Unknown caterpillars munching their way thru the tenderest of spring growth.
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April 2016
A rainy day along the FL Gulf Coast, over 2.5 inches of rain since the night before, so it's a great day to publish a Daily Bucket. Spring started in late February and at this point, all the trees are leafed out with vibrant, tender new leaves. Green is the dominant color, and so many shades of green.
One of the first trees to flower is Redbud, leaves follow soon after. No idea what munched its way thru this small Redbud sapling but I see this happen every spring.
Hickories are the last tree to leaf out and I see a lot of variability in those around my house - most in late March; one in the sideyard was last week. There are 2 Hickory species local to my area and I always struggled trying to tell Pignut from Mockernut but once I took the time to understand the scientific names - what tomentosa and glabra actually mean - ID became easy. Just look at the buds, hairy or not hairy.
Lots of young Hickory saplings - these are closer to the ground and leaf out sooner than the full-grown trees. The big trees are gorgeous now but soon the tent caterpillars will hatch and gather together before denuding whole branches.
Here's a tree that doesn't belong around here but knowing that it is a host to Giant Swallowtail caterpillars, it gets a bye. I doubt that this citrus ever produces fruit but almost every leaf has been munched at some point.
A few days ago I got to watch a pair of Giants mating; he actually fluttered by me with her attached before landing nearby. Several times a day I'll see a butterfly hovering around and touching leaves over and over to lay eggs. The one thing I have not seen is the birdpoop-looking caterpillar.
The succulent green and the perfect leaves don’t last long around here but that is a good thing I reckon. The various caterpillars are a prime food source for nesting birds, wasps and bees. Of course I could do without the cabbage loopers eating thru the garden brassicas and any day now I expect to see tomato hornworms. Well it’s almost 9 so I better wrap this up and get it published. See y'all in the comments!
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