Marbled Oak Dagger (Acronicta Marmorata) + Wing Detail Closeups

the leafhoppers are back 🥰

Erythronerua acuticephala

Erythroneura calycula

Erythroneura infuscata

Common Coral Slime (Ceratiomyxa fruticulosa), taken July 25, 2024, in Georgia, US

The most common slime mold in my area! This particular colony lives in a rotting tree trunk and has a bloom of fruiting bodies if it rains hard enough, always in the same spot. I find slime molds fascinating—they're just so weird and unique! Under a macro lens like this, they look like something from an alien planet!

Snake-headed Flatworm (Rhynchodemus sylvaticus), taken March 21, 2025, in Georgia, US

Takes your worm on a string and makes it SLIMY and BALD!!!!

Look at him. I love him. I showed him to my friend and was told he is pathetic, but that is just not the case. This is the ideal life form. With this, "would you love me if I was a worm" takes on a whole new meaning. Of course I would love you if you became this. With your stupid long nose and little light-sensing eyes. Perfect!!

Toothy Skink (Genus Plestiodon), taken April 18, 2025, in Georgia, US

A cute skink licking its lips after snacking on a tasty worm! I happened to look out the window while preparing to go outside just in time to see this lizard eating a big worm on the bank of my koi pond. After eating, it slowly slunk away into the grass. Despite there being lots of worms, this is a bit of a dangerous place to hunt, seeing as a watersnake is currently living at the pond!

Red-shouldered Hawks (Buteo lineatus), adult (top) and juvenile (bottom), taken March 7, 2025, in Georgia, US

More hawk news... It seems as though one of the juveniles was able to chase the other out of this area and has staked a claim on the woods here. I've been seeing the red-tailed hawks less, and today the victorious juvenile showed up with a partner who already has adult plumage! I haven't seen adults here in at least a couple years, so this is a good sign that these two will be nesting this spring. It's fairly unusual for a hawk without adult plumage to be breeding, but definitely not unheard of and can still result in a successful brood!

The adult hawk was not happy with me taking pictures and flew to a further branch when I went outside. As usual, the juvenile was much more tolerant of my presence (likely used to my dumb ass at this point) and let me get closer before the adult called for it. It then joined the adult in a tree where they began calling together. Hopefully they nest somewhere close enough that I can monitor their progress. I'd love to see their babies once they fledge!

American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), taken May 20, 2025, in Georgia, US

A lovely crow yelling back to their partner who sits a few branches away. These two flew overhead and stayed a while to (I assume) yell about me from the trees. I think they were sandwiched between me on the ground and a hawk circling a little ways off behind them, and they clearly had a lot to say about it! They circled around above me a few times before continuing in the direction they were headed, and after they left the hawk started yelling instead. You can never have quiet in the woods!

Turquoise Bluets (Enallagma divagans), teneral (top) and adult (bottom), taken April 13, 2025, in Georgia, US

A couple lifer damselflies from yesterday! I actually initially thought they were different species because I didn't see the black stripe on the top individual immediately. The difference in their coloration is due to the top individual being teneral, a term referring to any arthropod who has recently molted and not had time to harden their exoskeleton. In almost every case, teneral individuals are much paler than more developed ones. In comparison to the fully-formed adult below it, this damselfly is nearly colorless! You can see some blue beginning to develop, but it's mostly metallic brown and lacks black venation on the wings. Soon, its new exoskeleton will dry, and it will be beautiful and blue like the others!

Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus), juvenile male, taken February 24, 2025, in Georgia, US

I believe I am in love with this beautiful fucking bird!!! Despite how pretty the males are, I might prefer the appearance of the female RW blackbird more. The brown tones and subtle red on the face are just gorgeous. This juvenile male has a combination of both sexes' best traits—intricate browns as well as a vibrant orange patch on the wing! Hopefully I'll be able to get more pictures before all of the blackbirds are gone!

Coppery Leafhopper (Jikradia olitoria), female, taken August 24, 2024, in Georgia, US

Quite plain looking, but one of my favorite creatures in the life... This is a female leafhopper ovipositing (laying eggs) into the bark of an oak tree!

The ovipositors of Cicadomorphans (cicadas, leafhoppers, treehoppers, and spittlebugs) are reinforced with metals like manganese, zinc, and iron to make them strong enough to saw into bark, stems, and—in the cicada's case—straight into the woody branches of trees! These are some of my favorite insects, and J. olitoria is a local I've grown fond of seeing.

Here is the paper that goes into depth about the structure of the cicada ovipositor!

Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis), taken May 9, 2025, in Georgia, US

A lovely catbird getting a snack! This guy looked quite youthful, but I doubt he's a product of this spring. He was far too put together to be a juvenile, and you can tell he doesn't have a baby face. Perhaps this is his first nesting season!