So much is happening now it very hard to pick just one subject. 🙂 However, I managed to pick one today. LOL.
Down in a sandy gully I found the Missouri Violet (Viola missouriensis)!
Furthermore some were open for business!
What a hairy throat!
A Common Checkered-skipper stopped for a sip at the smaller violet cousin, the Johnny-jump-ups (Viola bicolor).
Here I removed one petal to get a better look at the hairs.
The non-native Common Chickweed (Stellaria media) has hairs on the leaf margins and on the pistil.
The Tiny Bluets are having their moment now!
There are six species listed in FNCT. However here in North Texas this species is the most common, Houstonia pusilla.
Less common will be the Houstonia rosea. It also has a range of colors like H. pusilla. The obvious different are the hairs in the throat.
Fuzzy or a hairy cocoon of unknown insect left in the open on overwintering dead plant stalk.
A crinkled winged sulphur butterfly (Coliadinae) was not able to pump its wings up fully.
Sure looks hairy up close, eh! The hairs are modified scales that are flatten longer hairs. Unlike the shorter scales on the wings.
Daddy Longlegs Have Been Hiding Extra Eyes From Us
Keep looking!
The more you know, the more you see and the more you see, the more you know
Speaking of daddy legs can you tell me why they sometimes bunch up in a group? Interesting about the eyes.
That is something I have wondered about too, but I googled it and found….Why Does It Look Like This National Park Building in Alaska Is Sprouting Hair? https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/why-do-daddy-longlegs-cluster-together
I keep trying to find H rosea up here around the neighborhood and no luck yet!