more bugs 'round the yard

So my new digital camera is awesome. I have yet to master all the settings and other cool things it does, but I will say this: the advertised 0.4" marco focus was a mistake on the wepage. Poo-pooh...it's still a good camera! Basically, I was looking for a newer, more powerful digital camera with more megapixels so that I could photograph bugs, amphibians & birds alike. Got it! While this IS a BUG blog....I will post only one picture of a bird here....just for demonstrational purposes.















Well, the first picture isn't of a bug afterall anyway! This stunning female black-and-yellow argiope, Argiope aurantia, was found at the UL Experimental Farm in Cade by my Dad, who also took some pictures of it (see http://www.rrikbeck.com/ for further details).














Above is a false bombardier beetle, Galerita bicolor that came into my light rig this past Saturday night. The rig...which is almost complete, has been named Optimus Prime. There were surprisingly good numbers of bugs given the crummy weather. Also of note was this (insert identification here, Zack) moth:


















The last two images will include a young Tricolored Heron (NOT bug) at the UL Farm and a moth sp., identified as xxx by Vernon Brou...thanks for the i.d.!