This place is hopping, part one

Here in Houston we've been having a bit of rain recently (to put it mildly).  As a result, the woodland near my apartment became more of a wetland.  Not only did puddles appear all around, but so did plenty of frogs and toads ready to take advantage of them.  There isn't much action in the video below, but you can hear the calls of several eastern narrow-mouthed toads (Gastrophryne carolinensis) competing to attract mates.

Many frogs and toads had apparently already been successful in attracting mates, as the puddles were swarming with tadpoles of various shapes and sizes.

The trail through the woodland -- turned into a tadpole spawning ground.

The puddles were also excellent breeding grounds for mosquitoes, so I hoped that the tadpoles were feasting on all the mosquito larvae.

One of the larger tadpoles.

Meanwhile, some other animals proved to be better at coping with the new landscape than might have been expected.

A spider walks across one of the plethoric puddles.

Congratulations, you survived! (A Father's Day sentiment)

For crab spiders, becoming a father is a perilous endeavor that involves a lengthy search culminating in a cautious approach to an uncertain ending. While on a walk this Father's Day, I spotted a would-be father that had been insufficiently cautious.

A female Mecaphesa sp. crab spider eating a male.

Whether or not that male crab spider had succeeded in becoming a father, it had succeeded in becoming a meal and was indirectly nourishing a new generation of crab spiders.

A spiderling on another flower.

So, even if human fatherhood has its trials, be glad you aren't a crab spider.

Brown and blue, part two

During my flower-filled and mosquito-ridden walk in Poland, I saw a number of "blue" butterflies that were in fact mostly brown.  I found these butterflies congregating around several species of plants (mostly legumes) that appeared to be the hosts for the butterflies' larvae.

A female blue butterfly (either Plebejus argus or P. idas) sitting on a potential host plant.

However, the brown "blues" were not the only butterflies attracted to these plants.  There were also many butterflies with a similar size and wing pattern -- but notably bluer wings.

The male blue is similar to the female on the underside of the wings.

When the wings are closed (as above), the difference is relatively minor; yet, when the wings are open, there is a striking difference between the brown (see here) and the blue types.

Unlike the females, the males have very blue tops to their wings.

What is the relationship between the brown and blue butterflies?  Despite their distinct colorations, the butterflies belong to the same species, either Plebejus argus or P. idas.  These species, and several other related species, are sexually dimorphic -- meaning that the females and males differ in their appearances.  In this case, the females are brown and the males are blue.  A possible explanation for this pattern is that the females are under pressure to be inconspicuous to avoid the notice of predators, whereas the males are under pressure to be showy to attract the interest of potential mates.

March of the larvae, continued

The masses of beetle larvae were not the first to infest the grey alders (Alnus incana) this year.  Nearly as soon as the leaves had appeared in April, large numbers of bluish black beetles appeared on them.

Alder leaf beetles (Agelastica alni) feeding on grey alder (Alnus incana) leaves in April.

These alder leaf beetles (Agelastica alni) spent their time consuming large portions of the leaves -- and mating.

Alder leaf beetles mating.

By mid May, some of the female beetles had eaten so much that their elytra (wing covers) no longer fit over their abdomens.

A female alder leaf beetle in May.

These greatly enlarged females must have then gone on to lay numerous eggs, producing the legions of larvae that would be responsible for even more damage to the grey alder leaves.

The cautious suitor

For a male crab spider, wooing a female can be a risky undertaking with potentially lethal consequences.  Therefore, it is understandable that the male Misumena vatia in this video takes its time and keeps its distance from the much larger female.  But will the male finally commit itself, or will it get eight "cold feet"?

It's a spider eat spider world

Sometimes I find that I am not alone in my search for female crab spiders.  Male crab spiders are also roaming from flower to flower to find the ones where females sit in ambush.  In fact, twice --that I noticed-- male Misumena vatia climbed up onto me, as if they also recognized our common goal.  (To put it mildly, I do not appreciate this behavior; nevertheless, I did manage to remove the spiders gently in both cases.)

Like females, male crab spiders will hunt on flowers (see this post).  However, when seeking out a mate, male crab spiders may no longer be a threat to other flower visitors.  The male Misumena vatia in the pictures below stepped right over a foraging bee and continued on its way.

A male Misumena vatia walks right over a small bee.

In contrast, female crab spiders are unlikely to pass up a chance for a meal -- even if that meal is the male who just came to mate.

A female Mecaphesa sp. eats what looks like a male Mecaphesa sp.