Do you enjoy visitors at your house? We certainly do. Family, friends, and critters are my favorite visitors 🙂
This afternoon Judy sent me this photo of a Black Swallowtail cat. Her question was do the cats shred their skins? And yes they sure do between every instar. In Judy’s photo you can see the skin directly under the cat. Additionally they shred their skin when the turning into a pupa. The skin that is shed is called an exuvia. Sometimes I will find a caterpillar’s skin in the wild. Thanks Judy for the question and the photo!
A Sleep Orange (Abaeis nicippe syn Eurema nicippe) on Texas Thistle! The Sleepy Orange has a summer and winter forms. Obviously this was the summer form. LOL
A Robber Fly caught a Potter/Mason Bee (Eumeninae)! BugGuide says there 1,040 Robber Fly species in North America. The Robber Flies prey on other insects in a perch and grab mode. Sounds like a flycatcher (the bird), eh.
My returning and always welcome visitor, the Ornate Box Turtle! Her first appearance at our house was September 2021. She visited twice last year in May and September. She didn’t have a name until now. Myrtle the turtle! Name origins are Greek and is associated with Venus. Myrtle is a plant associated with love, peace, fertility and youth. (https://nameberry.com/babyname/myrtle)
Shy at first!
Getting bolder.
A food offering! Fresh yummy cantaloupe from Vann’s Farm Produce in Forestburg.
Well Myrtle wanted nothing to do with me or the cantaloupe. Merrily she was on her way!
Hi Myrtle!!
We had a frequent visitor at the farm named mrytle too. She usually hung around all summer, for years. Maybe because i fed her. So cute.
Only Tommy takes food from us. All the others are like Myrtle…not interested. 🤷🏻♀️ Myrtle must be a poplar turtle name.😉🤣