants often do.


Week's Favourite
I had quite a few favourite shots this week, including my baby robin from earlier in the week, the robin's nest, my peony blooms, and yesterday's about my little treasures.  For this week's favourite that hasn't yet been blogged, I chose this shot of a tiny spider's web built on the side of an Astilbe flower spike.  I love the web detail and the fact that the vine arbour is in the background, giving the darkness that allows the web to shine.


I have quite a few Astilbe plants in this new garden and I don't know their colours yet, but I'm looking forward to finding out.  As it happens, my week's favourite also fits "Starts with A" and "Macro," but that wasn't planned!

Macro
Today, I took this macro shot of a foxglove in bloom.  I didn't know I had any foxglove plants, and this one is on a pile of gravel and grit in the backyard - not even in the proper garden.  Still, I love the pattern inside the bloom, the colours, and the fact that you can see the tiny hairs inside the blossoms, especially in the one on the upper right.   I also love the slight shimmer you can see on the side of the bloom to the upper left.

I also took this macro shot of a small butterfly which I believe is Poanes hobomok, commonly named the Hobomok Skipper.  I've submitted it to BAMONA and I'm awaiting confirmation of the ID.  I didn't even notice the other tiny bugs on the leaf until I downloaded the picture.  I love the way this shot captures the antenna and the long proboscis of the butterfly.


6 comments:

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

I particularly like your macro of the Foxglove and butterfly. Hope you have a lovely weekend.

brokenteepee said...

I don't much like ants either. I'm glad they don't bother me much around the farm. My brother was having an infestation while I was visiting in NJ.

Su-sieee! Mac said...

I'm with you about ants. I can't stand it when they come inside the house. I like how freckled the foxgloves are.

Tom said...

wonderful foxglove

Empty nester at last said...

I agree with you on ants. We have a problem with here in FL, called red ants, and they can bite!!! And your flowers are beautiful! Great shots.

Anonymous said...

Sorry to hear about the ants. I hope the borax helps. Love the spider web. With all the goats here, I hardly ever find a nice one to photograph. Love the foxglove. It's nice to see all the fun flowers you are finding at your new home. I'm loving that you are back to blogging! Thanks so much for joining in Friday's Hunt. Hope you have a great week!