With the monsoon storm patterns that come into Arizona come the bugs from Mexico and the surrounding area. Some of them are common while others are not so common.
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| For the introduction, the Iris oratoria mantis |
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| A Click beetle mimicing a bee |
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| A small tortise shell beetle |
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| An "Ankle-biter" mosquito - these are small yet really fast! |
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| Assassin bug nymph looking for bugs to eat |
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| Assassin bug adult awaiting some fast food |
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| A Mexican Bean Beetle found living in Tucson, Arizona |
Each insect that comes into my garden is interesting to me, and more so to my kids. When I was a child I love playing with bugs every opportunity that I got.
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| Wild Bee on my Mexican Sunflower |
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| A Camouflaged Grasshopper on the dirt and rocks |
I work hard to persuade my kids not to bother any beneficial insect but I am willing to let my children play with bugs that would prefer to chew up my little plants.
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| A Japanese Fruit or June beetle grub from my garden soil |
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| A Japanese Fruit or June Beetle |
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| A Rhinoceros Beetle |
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| A Yellow Crab Spider awaiting another bite to eat |
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| A female Iris oratoria nymph. Mantises prefer to hang around my flowers |
Due to last years hot summer, our mild winter and now another hot summer, we had insects galore here. We toss all of our grubs and other beasts to the chickens. They love a little protein based snacking. :) All the good guys get to stay.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the reply Rebecca and Tucker,
DeleteI've heard of people feeding grubs to their chickens. I'm sure its a great way to get more protien into their diet.
We are inundated with Japanese beetles this year with the drought. You probably had more rain than we have and our temps have been in the 90s for over 20 days. Feels like living in AZ almost...quite an assortment of insects. I love the crab siders and how they change colors.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reply, Donna.
DeleteI'm sorry to hear about the drought. It seems that the severe droughts move every year. Around here we are grateful for every drop of rain we get.