a little wild   (a small slice of wildlife)

Trashline orb weaver, Cyclosa conica.

Unidentified flying flies.

Leucauge venusta baby.

A change of seasons to spring: maple blossom on leaf litter.

Eustala sp.

Scolytini, “Typical bark beetle”

In the lake, near the outlet, there was a little whirlpool.  I took a small time exposure, facing into the sun a bit, so the reflection of the sun went on a reel.

Not a good photo, but a spring stonefly, Nemouridae?

Even the experts were unclear as to what this fly is.

Muscidae, maybe Muscina, according to the experts.  Why is it not Calliphoridae? “Shallow bend to median (M) vein. It is more acute in nearly all Calliphoridae. Also general gestalt. I can’t really think of a calliphorid that has this exact color pattern.”

Enoclerus nigripes:

Perhaps Linyphiidae, Eregoninae, Erigone?  Verdict is that Eregoninae is correct, but genus requires more details (genitals).

Glischrochilus cf. fasciatus (Nitidulidae — Sap feeding beetles).  This species is also called the Picnic beetle, or more amusingly, the Beer beetle, because they love beer and other fermentation.

Nitidulidae, near Carpophilus.

Andrena.  “Male Andrena sp. (note the “furrows” on the inside margin of the eyes. Would be flat if not convex in Colletes).”

Wood gnat.  Anisopodidae, Sylvicola cf alternatus.  Maybe S. fenestralis instead?

Spherical head, and time of year, apparently suggest Scathophagidae as a possibility.

EDIT: Could be Haliplidae or Hydrophilidae instead of Dystiscidae, I guess.

Dytiscid beetle

Dytiscid beetle larva

Mosquito larva with bonus Collembola in the upper right.

Some interesting patterns in the icicles outside our window: the small things in life matter.

Going through some old photos, thought there was something in this photo that could be cropped and salvaged into a snap worth sharing.

A foggy day.  I wanted to get to the lookout point to photograph the fog effects, but unfortunately didn’t time it right — I didn’t want the gates to get locked with my car still inside.  So I ended up with more water droplet images than I planned.

Snow, yay!  It was especially crystalline today, which makes it a good day for closeups.

Snow crystals on spider web.

The winter stoneflies were everywhere!  It was wonderful seeing them.

You might already know: I can’t stop taking photos of this panorama.

And you may already know that I can’t stop taking long exposure photos of the stream.

I was expecting the winter stoneflies, but wasn’t expecting…the winter midges.  The family Orthocladiinae was suggested.

A wonderful walk, as always, to a magical place.

It’s a little sobering how little I have explored of Sharon’s trail system.  I pushed a little bit today, going up to Greeley Pond in the King Phillip’s Cave area, and was happy for the walk on a nice crisp December afternoon and evening.

The long shadows and subdued hues of this season lend themselves well to black and white photos.  You may see plenty of them in this set!

I take a lot of this photos of this particular stand of bark and undergrowth, hoping to capture the impact.

This burnt log had moss growing on it, and the green on black was irresistible.

Late afternoon winter light:

A little pond freezing:

The encroach of winter:

We get a Nor’easter tomorrow, so today was a chance to see some of the fall colors before the leaves fall off.  A double shot: Moose Hill Mass Audubon, and Devil’s Rock.  Moose Hill first.

There was a nice frost:

Now, Devil’s Rock.