I flipped a log over and found this fungus sprouting from a dead ant.
I haven't noticed this smaller toad here, before.
Appeared to be feeding on the caterpillar. Assuming carnivorous younger version of something. On the underside on wild grape leaves
On Tilia americana (219894458), eating Eriophyes tiliae galls (219894464).
This was wild. I'm used to seeing leaves eaten around the galls, avoiding them. But this cat was munching on a gall when I saw it. As I tried to get pix, it retreated under some webbing. I waited and came back to find that it had started on a fresh gall. Other galls showed damage as well.
I searched the plant and found another such caterpillar. It too was nestled under webbing and between galls, although I couldn't see feeding damage to the galls or the leaf there.
Net, I'm uncertain whether the caterpillar is preying on the gall-making organisms or simply eating the galls.
ID very tentative.
It had been a rainy/ drizzly day. With the rain at an end, lots of critters were out on the foliage. Possibly to dry out/ warm up.
This creature was so strange! It was killing me that I couldn't get the Raynox on it. But it was too far away behind a mass of poison ivy. Starting to think I should have waded in despite my cropped jeans.
ID tentative; help appreciated.
Seen on Wood Nettle (169717201) in a strip of woods beside a creek.
Aschiza is as far as I get with the fly guide. iNat has various guesses, mostly in Platypezidae but also in Pipunculidae. Platypezidae seems to be a better visual match so I'm living dangerously and putting it there for a starting place.
I'd never seen so much of this. It was al over!
The first time I've ever seen one perched! Still didn't get great shots, but so much better than when they're flying :D
On Common Pawpaw (195999179).
ID tentative.
This tiny wonder had me 99.999% convinced it was just a speck of scat - until I investigated a little too closely and it took off running!
Did the best I could on photos. It was seriously minute! I was also fighting partial shade which shifted with the breeze. And, of course, my extremely limited photography skills :D
One of many organisms found on an Oak tree (174811191). No sign of the host remains; apparently that isn't unusual.
Originally posted to Mushroom Observer on May 7, 2022.
This post is for the prey. Please help with this if you know what the prey actually is.
I was quite excited, thinking that the L. canis had nabbed a damselfly. (There's an 'Odonata - as prey' project; this might make an interesting addition.) Unfortunately, the robber was poorly placed for photography. I got what I could and tried to reposition, but the L. canis scrammed :(
When I uploaded the photos, something looked off with the 'damselfly'. I can't fit it to cranefly, either. Then I thought... no, a damselfly-mimic robber?!
There may not be enough for ID here, but any help would be appreciated.
O magnificent creature! And, thank God for creating it and letting me share it!
I never would have been there at that particular moment except for
Sometimes I really wonder about these things...
Really guessing here. ID help appreciated. Very hard to get good pix.
There was only a small patch of the filamentous stuff (here) and a large area of simpler stuff (162604929). Not sure whether they are the same or different.
I'd seen one earlier (161175434) but lost track of it while trying to photograph uncooperative dragonflies. Then these two flew in, fussed at each other a bit and did a little grooming before they settled down. Love it when they give a show :D
Find of the day!
This is my fourth mink (not counting tracks). My first was live, but vanished before I could get a photo. #2 & 3 found dead - roadkill and unknown cause.
3rd time lucky, no - took me 4!
It was squinting in the sunlight at first. I was getting such lousy photos, working against the light. But then it began to move. I thought I had startled it when it suddenly zipped out of sight. But it turned up again. It just
seemed to move very quickly! As it disappeared and reappeared, I missed all the best photo opportunities until it was really gone. But I got something :D
It's missing some fur on the back of its neck. Hope it's just losing its winter coat.
Easting some kind of small prey (152203201). Or, for this happy kestrel, fairly large prey I guess.
I saw a bird fly up into a tree and zoomed in. A bit surprised to see the kestrel. Couldn't really see what was going on, though. Somewhat far away (but closer that I usually see kestrels) and hard to get an unobstructed view.
