Pretty Little Visitor

  Early this morning, the garden was in dire need of a bit of water.  As I was doing my best to save the plants, I caught sight of something in the window of the living room. Well, now this needed to be investigated.  The hose was attached to the sprinkler and I dragged the ladder to the window.  Since our house sits about three feet above the ground and I am quite short, that ladder is used often.  Once I was up almost to the top rung of the step ladder, I realized that it was a moot point.  What I thought was a critter stuck between the window screen and the actual window was really inside the house!  Down the ladder I went.

  Inside, I gently pulled back the curtain to find a beautiful adult antlion!  These thing always give me a thrill as I rarely see them.  "Oh, my!  Little one, you cannot stay in here."  After a few photos, I eased my hand next to the antlion and it readily climbed aboard.  Well, that was easy.  Slowly, ever so slowly, I made my way to the door.  I surely did not want to frighten the poor thing so it took flight.  Adult antlions are rather delicate creatures and catching it while the creature fluttered about could injure it.  Still, it needed to be outside.  So..the door was opened and I stepped outside.  The critter stayed put on my hand.  "Ok, you can go now!  Fly away!  You are free!"  Nope.  The bug did not want to leave my hand.  Finally, after much coaxing and a gentle nudge, the sweet antlion took off in its whirlygig type flight.  It flew to the eaves of the house and landed.  

  This antlion is known as a Glenurus gratus or Tree-dwelling Antlion.  The common name comes from the fact that the larvae live in nooks of trees instead of making funnel-shaped traps in sand.  The larvae eat ants and other critters that climb about in trees while the adults feast mainly on caterpillars and aphids.  This adult antlion is one of my favorites because I rarely get to see an insect with pink wing tips!  The pretty little visitor does need to stay outside, however!

Not A Dragonfly!

  The threat of a tropical storm hitting the Bayou has come and gone.  Things got a bit squally but that was about it which was good for us.  Others to our west are not faring so well.  Our damage was nothing more than losing a few boards off the pier and sustaining a bad case of cabin fever.  I took advantage of every break in the torrential rains to slip outside to "breathe" and poke around a bit.  All of this staying inside has my brain in a constant state of perplexity.  I needed to roam...so I did.  I, also, got soaking wet and had to change clothes six times today but it was well worth all of the laundry! 

  Down along the marsh edge, the waters flooded in and kept things interesting.  Critters of all sorts kept surprising me by scurrying out of my way.  At one point, what appeared to be a small dragonfly of some sort landed on my arm.  It fluttered haplessly against the wind so I figured the poor thing needed the resting spot.  It is in my nature to help critters of all kinds so I  tried to shelter it from the rain and wind.  Once we (the critter and I) made it to the greenhouse, things were a bit calmer and I actually had a chance to look at my hitchhiker.  This was not a dragonfly nor a damselfly!  I had picked up the adult version of an antlion!

  Antlions spend most of their time in the larvae state.  Around here, they can be found in sandy areas.  It is easy to recognize their presence as they make "funnel" traps to catch prey.  The larva creates a funnel-shaped divot in the sand and when an ant wanders in, the antlion flicks sand up the side to create an avalanche.  The sliding sand sends the ant right into the jaws of the antlion!  Once the larva turns into an adult, it is rarely seen since it is a nocturnal creature.  I happened upon this one in the late evening.  

  After admiring the critter, I released it under the edge of the Little Bayou House where it could be sheltered until its wings gained strength and the weather settled down a bit.  Tonight, the antlion adult will take flight in search of a mate.  

 

Tree-dwelling Antlions!

Have you ever noticed how trees are so full of life?  Not only is the tree itself a living thing, it plays host to so many other beings!  We see the squirrels and birds that scamper and flit about on the limbs but there are many unseen critters that dwell in the trees.  If you are lucky, sometimes one of these unseen critters will move just enough to be noticed.  On Friday morning, a slight movement caught my eye.  Then...nothing!  I began to think that I imagined the motion.  Easing closer to the old hickory tree gave me a much better view.  Still...nothing!  I scanned the area where I thought I had seen something but only saw bark.  I was just about to give up when my eye caught a glimpse of pink.  Pink?   Tree bark is not pink.  I focused my eyes on the rosy color and was surprised to see a most unusual bug!  This looked a lot like a damselfly but...well, different! 

 

Always keeping my trusty camera in hand, I took numerous pictures of the critter.  It stayed in one spot which was most helpful in the photographing!  For almost thirty minutes, I stayed by the old hickory tree.  I suppose my brother, who lives next door, thought I had grown quite fond of this tree. He was cutting his grass all the while I sat and stared at the tree trunk!  The insect stayed put other than flexing its wings every now and again!

After heading inside, I researched all of the insect books.  I looked for dragonflies, damselflies and mayflies but for the life of me, could not find anything that resembled my bug!  I resorted to the computer!  There I posted a picture asking if anyone recognized the bug.  One of my son's friends was most helpful!  Jacob Porter quickly found the answer!  He informed me that this insect was not a damselfly at all but rather the adult form of an antlion!  The true name is one of those unpronounceable scientific names...Glenurus Gratus.  I have always associated antlions with those tiny funnel-shaped holes in the sandy areas around the house.  When I read about the G. Gratus, I was surprised to find that although it is an antlion, the larva is a tree-dweller! I had no idea!  This was truly one of those unseen tree-dwelling critters!  

I marveled over my find!  The beauty of the adult with its red body and pink and black wings was enough to keep me interested but to know that there are antlions living high up in the trees truly fascinated me!  Jacob was great about finding the identity of my critter and even offered to help me with any future unknowns!  I am quite sure that I will be calling on him again in the near future as now my interest has been piqued!  Bugs beware!  I am out to photograph you all!  (Hint..hint..Hubby....a macro lens would sure come in handy!)

Thank you, Jacob, for your insect identifying skills!