Critters

Let's start with an assassin.  I have them in my yard and it's a good thing.  A terminator of bugs.

Meet:  The Assassin Bug


This creepy orange and black guy is OK to have in your garden.  On the Internet, this bug is said to be "sneaky, swift, vicious and deadly - as far as insects go."  Thankfully this "ninja" doesn't munch on humans or flowers.  Though, someone told me that they do bite.


They kill nasties in the garden.  (Unfortunately, they also kill lady bugs and caterpillars, which I'm not so keen about.)


I find them mostly on the passion vines and hibiscus plants in my gardens.






Next up - the Lady Killer

Meet:  The Lady Bug

They are great to have in your garden, because they control the pests/bug population in the garden without the need of chemicals.

They eat aphids, scales, mealy bugs, leaf hoppers, mites and other soft-bodied insects.

Look for them on hibiscus, roses and milkweed plants.  If you see a ladybug in your garden, be thankful!  They eat a lot of bugs and take care of your garden :)

If you buy ladybugs, don't release them until after there is no direct sunlight (late evening).  Ladybugs don't fly without the sun.  And once they are released (without sun), they won't fly away until they have consumed the bugs.  Workaholics!

(Oh and before releasing the ladybugs, water your garden so they have water to drink to wash down the bugs they eat :)




Next up - Romeo & Juliet

 Ok, I named two lizards.  They had a courtship going on in the backyard.  Romeo (to the left) was showing off and chasing Juliet (below).  It was cute.

I have friends that are freaked out by lizards, but I like them.

Not just for the looks, but they are wonderful in a garden too.  They eat bugs and are generally harmless (though they do bite, but not hard).

From what I gather, lizards keep the spider population down and if there's one thing I can't stand... it's spiders.  (*sigh, but I've heard spiders are good for the garden... creepers)

                                      


Next Up:  Frogs

A frog is a prince in the organic garden, just not one I'd recommend to kiss :)  I never had them in my garden until now.  They surprised the heck out of me  (there are two frogs) one very early morning.  I was watering the garden and two things started hopping around in the garden.  I just about jumped out of my skin.

I read that a person can't force a frog into a new environment and once it's there, you can't get rid of it.

The good thing about frogs is that they eat bugs and they eat slugs (bonus!).  We have slugs and that's nasty (especially given how my husband likes to walk barefoot outside in the morning... icky feeling to squish a slug.  Eww.)  So, go Frogs!

These aren't large frogs; they're kinda cute.  Being that I only see them super early in the morning, before the sunrises, it's a little difficult to get a picture of one.   I had to turn the flash on and it reflected off the frog's eyes.

Next Up:  Green June Beetles

I've probably had them every year, but never realized it.  Now that I'm gardening, I see more critters. It's a fun experience.  I saw the green june battle - ohhh, pretty!  It had an emerald velvet shine as it walked.

The reason I say the June beetle has been around is because June beetles have a fondness for ripe figs.  This bug was found walking under our fig tree.  I thought it was neat that when they fly at night, the flight resembles that of a bumble bee.

Unfortunately, for as pretty as it is... it's a turf grass pest.  The beetles burrow under the turf, which disfigures the grass.  In drought-stressed grass, damage can happen.

Next up:  Flight Masters, that is... Dragonflies

Ohhh, I love them.  Every time I see a dragonfly, I smile.  I can't help it.  They look so delicate, those transparent wings; it gives them an ethereal beauty.  Correction... Those incredibly STRONG transparent wings.

Dragonflies nab their prey out of the air!  They can grab bees in mid flight and can perch with their legs.. but they cannot walk.  So, you won't see them walking around on the ground looking for grub. No, it's a meal on the fly.  Fortunately, dragonflies are equipped with strong flying muscles and near 360 degree vision.  The "Dragon" portion of the name comes from the strong jaws to catch the prey.  the "fly" portion -  they are the world's fastest insects, capable of reaching speeds of up to 60 mph.

I read that "the presence and abundance of dragonflies can serve as an indicator of ecosystem quality."  Woot!  I've got 'em!

Here's a picture of one that was near my front door:

This next picture is almost impossible to see, but I took it and shared it on Facebook.  I thought it was a dragonfly, but I haven't seen this type before.  One of my friends was able to recognize it and sent me a link to identify it, which was correct.  Here's the picture:

Every time I tried to get closer to take a better picture, the above dragonfly moved, this was as good as I could get.  But I spent a lot of time looking at it, so I was able to recognize it in the link.  This is a female Common Whitetail dragonfly.  To see a better picture, click HERE and scroll to the last picture.



Next Up:  Slug (Yucko)

Googling only proves that there are no good reasons to have slugs in a garden.  They aren't helpful.  They eat leaves.  They are just gross looking.  And it's horrible to step barefoot on them!  EWWWWWW