This is probably the earliest I have seen tiger beetles out and about…but they were out hunting this weekend in my backyard and I got a couple pictures of them.

Cedar Waxwings…

And young scots pine…

Tristan:

I am trying to figure out what is going on in this picture which shows wing expansion in a Conopid fly - do you have any idea what the structure on the head is?

That is an excellent photo and you found a fly that just eclosed from it’s pupal case. That structure is called the ptilinum, it aids the adult from breaking out of the pupal case. That structure is only used at the time of emergence from the puparium and is membranous sac that inflates and is pumped up with hemolymph using special muscles. After emerging, the fluid and the sac is retracted back in the head and the muscles degenerate.

You got to admit it, flies are pretty darn cool. Or I might just have an affinity towards them…

Well if sticky traps don’t fancy you…you can always invite a handsome jumping spider to the party.

But someone’s got to warn her that she can’t take the lazy way out and go for the flies already caught in the traps…

No worries though…she got out just fine.

Did a little birding this weekend. Not too many good pictures, but oh well, got outside all the same. I did 3 kinds of birding this weekend: marshes, hawk watching, and bird feeder watching.

From the marshes:
Maybe no one will notice I am not a Canada goose…

This “blue goose”, which is the blue morph of the snow goose, was the only one in this flock of Canada geese. They nest in the Arctic tundra.

Next, I got a nice glimpse of a blue-winged teal.

And a new bird for my list, ring-necked ducks.

Hawk watching:
I went up to Derby Hill, which I am told is one of the premier hawk watching spots in New York. When I got up there I spotted my first morning cloak butterfly of the season, though I don’t think anybody else noticed…

Nothing too impressive for the hawk watching yet, though it is a wee bit early. They should start really picking up in the next couple of weeks.

A red-tailed hawk

A red-shouldered hawk

And a ’sharpie’ or sharp-shinned hawk

Concerning other passerines, the blue birds are back…

And I had another first for my life list…a common redpole. Redpoles are an arctic finch that also nests in the tundra.

No one in particular has asked this question yet, though I have received a lot of emails from people asking how to control different insect pests in their homes. I figured some of you might be curious as to what I battle and how.

My own woes come from flies and those darn lady bird beetles that I am sure many of you wage war against in your own homes.

They have been EVERY WHERE in my house lately, driving me nuts, which is hard to do for someone who loves bugs. At first, I had just been ignoring them and letting them be. But it has gotten out of hand now…Im stepping on them, they are in the cat’s water bowl, UGH! Too much…

The one thing that almost anyone can tell you about insect behavior is that insects are attracted to light. For that reason, I went out and bought sticky traps that you place on your windows.

And what do you know…they work great! And, they only cost about a buck or so for a pack of 4. How do you beat that?

William asks:

My Friend and I were curious as to why bugs were getting smaller as time goes on. His theory was that the bugs required more oxygen as they pull it directly into their pores and that since the purity of oxygen has changed, they have gotten smaller as a result. I obviously disagree saying that standard evolution shows we get smaller and smarter as time progresses. Let me know what you think.

I had a post in the very beginning of this website that briefly touched on this question. There were several comments from different readers who offered other theories.

The reason I posted this question was to reopen the discussion for people to comment on. That way, you are not just getting my opinion, but hopefully others too.