Garden Wildlife 2014

[johnralphcarpenter]

Not unless she is very, very small....

[Maggi Young]

How disappointing -  maybe a Ruby Tiger Moth  Phragmatobia fuliginosa , then? Lots of examples: https://www.google.com/search?q=Phragmatobia+fuliginosa+caterpillar&client=firefox-a&hs=LNH&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=sb&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=fLUkU5n2E4LRhAfg1YH4Bw&ved=0CCMQsAQ&biw=1137&bih=693&dpr=0.9

[Mark Griffiths]

my guess would be it's a member of the Tiger moth family, Arctiinae. Not sure but it looks a bit like a muslin moth.

http://ukmoths.org.uk/show.php?id=3463

 

[Mark Griffiths]

the Ruby tiger was the other one I was thinking about

[Anthony Darby]

May have to relocate this ♀ springbok mantis (Miomantis caffra) as I have finally monarch caterpillars on my swan plants and this is a voracious predator of these.

[Anne Repnow]

High drama!
A white crab spider (Thomisus onustus), lurking in one of my peonies, has grabbed hold of a bee and killed it.

This spider is an endangered species in Germany, so I suppose I should be glad it has found its way into my garden.

[Maggi Young]

High drama!
A white crab spider (Thomisus onustus), lurking in one of my peonies, has grabbed hold of a bee and killed it.

Crikey- a killer pearl !!

Imagine how much killing could be done by a whole pearl necklace.....

[Anne Repnow]

 
There are some ladies, to whom I would gladly present such a lovely necklace befitting their character...

What I find amazing is that these crab spiders can actually adapt their colour to the flower they lurk in.

[illingworth]

We spotted this ruffed grouse in full display mode from the kitchen window.  I went out and made my way through deep snow to where I thought he was heading.  He didn't seem perturbed by me at all, though he was quite aware.  He just kept walking towards me, displaying the whole time.

A surprise visitor to our bird feeders was an albino purple finch. It only stayed for one day.
Our son has a picture of a normal male here:
 https://www.flickr.com/photos/jamuudsen/300939435/in/photolist-sAoNX-811n8-gzH2u-9Qw6kQ-fyx2bp

 Spring hasn't yet arrived in northern Ontario, although within the week the snow should be gone. It is very late this year.

-Rob

[Maggi Young]

I do admire a fellow who takes a pride in his appearance  - The ruffled grouse fits the bill - he must win the best-dressed award, surely?
The albino finch is a beauty- thanks for the link to the "regular" version - so many great photos there - your whole family are terrific photographers 

[Steve Garvie]

Lovely image of this impressive grouse!!!

[Anne Repnow]

Wow, Rob, what a wonderful experience (and gorgeous photos!). Were there female grouse anywhere around? Or was he just practicing?

[illingworth]

Bolinopsis,  I don't think there were any females around at the time.  My speculation is that the  bird was  frustrated by our late spring and  his raging hormones.  - Rob

[Anne Repnow]

Frustrating, indeed. I hope for you and the grouse that it thaws soon!

Your flickr photos are treat. What an amazing amount of wildlife you have! (But I also liked Christopher Lloyd with his Dachshund...)

[ChrisB]

Just emptied a pot of bulbs and out popped a ball, rubbery and made up of tiny whitish eggs.  They look like they might be snail eggs but no sign of a snail in the vicinity.  The ball is the size of a table tennis ball, so it is quite big really.  Not had this happen before and never noticed how rubbery they are en mass.  Amazing.  So I'm off to put my foot on them...