I had been headed to an observation platform, and held up to get shots of the kestrel before moving closer. Definitely not expecting it to stay put, but it did. That made sense when was I finally able to see its prey; it wasn't going to risk losing that!
It was quite a windy day and the bird was fighting to keep its perch while dining.
My most interesting find of the day :)
I could not figure out what I was seeing in the field. I thought maybe it was carrying carrion (no pun intended). But it appeared to be trying to get it off... ?!
Blown up on the computer, it finally makes sense. I think this is the winner of a fight. It must have beheaded its opponent. But - its opponent's jaws are still locked on it's antenna! Sometimes two heads really are not better than one.
I wonder how this comes out.
Whether from that fight or others, this warrior has taken damage. It's missing parts of 2 legs (photo 2) and has a dent on the back of its head (photo 3).
Amazed to see this kestrel in hovercraft mode: flapping away and holding its position against the wind.
It flew off and I thought it was gone. Maybe, Idk. But I made another sighting (145943257) about 5 minutes later. Likely the same bird, but I can't be sure.
iNat's guessing all over. I followed some of them down and wasn't convinced, and hit a dead end.
Help appreciated.
iNat is pretty sure Tetrastichinae for some photos and Eulophidae for the rest.
Help appreciated.
I found a small willow (128071807) just covered in sawflies (128071806). On one leaf I noticed what I initially assumed was a baby stretch spider. But when I took a closer look, it took off and I realized it was a tiny wasp! Missed it!!
But I thought, hmmm, sawflies...
I hung around keeping an eye on the sawflies. Found a couple of caterpillars (128071809). Then I saw it - a teeny tiny wasp (128071814) on a sawfly! Did the best I could on photos. (It's a bit too small for my equipment and skill.)
Accepted iNat's pretty sure because it resembles ones found in that genus on BugGuide & iNat.
Help appreciated.
This sapling had so much cool stuff. Hikers kept passing me on their way out & back because I stayed there for so long. See
Not sure which one. Maybe M. bisaccata or M. stowei?
So incredibly excited when I found this on the underside of an Eastern Redbud (136983754) leaf. I immediately thought it might be a bolas spider. Kept trying not to get my hopes up.
Just had to get this one in & find out for sure.
Thanks to a tip from a friend, I got to see pelicans in Ohio!
ID tentative; improvement welcomed.
With some kind of leaf gall (134656965)
On Common Hackberry (133933134).
Eating a wasp (133933138) while an ant (133933140; photo 4) tried to scavenge another wasp (133933139) that the bug had killed.
I wondered how the assassin bug managed to get 2 wasps, apparently in a fairly short period of time. Could it have grabbed a mated pair? Between its natural green color and the way that it lurked where 2 leaves overlapped, it was well camouflaged. Uncomfortable with my attention, it retreated partway under the leaf but apparently couldn't pull the wasp under.
It's unclear whether the bug was done with the wasp which the ant was scavenging. A passerby asked me whether the bug would eat the ant, and I had to reply that I don't know. Surely it wouldn't drop the wasp it was eating, but once it was done... ? Having watched a group of ants overcome a different assassin bug (113186998), I'm not sure whether assassin bugs in general would consider the risk of going up against an ant worthwhile.
Help appreciated.
iNat is not 100% consistent on 'pretty sure' or suggestions, but the most common theme is Dewdrop Spiders, so I put it there as a starting place.
I do not know what to make of this. Never seen anything like it. The closest visual matches that I can find on BugGuide (452606, 92275) are sitting in 'Argyrodes/Faiditus/Neospintharus/Rhomphaea', not yet identified to genus or species since 2009/2010. I can't find a similar group taxon on iNat.
Those are mainly kleptoparasitic, but there was no other spider in the web. It was only about 6PM so I doubt this was cleaning up after its host had gone to bed. The only other thing in the web was a non-arachnid husk; old prey, I assume (photo 7). The web was in good condition, so if it had eaten the host that must have been recent. This spider moved around like it owned the place.
