FOWLER’S TOAD – IUCN Conservation Status: LEAST CONCERN Fowler’s toads have black and yellow eyes The photo of this fowler’s toad is courtesy of my dog, Landon. While Jill and I were hiking at Indian and Celina Lakes in southern Indiana, this little frog caught the eye of our dog. Once the frog stopped hopping, […]
WHEEL BUG – IUCN Conservation Status: INSUFFICIENT DATA They sink their proboscis into the prey and inject a paralyzing enzyme This photo is of wheel bug nymphs in the first instar stages. They go through five instar stages before becoming adults. Here, they can be seen with the egg cases that they hatch from in […]
WOLF SPIDER – IUCN Conservation Status: INSUFFICIENT DATA They lay more than 100 eggs Have you ever seen a spookier looking insect?! This wolf spider is carrying its recently hatched young on its back! When I first saw this spider on the trail at Indian and Celina Lakes in southern Indiana, I thought I was […]
CAROLINA GRASSHOPPER – IUCN Conservation Status: INSUFFICIENT DATA I got this photo just in time! I first saw this insect at the beginning of the summer. As I was working in my garden, it startled me when it flew into the air with an erratic leap. I of course hadn’t seen the grasshopper because it […]
BROWN-SHADED GRAY MOTH – IUCN Conservation Status: DATA INSUFFICIENT This isn’t the world’s most exciting photo Look closely, and you can see the brown-shaded gray moth in the center of this photo. It was almost perfectly blended in with the tree. I surprisingly took this photo with a super-telephoto lens that my brother and I […]
GREAT BLUE HERON – IUCN Conservation Status: LEAST CONCERN Great blue herons nest in trees! To me great blue herons are one of the most elegant birds. From my observations, they can sit absolutely still for hours while they hunt in the shallow water for fish. I enjoy looking at any wildlife that I go […]
EASTERN TENT CATERPILLAR – IUCN Conservation Status: DATA DEFFICIENT “How will I ever find the camouflaged animals?” I asked I have to give credit for this photo to my cat. We occasionally take him outside on a leash, and he lead me right over to this tree. I bumped my head against a branch, and […]
SAY’S FIREFLY – IUCN Conservation Status: LEAST CONCERN Fireflies are bioluminescent, meaning they are able to light up At the end of June there was an explosion of fireflies in my backyard that cause me to take this photo. Some people call these bioluminescent creatures lightning bugs, while others call them fireflies. What’s great about […]
Moon – No Conservation Status In 2020 more than 10.1 million acres of land were burned in California At first, I had no idea that I was looking at a wildfire sunset when the sun caught my eye the night that I took this photo. It was the middle of September in Indiana, and it […]
EASTERN BOX TURTLE – IUCN Conservation Status: VULNERABLE Eastern box turtle populations are in decline The eastern box turtles population is in decline throughout the wold. I was lucky that I was able to see this species of turtle in one of the most western portions of its range. Jill and I were out for […]