Monday in Nature, 16 September 2019

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This raven buzzed us a few times while at Zabriskie Point in Death Valley last March. He fits my mood tonight, as we had a vehicle crash right in front of our home that resulted in the death of a 4-year-old boy. We, our neighbors, and the paramedics did everything in our power for him, but his injuries were simply too severe, and he moved on to eternity. Not sure why this one speaks to me this evening, but this is my offering. Please share yours.

Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillar

Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillar

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That caterpillar looks so unreal, especially the eye, almost like a cartoon figure. ;)

That caterpillar looks so unreal, especially the eye, almost like a cartoon figure. ;)

Yes! It's such a joy and privilege to see one. Sometimes life is stranger than fiction, isn't it. I read about it and planted a spicebush to see if I could have any luck and, sure enough it worked. Note that the cute eyes are fake and are there only to scare off predators. I have a series of photos of this guy. Another host plant for the spicebush butterfly is sassafras..Hwvr, I never saw them on the sassafras in my yard/garden/forest.- also, the sassafras are too high for easy observation.

Oh, another thing worth mentioning. I suspected whether the caterpillar recognized me. I checked on this guy everyday since the early instars. Then one day when I was out there a gorgeous spicebush swallowtail butterfly came by and kept "posing" for me. So I rushed indoor to get the camera and shot a series. On some of the shots I could see it was looking at the camera. Then I never saw it again. I was wondering whether it came to say hello ang goodbye. :)