It’s been a long rainy spell and my plum trees have been waiting in full bloom for a warm day. I kept expecting them to lose their petals but despite sometimes heavy rains and occasional hail, they kept them. I think they’re like orchids. The flowers of most orchids can hold for weeks or even […]
bees
Posted inNews (NCJ)
HumBug: Beacon Islands on a Dreary Day
It was sunny when I went to get my hiking boots but by the time I got dressed and out the door, it was 49 degrees and drizzling. I went anyway. The path down to the river was dark, the only sounds were the gentle “pok, pok” of water dripping from branches. The burning in […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
HumBug: Rainy Day Critters
As the song says, “It’s raining again/ Oh no, it’s raining again.” So what does an entomological photographer do when it’s been raining for days and days? He gets wet. Today, taking stuff out to the compost, I noted the rosemary is blooming. At first I couldn’t see anything moving, then bit by little bit […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
HumBug: Return of the Zombies (and Everybody Else)
It is early April, and the world of insects is finally warming up. I’ve spotted more of the “zombie” flies, paralyzed by fungus, that were cropping up last year in early March (“Zombie Dung Flies,” March 1, 2015). I’ve seen a few snakeflies lately. These used to be included in the order Neuroptera with the lacewings […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
HumBug: Serendipity
Taking macro photos of insects in the wild is kind of like hunting. If everything goes well you find a subject, get the shot and bag your prey. Unlike deer hunting, you do not need to carry home a dead animal and dress it out in the garage, there is no season and, as of yet, […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
HumBug: Dandelions
In a recent exchange on an entomological Facebook page, someone urged me not to destroy the dandelions in my yard. I was told they are one of the first and most persistent sources of pollen and nectar for early emerging insects. The idea that the scourge of the lawnmower set could be so important amused […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
HumBug: Bee Alert!
Yesterday while working outside, I noticed a large black and yellow bee diligently working its way around the periphery of one of the many dandelions in my yard. I paused and took a picture of it to report to Bumblebee Watch. They are tracking various species of the genus Bombus, some of which are endangered. […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
HumBug: Don’t Worry, Bee Happy
With great alarm, many articles have informed us that honeybees are dying out in record numbers. The phenomenon is called Colony Collapse Disorder. There are numerous theories from over use of neo-nicitonieoids insecticides, GMO crops, mites, climatological stress and a combination of all of the above. Like a plague, it has wiped out many hives […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
HumBug: Solitary Wasps
Working in my garden, I noticed a small blue black wasp flicking its shiny wings as it dashed across the dirt, searching here and there. I can hazard a guess as to what it was looking for: a spider. Much has been written about the social wasps and their organization, diligence and sacrifice for the […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
HumBug: Mimics
Yesterday, when I went out to my backyard to admire a flowering cherry tree I felt like the big ape on the top of the Empire State building. Like an old biplane, something buzzed around and around me at a dizzying pace. A glimpse of the insect world’s most popular warning colors of black and […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Buzzed
Is the whole disappearing bees thing keeping you up at night? Did that M. Night Shyamalan movie make it worse? Arm yourself with knowledge. Busybodies from the Humboldt Beekeepers Association and the Natural History Museum in Arcata have teamed up with local beekeepers for Bee Friendly Days today through Sunday at Eureka Natural Foods from […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
Fieldbrook vs. the bears
The first night the bear came into Bob Smith’s back yard, in Fieldbrook, it tumbled a few of the small-time beekeeper’s hives. Flattened them and ate the honey and bee larvae. Then it moseyed over to Smiths’ neighbors’ houses, all within a mile or so of the Fieldbrook Family Market, and rumbled garbage cans, trampled […]