The last comment I made about the Pacific Ambush Bug was that I hoped to see one ambush something before they all disappeared for the winter. Well, today my wish was fulfilled and more! The large patch of Tansy by the water storage tanks in Boyle Ravine was loaded with said bugs when I hiked through yesterday. I went back today and not only found one munch on a butterfly it had just killed but also found two pairs mating!
A few weeks ago I noticed no bugs on the Tansy, and the fact that it was a very aromatic plant led me to think it had some sort of bug repellant. I've got to revise that hypothesis. Today the Tansy patch was Bug Heaven.
Besides the Ambush Bugs, I saw several kinds of beetles (two longhorn types shown here), several kinds of butterflies, and a damselfly. Besides this nice variety of insects, I saw a Goldenrod Crab Spider nicely camouflaged on the Tansy. With this hot weather, I'm seeing a lot of late season mating. The one remaining bug I look forward to at this time of year is the Oak Treehopper. Photographed them September 9 last year, so they should be arriving on our Black Oaks any day now. Reports of their arrival would be appreciated. I want to get better photos and watch their behavior a bit longer than I did last year.
Don't forget, you can click on any photo for a much closer view and a caption.
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