ipicinsect

Exciting day in the neighborhood...of my back porch. (lol) We had a Cicada molting, and an all-red boxelder bug sighting - I've never seen that before. "Red" was pretty skittish, so I only got one good picture. And congratulations to arachnid mom! She's been living on my backdoor for awhile now. She mated, and her brood have hatched! They are in the process of beginning their journey into life... Sadly, I couldn't get better pictures without upsetting the nest, so I just took distance shots.

I was walking by my living room window when I saw a smear. I stopped and realized it was moving. So I grabbed my camera. I'm not sure what these babies are, but they just hatched.

Spider

So much life in one tiny plant...

So much life on one swaying stalk...

autumn is coming, I guess...

Found this poor guy while walking the dog. (It was cold out and he wasn't moving.) Does anyone know what this is?

The importance of pollinators...  

University of Bristol Scientists have a vision to help gardeners create pollinator paradises all over the UK. First they need your help so they can find out which garden plants provide the best sources of pollen and nectar for pollinating insects. This will enable them to advise gardeners and urban land managers on the best plants for pollinating insects. Insect pollinators are under threat but we can help them by planting flowers that provide good sources of pollen and nectar throughout the whole year

In a couple of weeks, many of us across the globe will be loosening our belts in anticipation of stuffing our faces with a delicious traditional Christmas dinner; a big ol’ slab of meat with all the trimmings. Most people probably say a hearty round of thank-you’s to the chef, and while they may have put in a lot of effort, there’s a whole bunch of silent workers out there that don’t get the recognition they deserve for helping make this meal possible: pollinators.

I think this is an assassin bug, though I've never seen one quite like this before. Thoughts?

Snail