Step back in time

I'm updating my spider presentation this morning and thought I'd add this photo that James took of me back in 2014 or '15. My tarantula friend and I are out at our rural land northwest of Blanco. One of my favorite pictures....

First hummer March 17

I took this (not-so-great) photo today from our dining room window. But I HEARD a hummingbird buzz by yesterday when I was standing inside our back door to the garage. Now all we need is RAIN! So far, this spring is DRY.

What Should I Plant?

I'm working on a new presentation! If you can, please join me Sunday, March 20, starting at 5:30 p.m. at the Gem of the Hills Community Center in Blanco. My presentation starts at 6. The event, which is free, is being hosted by the Blanco County Master Gardeners.

 

UPDATE: My presentation yesterday evening (March 20) went well at our Gem of the Hills Community Center. I have a lot of fun sharing about nature with anyone who will listen.

First daffodils LATE

These photos were taken March 5. In the past, these daffodils have started blooming in mid February. Lack of rainfall is setting everything back, I guess.

Ruby-crowned kinglet

This little fellow has been hanging out with us this winter and eating suet that we put out. He's a ruby-crowned kinglet (Corthylio calendula). A few days ago, he flitted to the window sill and displayed his ruby crown. I was close enough and fast enough to snag a few photos. What a character!

 

24 hours later

Wednesday, February 2, 2022, 12:30 p.m., 56 degrees

Thursday, February 3, 2022, 12:25 p.m., 25 degrees

WEIRD larvae

So what do you suppose THIS is?! Brad, a friend in Kerrville,  messaged me this photo and asked what it was. He was hoping it wasn't the dreaded hammerhead flatworm (Bipalium kewense). The odd-looking critter, less than an inch long, was in a cord of wood that he'd bought and was splitting into smaller logs. 

 

This grub was a mystery to me! So I had to call out the Big Guns. First I went to iNaturalist and incorrectly surmised that it might be a flat-headed root-borer beetle. Which doesn't even occur in the United States! Then I emailed biologist Sam Kieschnick, aka "sambiology" on iNaturalist. He's seen nearly everything in his iNat-ing travels. "Ew, gross," he wrote back. "A bark beetle larvae! It looks like of the buprestid larvae." Well, I'll be! I've found adult bark beetles in our gardens but not any larva. At least, not yet! Now I know what to watch out for.