It isn’t the most crisp praying mantis shot, and I had the ISO cranked way up, but I got a lot of background bokeh in this one that I liked. Did a little arty-farty Photoshop processing as well (that’s the technical term, right?).
I was fascinated by this big ol’ beetle in the garden today. It was wrestling with the carcass of a roly poly bug, moving it around, chewing on it, and maybe trying to bury it. It kept digging around in the dirt anyway. Honestly, I don’t know what it was doing…but check out those mandibles!
Can you stand another praying mantis photo? They won’t be around forever so I have to take advantage of them while they’re here. Especially when they’re posing like this.
He looks like he’s giving me the stink-eye, which may be because I accidentally gave him a shower when watering the garden tonight.
I spotted 6 little mantises out in the garden today. Four of them are hanging around on these morning glory vines. They’ve been there for awhile, so it must be a good spot.
There was a lot of organic pest control going on in the garden tonight. I thought the jumping spider eating a katydid was going to be my shot of the day, until I saw a baby mantis snacking on a big fly. It’s a jungle out there.
I’m instagramming it today folks – another cell phone shot. After hearing the alarming news about thousands of bumble bees dying in Oregon on Monday, the result of improper use of pesticides, I felt compelled to post another photo relating to Pollinator Week and the organizations that exist to protect bees and educate the public. We really depend on these little guys, more than most people realize. It will be a tragedy beyond measure if we lose them.
www.xerces.org
www.pollinator.org
This bee was in trouble; trying to fly, but couldn’t. Kept grooming itself like it was trying to clean something off. This isn’t the first time I’ve found a bee in this state. I don’t use poison in my garden, but I can’t control what happens beyond my property. It could be the effects of poison, parasites, or something else entirely. Sad to see.
Green leaf on green vine
Patient praying mantis waits
Dinner will come soon
Yes, the photo could be better, but it is what it is. I wanted to show how small the praying mantises (mantids?) in my garden currently are. This is a recently shed exoskeleton from a mantis that is probably about a month old at this point next to a US dime for size comparison.
