I applied for a research assistant job in the arctic this year and I am wailing and crying and shitting because I won't know if I even got an interview until the end of february. please give me a lucky organism, I want to go to Nunavut so so bad. I want to lick a rock from a place where trees are basically physically incapable of growing. I want to take a selfie of me soyjack pointing at a seal. I want to Hold a Bird because that's what the job is. pray for me

String identified: a a ac atat t actc t a a a ag a cg a ttg ca 't gt a t t t a. a g a c ga, at t g t at a. at t c a c a ac t a aca ca caa gg. at t ta a ac tg at a a. at t a ca tat' at t . a

Closest match: Vanessa atalanta genome assembly, chromosome: 12 Common name: Red admiral

Insects in the garden. Värmland, Sweden (September 3, 2015).

there were SO many caterpillars

All found in Cedar Lake Gardens, FL; if the last one can’t be ID’d no worries, I was following it for ages just to get the photo so it’s not the best shot 😅

Great group of children! The first and second photos show a forest tent caterpillar and a tussock moth caterpillar in the genus Orgyia, probably a fir tussock moth, Orgyia detrita. Third photo is another forest tent caterpillar and the moth is a geometer moth, but I don't recognize the species. Last dude is a red admiral!

Red Admiral on Wild Plum

The scent of wild plum blossoms is a tonic that invigorates all the senses.

Red Admiral on catmint

Red Admiral. The English year. Autumn and Winter. 1913.

Internet Archive

There is this red admiral outside who has claimed a tree in the front yard as his territory and it’s so fun to watch him diligently patrol the area and chase out any other butterfly that DARES wander into his domain. So I’ve decided to make a short post about territorial butterflies!

Most people do not think of butterflies as staying in one place or being territorial, but, as I’ve learned, a lot of them are. So much so, that there are MOTH SCARECROWS to discourage moths from claiming gardens as territory and having their mates lay eggs in them. And the fact that they work is VERY funny to me.

Instead of fighting other butterflies, a territorial butterfly will chase any intruders out, flying erratically in an attempt to confuse whoever they’re chasing. Butterflies can’t really defend their perch using physical aggression, and I personally didn’t really get the chasing until I saw it happen. Yeah, a butterfly flying at you like that would probably scare you if you were another butterfly and didn’t want to be chased around by an angry guard with a two inch wingspan.

I’ve also learned that if a butterfly is chased out of his OWN perch, the intruder can CAPTURE the territory for himself, which is pretty great.

God I love butterflies.

It is still summer

Red Admiral butterfly

he drew this

Bug of the Day

Ok, thanks for voting everyone, here is a delicious big and spiky boi from the yard.

This is the caterpillar of a red admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta). I have this horrible patch of nettles I have been trying to get rid of for years, suddenly this summer it was chock full of leaves that were all curled up, but I couldn't check what was inside because...nettles. Luckily after much stalking, I found this one big caterpillar in the process of tying up a leaf the other night, and the mystery was revealed!

Red admiral/amiralfjäril/Vanessa atalanta. Värmland, Sweden (October 1, 2023).

@sarnie-for-varney submitted: Some more cool guys I've seen lately! I especially love the scalloped oak moth! And as well as this, say hi to Gary! An African land snail:

Hello Gary, I love you, Gary! I also love the scalloped oak moth especially :)

Red Admiral Butterfly

Nature’s magic delights the senses.

A Red Admiral rests a bit, at the edge of a bog. 

good morning Admiral One of the first Red Admiral's of the year. We saw several in one day, April 18th. Crazy they can handle the cold temps of Spring...and good thing the giant butterbur likes the cold ground too. Nature is cool