I went to the swamp again this am because I needed to get home and do some yard work so took the short ride. It was a pleasant morning and only a few folks came by. My first subject was an Amanita but it is really not anything special. My second was this neat little sawfly larva hungrily munching away. It is impressive watching them eat so methodically. Across the leaf then start back and then start from the beginning then back again. Similar to how I eat corn on the cob.
On the way back out I was treated to a Great Blue Heron in a dead tree. Not a cloud in the sky. It preened for 45 minutes before flying off to go fishing. Must have got hungry going after all those nits. I really shouldn’t have stayed so long, but I don’t get these opportunities all that often.
-
Recent Posts
-
Join 1,288 other subscribers
Meta
Stephen Gingold Nature Photography Blog 
The sawflhy larva is kinda pretty. Very white in color and stands out like a sore thumb. I really like the great blue heron perched in the dead or mostly dead tree. 🙂 I’m still laughing about the post that you did not so long ago.
LikeLike
Thanks, Yvonne. I noticed the sawfly larvae from quite a distance…yes they do stand out. What helps is that I exposed for the white of the larva and that allowed the background to underexpose just a bit. I am afraid that the tree is beyond even Miracle Max’s considerable powers. 🙂
LikeLike
Yes, indeed it is waaaay dead but I just remembered the mostly dead tid bit from one of your posts. I used to say pretty much dead and now it’s “mostly dead.” Because of the drought here I am finding some plants in the far reaches of my yard that are “mostly dead.” So now I am watering live oaks and some of the natives that I don’t want to lose.
LikeLike
I hope you get some rain soon, Yvonne. Just some and not so much at one time that it floods like in other places.
LikeLike
Lucky you too have these opportunities. And I want to see your amanita mushroom, they are usually so nice to see, red one? We are all eating like the larva maybe? 😉 Nature: the best! (as you know)
LikeLike
Thanks, Bente. Yes, I do appreciate the good fortune to have these opportunities present themselves.
No, it is a plain brownish fungus…I think var. formosa maybe. Sometimes they pop up in my yard but not lately. I will post it then and maybe a couple of others from other days. I have never seen the red muscaria here. I wish I did.
LikeLike
You have to stay when you get the chance. There must be some symbolism in the dead tree.
LikeLike
I can’t come up with any, Lyle. But I did notice that the branches look like antlers.
LikeLike
A productive outing, Steve and this shot of Mr. GBH (Grevious Bodily Harm as it would be in Britain) looks a lot better than the FB rendering – who on earth would want to steal our photos after FB has butchered them? This looks as if it might have been shot on film although I know it wasn’t – eye candy for the bird togs.
LikeLike
Thanks very much, Andrew. Yeah, you would think that if FB wants to steal our images they would at least render them well enough to make it worth the theft. Another reason to post there less often.
LikeLike
I loved your description of sawfly larva eating, I shall think of you and the sawfly next time I tackle a corn on the cob! The heron is magnificent, Steve. The blue sky makes a perfect backdrop for the tree and preening bird. Beautiful.
LikeLike
Thanks, Lottie. The heron will be making a return appearance shortly, but not the sawfly. Maybe I should challenge the sawfly to a corn eating contest. While it eats much faster than I, my bites are larger and you never know…the competition could disappear in a huge munch.. 🙂
LikeLike