With a body length of about 4-5mm, the size was appropriate for Argyrodes. But so colorful!
Found in foliage close to a pond.
(Photo quality is mediocre, sorry. Best I could do with the small size, wind blowing the web and creating inconsistent glare/shade lighting, plus bad footing on an unstable slope. I know: excuses, excuses.)
I was trying (and failing miserably) to photograph dragonflies on the wing. Guess I'd been pretty still for awhile. Looked down to my left and found this cutie! Not something I expected to see there and out in the open.
I was afraid to take time to change my camera settings, so the shots aren't very good. But I was able to get several shots as it hunted around and even seemed to bask for a moment.
This tiny creature has elevated the frass tail to a work of art! I've never seen one so elaborate.
When I first saw it on the underside of a leaf (photo 4) I wondered if it was a moth or... ?
On some kind of Convolvulaceae (129375077)
Found on a wall near a light sheet. Couldn't figure out whether it was a moth or a fly. Lol, neither! Makes sense now
Cixius
I was crouched down, quietly trying to photograph odes. Then I realized there was a squirrel running towards me! When I turned the camera towards it, it decided to run away. Fortunately, it paused a moment for a couple of pix.
I think this is some sort of handsome fungus beetle but I'm not sure.
Baby Titmouse begging
Finally found one of these! Well, OK, I found one before (86370622) - being eaten by an L. canis. And this one landed right by me. But I noticed it! So I'm taking credit.
Lousy photos but I suspected it wasn't going to stay long enough for me to mess around with the Raynox. And I was right.
My diptera find of the day! A new one for me.
Had to skip ahead in my uploads to find out what this was. I still don't believe it.
Spotted this right away as I came into another area of the park. It was incredibly accommodating. Not just tolerating my presence, but quietly holding its ground when a ding-a-ling Blue Dasher (124207564) harassed it.
I struggle to believe finding a Jade here. But iNat is very consistent with its top suggestion for all photos. And it has the same laid-back attitude I saw when @jimlem introduced me to them at the odonata conference.
????!
Find of the day!!! Hard to get a clear shot; it mostly stayed in the grasses at the edge of the pond. When it strayed to the water, a Unicorn Clubtail (121059772) seemed to either be hunting it or driving it out of its territory.
I had no idea what it was, but had my fingers crossed that it might be something I hadn't seen before. Both excited and saddened to find it listed as imperiled in Ohio.
This little bird was trying to wean the cowbird chick (118863121) it was raising.
One lousy shot of it feeding the chick (photo 2), a better one of the chick begging (photo 3). and others of it standing hopefully by and even foraging a bit as the unwitting foster parent hunted and watched over it.
This really entertained me when I saw the pictures. It looks like the cormorant tells the grackle a joke (photo 2), then yuks it up (photo 3) while the grackle's expression shows that he was not amused.
(Anthropomorphizing, or course. And I cheated by reversing the actual order of the photos. But, fun 😁)
For the grackle: 118740409
Atypical thorax marking
Best guess ID. Help appreciated.
Posted to BugGuide in the hope of more info.
This was an exciting surprise. I was documenting galls (115041261) when I saw this tiny wasp. Pretty confident that she is parasitizing the galls! The way she distorts her abdomen is what I've seen before when some types of wasps deploy their ovipositors. She also works her abdomen side to side (see photos 2 & 3) as if she is drilling into the gall.
The gall that she chose is darker in color vs. the others. Possibly more mature? Idk.
She was very intent on her purpose and ignored me as I got close for photos. She's just too tiny for my equipment (Nikon P900 in shutter priority macro mode with a Raynox added on).
Location approximate. (The P1000 wasn't capturing GPS. Location based on data from photos taken with my trusty P900 on the same hike.)
Mind blown!
After never seeing one of these, I just saw my 2nd in as many days. At 2 different sites!
See 112480722 for prior observation. That one was at the top of a tree. I remember hunting for another - no luck - and wishing I could get better photos. Then today I see one on the bank of a creek, mudding in sunlight.
