Interesting insects from 2011

I often review my photos at the end of the year and I found a few from last summer that I’d like to share.

How about this Grapevine Beetle (Pelidnota punctata)? I was surprised and delighted to know we had such a striking creature in our backyard.

I’ve seen several different skippers in the backyard. They are often referred to as LBBs (little brown butterflies) and are a challenge to identify. However, I plan to give it a try. I believe this one is a Pecks Skipper (Polites peckius).

The Green Lacewing (Chrysopidae family) is perhaps my very favorite insect. It’s a voracious predator of aphids and beneficial in any garden. I also think it quite beautiful.

Thanks to our native plants we have a wide variety of insects. The insects pollinate the plants, provide food for our birds, and give me considerable enjoyment. I like this quote by Edward O. Wilson. “Insects are the little things that run the world.” One of my goals for 2012 is to photograph and identify more of these interesting critters.