After a rather cool start, summer here has turned hot and humid. Last weekend was an interesting variation in that it was cool at about 70 degrees, but the humidity was at the saturation point. Cool enough for long sleeves to protect against the mosquitos, but after walking 10 feet you are pretty much covered in sweat that ain’t going nowhere until you shower. Perfect conditions for a nice walk around a marsh out on the Cowles Bog trail. Pretty much everything that lives in a marsh loves these conditions so it is well worth putting up with a bit of misery to get out in nature for a bit.
Lots of purples, pinks and reds on the marsh this time of year. This arachnid is a Harvestman, not a daddy long legs. Nor is it a spider. One difference is that spiders have to liquify the innards of their prey in order to consume them, but Harvestmen can eat solid foods. The moisture coating all the leaves is not from rain, just condensation from the saturated air!It is always wise to look both left and right before crossing the leaf…This is a mosquito. Not the kind that bites and leaves itchy welts, but the kind that feeds off of nectar and acts as a pollinator. Unfortunately for this mosquito however, a perfectly camouflaged Crab Spider was lying in wait when it landed for a quick hit of nectar. The body and hind legs of the Crab are an almost perfect match for the color of the flower, but the two pair of massive reddish-brown forelegs running diagonal behind the mosquito are unmistakable. Of course the fact that the mosquito appears to be lying on its back, with its legs up in the air is a bit of a tip off that something is up. Is this Caterpillar a future Butterfly or Moth? My Caterpillar ID skills are not particularly good. What I do know is I love the red and yellow highlights on this one.
Oh yeah. I was covered in sweat and mosquito welts by the end of the hike, but it was worth it. Always is. Nature is awesome.
I am not really much of a birder, though pretty much everyone on the trail assumes that I am because I carry a full size camera with a big telephoto lens. While I will take the occasional bird shot, I much prefer the insects, arachnids, amphibians and reptiles to be found in and along the marshes of the Indiana Dunes.
As noted in another post, I think flies make great photographic subjects. They are quite fascinating when seen up close.The Crane Fly is a member of the fly family. Although it may appear scarier than the more common variety of fly, it is completely harmless. They cannot even bite as they have no mouth parts. Crane flys only live for a few days in their adult form, and they do not need to eat during this time.Not surprisingly, Butterflys are common in the wetlands areas. What is less common is to find three of them all hanging out together. In this case they appeared to be drinking at the muddy edge of the marsh. Two different species of Swallowtail.At first glance Weevils look like Beetles. But get close enough and you can see the long snout dominating the face which is characteristic of Weevil’s.Frogs, usually you hear them diving into the water as you approach, but you never see them. Occasionally one will sit nice and still long enough to get a good shot or two.I thought this was an interesting combination when I noticed them. Look just behind the frog and you will see a nice size Wolf spider. The two of them were just hanging out like a couple of buddies, though I am pretty sure that frogs are happy to eat a nice meaty spider like this one. Not the first time I have seen predator and prey sitting right next to one another peacefully. Another example of predator and prey coexisting, at least for the moment. I was observing the Daddy Longlegs when I saw the fly land right in front of it. I thought for sure I would have a chance to watch the arachnid attempt to snag a lunch on the fly, so to speak. But nope, they both sat there for a minute while I took some pics then the fly buzzed off.I love how snapping turtles look like scary prehistoric creatures. This time of year you can often find turtles on the trails and in the fields as they search for spots to lay their eggs or just relocate to another body of water. This is one of the smaller ones I have seen in the park, the shell was probably about 12″ long.Looks like it is time to go…
