Images

Sad, Sad, Sad. This is Virginia Bluebells, Mertensia virginica. Formerly common throughout the bottomlands of the Mid-Atlantic region. Now Bluebell land has more and more become Lesser Celandine land...and invader from the old world that simply wipes out the vernal communities of plants along streams and rivers.

Here we have the nest parasite of one of Puerto Rico's Centris bees. Its lays its eggs in the nests of the host, kills the hosts egg or young and eats the stores. Taxonomically its not clear what this species is but it appears to be close to (aff. = affiliated with) M. rufipes. Perhaps you, dear reader, will figure that out.

Here we have the nest parasite of one of Puerto Rico's Centris bees. Its lays its eggs in the nests of the host, kills the hosts egg or young and eats the stores. Taxonomically its not clear what this species is but it appears to be close to (aff. = affiliated with) M. rufipes. Perhaps you, dear reader, will figure that out.

Here we have the nest parasite of one of Puerto Rico's Centris bees. Its lays its eggs in the nests of the host, kills the hosts egg or young and eats the stores. Taxonomically its not clear what this species is but it appears to be close to (aff. = affiliated with) M. rufipes. Perhaps you, dear reader, will figure that out.

Here we have the nest parasite of one of Puerto Rico's Centris bees. Its lays its eggs in the nests of the host, kills the hosts egg or young and eats the stores. Taxonomically its not clear what this species is but it appears to be close to (aff. = affiliated with) M. rufipes. Perhaps you, dear reader, will figure that out.

Here we have the nest parasite of one of Puerto Rico's Centris bees. Its lays its eggs in the nests of the host, kills the hosts egg or young and eats the stores. Taxonomically its not clear what this species is but it appears to be close to (aff. = affiliated with) M. rufipes. Perhaps you, dear reader, will figure that out.

Here we have the nest parasite of one of Puerto Rico's Centris bees. Its lays its eggs in the nests of the host, kills the hosts egg or young and eats the stores. Taxonomically its not clear what this species is but it appears to be close to (aff. = affiliated with) M. rufipes. Perhaps you, dear reader, will figure that out.

Collected by Tim McMahon in Costa Rica, this is a nest parasite of Centris species, this is Mesoplia rufipes. Nicely aglow with red legs and a blue abdomen. Photo by Anders Croft.

Collected by Tim McMahon in Costa Rica, this is a nest parasite of Centris species, this is Mesoplia rufipes. Nicely aglow with red legs and a blue abdomen. Photo by Anders Croft.

Collected by Tim McMahon in Costa Rica, this is a nest parasite of Centris species, this is Mesoplia rufipes. Nicely aglow with red legs and a blue abdomen. Photo by Anders Croft.

Wasp species, It would appear to me to be a parasitic wasp, Anne Arundel County, MarylandIdentified as a probable Metopiinae by Bob Carlson of USDA

Early Saxifrage....this is not a flower I come across often or know anything about, but Helen Lowe Metzman found this flower in Howard County and took its picture in our lab. I am sure there are galaxies of stories and wonders about for this plant. I am just not privy to them.

Up close view of the head of a Chironomid Midge. What fun to see the magnificent antennae of something that is around us every day. Upper Marlboro, Maryland.

Well, most of the time I don't think our pictures resonate as much when desaturated, however, the previous uploaded midge seems to want that, so here it is.

Our disguised snap dragon the Square-stemmed Monkey Flower. Edges of woods, particularly if damp seems to be where I mostly find it. Collected and photographed by Helen Lowe Metzman.

The foot of the American Mink: Neovison vison. A lovely male freshly killed where a stream crosses the road in the progenitor of all suburbs: Bowie, Maryland. All sorts of things exist in these seeming wastelands.

The foot of the American Mink: Neovison vison. A lovely male freshly killed where a stream crosses the road in the progenitor of all suburbs: Bowie, Maryland. All sorts of things exist in these seeming wastelands.

The foot of the American Mink: Neovison vison. A lovely male freshly killed where a stream crosses the road in the progenitor of all suburbs: Bowie, Maryland. All sorts of things exist in these seeming wastelands.

The foot of the American Mink: Neovison vison. A lovely male freshly killed where a stream crosses the road in the progenitor of all suburbs: Bowie, Maryland. All sorts of things exist in these seeming wastelands.

This is a 10X detail of the wing of Mirina fenzeli, and odd moth from China. It is a plainish white moth but has a super dark spot (one edge is illustrated here) which sucks in almost all light (and therefore is hard to photograph) the scales are up right rather than flattened and the surround white scales are very dissected and spikey...cool.

The tiny twin whiteness of Partridgeberry blooms. Just part of that lovely obscure flora we have that paints some of our forest floors. I associate Mitchella repens with woods on the acid end of the scale in areas with a little slope and not a lot of competition with other plants. A hard one to take good shots with our set up ....too white....too much flash.