The Vulgar Eclectic

Tag: nature

  • Red Milkweed Beetle

    I came across this red milkweed beetle (Tetraopes tetrophthalmus) while on a walk a few evenings ago. They are part of the milkweed ecosystem and not harmful to milkweed plants or monarch butterflies. The beetles are adapted to eat the milkweed plant, which is toxic to many species of animals. Because they ingest these toxins,…

  • Sixty years

  • The Arctic Prairies by Ernest Thompson Seton

    I just finished reading The Arctic Prairies (1911) by Ernest Thompson Seton. This memoir is an account of a six month journey by canoe Seton took into northern Canada in 1907. Seton was an artist, writer, and naturalist who undertook the trip in hopes of finding bison and caribou and, in his words, “the chances…

  • Eleodes armata, tree forts, and snowballs

    A while ago, I thought our little beetle friend in the terrarium, a beautiful Eleodes armata, must have died. I had watered the terrarium pretty thoroughly and this usually brought him out from his subterranean refuge. This time, however, he made no appearance. Inspecting the terrarium, I thought I saw a dark beetle carcase and…

  • A Walk in Spring

    I took a walk on this beautiful brisk, sunny first day of spring. It was so good to get out…it felt like a bit of an adventure, like how I used to spend many a day. I came across some interesting art… And some geese… And a wooly bear! And moss, sweet moss!

  • Took a Walk in the Dirty Rain

  • Bass

    First time I’ve ever caught a fish visiting family for the holidays here in the South. Ended up catching three more, with one of them being caught by my brother. The other three were sunfish varieties…two sun crackers and a bluegill (I think!).

  • Brumation finis (for now)

    Look who has emerged from several weeks of brumation! And he woke up hungry. I think he ate about 30 crickets and a few mealworms the first day we had live insects.

  • Little guy

  • A walk this morning