So I've been photographing critters and plants for the 2026 Texas Pollinator BioBlitz on iNaturalist. Silly me—I'll never make it again into the top five for "Most Observations" and "Most Species," which I did in the 2016 BioBlitz and 2017 BioBlitz. Because more and more people started getting in on the phone. Under 150 observers participated in 2016 and 2017. That number upped to more than 3,100 in 2018! So I gave up.
But I still have a little competitiveness left in me—I'm trying to stay in the top 100 for 2026 (more than 6,000 observers and counting!). Currently, I'm #82. But I'm sure I'll get bumped down because we'll be out of town for the last few days of the BioBlitz. Oh, well. There's always next year.
All that to say, yesterday while I was out hunting, I came across this odd insect. What the heck was it? Well, iNaturalist said Psorophora—a mosquito? Sure didn't look like the ones I swat. Which told me this had to be a male. I was right! Those hairy antennae enable him to "hear" females when they're swarming to mate. This article has information, if you want to learn more.
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