Hoverfly on Asian Dayflower
You’re going to have to get down on your knees to look for some of the beautiful little wildlife creatures that visit your garden. You won’t be disappointed by what you can discover. I’ve been enjoying the tiniest moths, small butterflies, crab spiders and some very interesting cats disguised as decaying petals.
Emerald Wavy Lined Moth cat on Rudbeckia fugida
What a surprise to see a waving petal and realize it wasn’t the breeze, but, a small inchworm caterpillar covered in bits of petal. The Emerald Wavy Lined Moth caterpillar has developed a marvelous camouflage to protect it from prey. It’s welcome to stay in the garden, there’s plenty of Susans to share.
Southern Crimson Moth
The Southern Crimson Moth has settled into the garden after arriving here on salvia last spring. It’s shape and voracious appetite has given rise to the nickname Stealth Chompers. This moth is a new resident in Middle Tennessee, hailing from Texas. Clay and Limestone is the second location in Nashville where it’s been officially reported being seen. We are excited and plant annual salvia for it to feed upon. It’s a pretty little moth, it’s welcome to stay, but please leave my Salvia azurea alone!
One of my very favorite of the little visitors has been keeping me company since early spring. The Hoverfly, some gardeners know it as flowerfly, but I prefer hoverfly. You’ll know it immediately when you see it hovering over the flowering plants in your garden. It’s not very big and darts so quickly that you’ll need to move carefully to capture them sunning on a leaf or nectaring on a flower. Almost all have black and yellow bands on their abdomens which confuses them with bees and wasps… An evolutionary steer clear survival technique that works well for them!
Hoverfly on Goldenrod
We want this bug in our gardens! It’s a fantastic little pollinator and the offspring consume those pesky aphids that want to suck the life out of our plants. The female hoverfly lays eggs next to an aphid colony and when they hatch they begin to dine on the colony. I’ve not seen the larva~but, it’s a small maggot with a yellow stripe. Not an attractive sound, but, remember, it eats aphids!
So get your camera and head out into the garden to discover the beautiful little wildlife that’s living there.
Gail Eichelberger of Clay and Limestone has a beautiful wildlife garden in middle Tennessee.
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About Gail Eichelberger
That Southern Crimson Moth, is so pretty! We don’t have them around here, but I definitely have hoverflies. I like to watch them on the Sweet Alyssum.
They are very cool. I noticed they were flying around some especially beautiful Salvia “Coral Nymph’ at a nursery~I am now convinced they have been moved here from growers in warmer southern states.
Gail Eichelberger recently posted..its easy to forget the all right when eyes see only the all wrong
The moth is a beauty, Gail, even if it has Salvia on its mind for dinner! The hoverflies are precious little creatures. All are welcome here as well.
Frances
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Frances, I dearly love those little garden visitors~and as you say they are very welcome.
Gail Eichelberger recently posted..its easy to forget the all right when eyes see only the all wrong
Yikes! Another great gardening blog added to my reading list. I love the concept and it’s nice to see some familiar faces. I’ll be back!
Becky, Thank you. I’m so glad you enjoy the posts. It’s a delightful group of gardeners with whom to be associated…I feel honored to be a part of this blog.
Gail Eichelberger recently posted..its easy to forget the all right when eyes see only the all wrong
Even though you are across the country, I definitely feel a kinship with your blog. I make all sorts of wildlife and bug habitat in my professional life, but haven’t had a chance until very recently to start bringing the little creatures to my own house. A hummingbird feeder doesn’t seem to really count.
Your insect post is an inspiration and a good kick in the pants for me to keep moving forward with my own personal wildlife and insect habitat.
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Thank you~Kind words and deeply appreciated. I look forward to reading about your garden and the critters you’ll be discovering! gail
Gail Eichelberger recently posted..its easy to forget the all right when eyes see only the all wrong
*laugh* I gotta confess, my first inclination was not “Yay, bug!” it was “Aaaaaugh! Asiatic dayflower! KILL IT WITH FIRE!” Gorgeous plant, but a noxious invasive through the mid-Atlantic…I’ve fought it myself. Not treasured memories.
I love the hoverflies, though! We get yellowjacket hoverflies down here, which are gigantic and scared the crap out of me the first time I encountered one–it took a couple of encounters for me to realize that the terrifyingly buzzy thing had fly eyes and no apparent stinger.
I so love the critter that I showed the photo~but, I know they are terribly invasive. A dear gardening friend and designer says that Nashville should change its motto from “Music City USA” to “Invasives Are Us” let me assure you thatthe dayflower was ripped out after I took the photo!
Yeah for the hoverfly! They really are some of the handiest little dudes. You’re right, Gail…the beautiful wildlife garden is worth getting down closer to the earth and viewing. Even if it’s hard for my creaky knees to get back up!
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