BAMONA said "forewing has inconspicuous metallic shading". And my previous observation has just a hint of patterning there.
But, whoa! This darling just shone. He answered some questions, too. I had wondered why some of iNat's photos showed a larger white patch with 2 dark lines in it. Oh, that's the ventral!
Babies seem to be doing well!
For background see 111054153 and linked observations.
I'm approximating the age as 4-5 weeks per this guide from the International Owl Center
These two beautiful birds were always near each other, except for hunting flights around the lake at Historic Canoa Ranch.
Idk whether the same individual seen twice, or whether there were 2 (or more) in the area. Different tree, anyway.
See also 108198249
I was looking for birds, reptiles, insects... then, squirrel! Literally, for once. Never seen one of these before (yes, just visiting), so very excited as you might guess from the number of pix.
I saw these little cuties earler with a Ring-necked duck (107681278). But I got better pix now. Just loved the way the sun shone thru the male's hood. There were 2 pair.
On (106471216) with (106471214).
iNat isn't able to give me meaningful suggestions,
Searching around for diseases of Purple Coneflowers, I find reference to "an eriophyid mite that causes the flower to develop lumps or bumps or leaf like structures growing out the side". (See link.) I also find references to "an eriophyid (family Eriophyidae) that has yet to be taxonomically categorized, so it has no scientific name or approved common name... generally referred to as the Coneflower Rosette Mite based on the damage that it causes to coneflowers". (See link.)
So I'm sticking it in Eriophyidae. Improvement welcomed.
This remains one of my favorite sightings ever. (Like you couldn't tell from how many pictures I included!)
I almost went right by a group of mallards (107344310), but something made me look again. There she was, quietly thinking mallard thoughts and projecting "nothing to see here... move along".
She seemed confident among the mallards and allowed me to approach. I moved slowly and quietly, staying behind the bushes, and paid attention to her attitude. And she let me get close enough for decent pix!
I can't find any more pix of her, although there must be some. I hope someday I find a missing chip with them.
I don't remember how many days she stayed. I do remember that after that day she arrived, she was diving and hunting. She stayed far out in the pond and didn't hang around with the mallards any more.
These photos span about 11 minutes.
The heron had caught a fish, but moved quite a ways before attempting to eat. (Photos 1-2.) Finding shallower water where its meal couldn't escape as easily if dropped?
A bit of tossing to get the fish positioned head-down (photo 3), then the process of forcing it down (#4-5). Photo 6 shows a big lump in the heron's neck! Then it's down (photo 7) and a little drink to follow (#8). The heron seemed to explore a little (photo 9) and then decided that the area was getting a little too busy and flew off (#10).
(I didn't post the fish as it was likely stocked and not naturally occurring.)
Such a lousy shot. But the only one that I was able to get.
There are things I feel like I will remember forever. At least, I hope so.
I was walking up a commercial sidestreet when I saw a killdeer crossing right-to-left ahead of me. Trying not to disturb it, I altered course to make a wide arc to my right away from it. At that, the bird suddenly reversed and came running back to the right. I stopped, wondering what was up - and spied movement to my right.
There they were; the most adorable little fluffballs! Their mom had been trying to draw me away from them.
Here, the mama.
For her precious babies: 106418619
There are things I feel like I will remember forever. At least, I hope so.
I was walking up a commercial sidestreet when I saw a killdeer crossing right-to-left ahead of me. Trying not to disturb it, I altered course to make a wide arc to my right away from it. At that, the bird suddenly reversed and came running back to the right. I stopped, wondering what was up - and spied movement to my right.
There they were; the most adorable little fluffballs! Their mom had been trying to draw me away from them.
Here, the babies.
For their mama: 106418618
(Not the greatest shots; I circled left and walked on a ways to give the family some space before turning to shoot from a distance. The sun was low and the shifting light challenged my limited skills. I didn't want to spend a lot of time stressing them, either.)
