This fall I witnessed some amazing features of the praying mantis. They do indeed eat the head of some off their mates. The female mates more than ones. One behavior I never witnessed before is that they puff themselves up when faced with a predator.
This year four-o'clocks are bountiful and so are the sphinx moths which are well adapted to pollinate them.
Praying mantises abound this year. They move to the top of a plant when I water them..Fascinating prehistoric looking creatures they are sophisticated killing machines.
Just imagine collecting pollen in a mandala many times your size. Awesome!
Thanks to spring rains many wildflowers brighten the landscape.
Enjoy!
Thistles flowers are some of the first flowers to appear in the landscape. They attract many butterflies such as the monarch, skippers, and the various types of tiger swallowtail. My favorites!
A very unexpected and pleasant surprise! On the nite of Saturday 5/13 Kingston got doused with 1.15″ of rain. You can see the enlarged photographs by clicking on them.
A gate with lock and no trespassing sign has recently been installed in Kingston, blocking access to Forest Road 40E. Historic images of Middle Percha Creek show what lies beyond this gate.
A dreadful hike takes us to fairyland.
Enjoy!
During cold weather I love to walk along creeks to catch images of the infinite variations of the way water freezes.
Click on the images to enlarge them.