Two something-or-others seemed to be interacting, with one (or both) attacking or chasing the other off repeatedly. After watching and shooting pix for awhile, I believe that an L. canis was the aggressor, with the other individual a wasp. Idk whether the robber actually had ambitions to eat the wasp, hoped to steal any prey the wasp found, or simply wanted the wasp out of its territory.
Cool to watch, anyway. Here, the wasp. (Both seen in photo 2. Robber: 95210286.)
I thought that I was seeing the acarinarium full of mites in some shots, so I looked for the best match in Parancistrocerus. If wrong, please help.
Best guess ID. Improvement welcomed.
On 105588902
ID is a guess; please treat it as a starting place only. Help appreciated.
iNat is pretty sure Pachodynerus. Idk. I do know that there are other Eumeninae with red coloring. And I wasn't able to get much on this wasp.
Couldn't get a focused frontal shot, but I included the blurry one to establish face color.
Ambiguous ventral marking.
Best guess ID. Improvement welcomed.
On 105588902.
Love those crazy, curly antennae!
On Euthamia.
Best guess ID. Improvement welcomed.
I was entranced by this beautiful creature. And later, disappointed by its name!
It seems that our relationship with insects is based largely on our stomachs. I.e., does it threaten our food?
This moth needs a new name and an image makeover!
Thrilled to see one of these! It looked like a living gummy candy. So adorable; also hard to do justice to in a photo.
Even with its extreme cuteness, I still think it looks like a cartoon villain plotting something when it rises up with its legs pressed together.
On willow (105574020).
No way to tell how many individuals are represented by the photos from this date. Durn things didn't sit still!
At this location there are typically a lot of Palm Warblers and Myrtle Warblers. Sometimes more of one than the other. This was definitely a Palm hike.
(No, I didn't post every photo I took.)
Love the levitation effect! ✨
(Landing, I assume.)
On 104502321.
iNat is pretty sure Halictus, so I'm probably wrong. But... furry fovea !? And I can't convince myself that the basal vein is 'strongly arched'.
If it's Andrena, there seem to be limited late fliers. Of the observations I found for Ohio, this seems the best match. And the food plant fits. So, I'm going with it.
Improvement welcomed.
I was intrigued by the splotch on the right side of the scutum. Maybe just dirt, or could it be a parasite? It certainly has dimension. (See photo 5.)
Help me out here, because it looks like a male fragile nabbed a female eastern...?
Found this guy newly emerged, over time the wings unfurled and the color changed from reddish-brown to black. The little yellow halteres were wiggling constantly the whole time. It probably took about four hours to turn dark after we found it, but the following morning it was still in the same area just hanging out.
Found on a rock on the beach of a creek.
iNat is pretty sure Sphaeroceridae. I'm not confident. If the 1st hind tarsomere is thickened, it's not by much.
Going thru the fly guide, I'm tempted by Helcomyzidae. But that would just be a guess.
I think.
Although I have seen this species before, I wasn't able to get decent pix this time.
I was visiting family, out on a deck 1 story off the ground and looking up into a tree at the edge of a woods. Saw a blob on a leaf and thought 'I should look at that'. Oh yes indeed!
The angles I could get were limited by the width of the deck, and my camera showed its usual frustrating preference for leaves.
When I've seen these before, they've been between 4" and about 7' off the ground. Of course, I wouldn't ordinarily be looking this high, or able to see it even this well.
Naturally, I tried to drag my relatives out to see it. They were unimpressed. Maybe I was switched at birth?
Found on jack-o-lantern mushrooms (Omphalotus illudens) not far from a carcass on which I had seen a few of them. This one wasn't running around crazed with excitement over all the tasty maggots.
I love you, crazy-eyed little flies!
Not the ones I came looking for that day, but very satisfying to find. I've only seen this species once before, and didn't get good shots then. There were 2 mated pair on this plant!
Maybe it was the cooler weather, maybe it was because they were mating, Idk. But they stayed put and let me get lots of photos!
On 98766190.