The night still twinkles with fireflies but the day’s heat lingers and the air has a dusty August scent, the smell of languid Summer.
~Hal Borland
We are definitely in the Dog Days of Summer, the heat and humidity making me rethink my desire to be out and about in the afternoon. But, it only takes a short walk to find beauty and mystery surviving, no, thriving, in the heat. Below are some scenes from the summer here in the woods.
Virginia Creeper Sphinx (aka Hog Sphinx), Darapsa myron (click photos to enlarge)I captured, transported, and released this sphinx moth here in the woods after finding it at our bank in Pittsboro, lured under the walkway by the lights at night. Urban (really, any) lights are a common cause for the demise of many a moth.A formidable-looking Wheel Bug, Arilus cristatus. This is a large member of the group of insects called Assassin Bugs, due to their predatory behavior. They grab prey (other insects) with their raptorial front legs, pierce them with that large rostrum (reddish beak under the head), inject a toxin with digestive enzymes, and then ingest the contents.Red-banded Leafhopper, Graphocephala coccinea.These tiny (~7mm) insects feed on the sap of leaves and can spread a bacterium that causes leaf scorch disease (Pierce’s disease) on some species of plants. They are excellent hoppers, with some believed to jump up to 40x their body length (a 6 ft human of equal ability could jump 240 feet!).A dark morph female Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Papilio glaucus. Females of this species can be either black or yellow.A male Eastern Tiger Swallowtail. Note that females (see picture above) are more colorful than males, having more blue along the hind wings.A group of Datana sp. caterpillars in their defensive posture (they exude distasteful chemicals from both ends)Datana sp. larvae typically are gregarious through most of their life stages. I guess if one tastes bad, a whole bunch must be a better deterrent.Another bad-tasting bunch-o’-bugs – nymphs of Large Milkweed Bugs, Oncopeltus fasciatus. I photographed a mating pair of adults on this milkweed plant on July 22 and this photo was taken on August 7. This species feeds on milkweed seeds by injecting saliva into the seed using their long rostrum, which predigests the seed so they can suck the contents back up. Female Yellow Garden Spider, Argiope aurantia. She has grown considerably since I last photographed her on July 22.And she has acquired a suitor. This male Yellow Garden Spider is in a web right behind that of the much larger female (you can see the tips of her legs on the left side of the photo)One of our more unusual-looking spiders, the bizarre Spined Micrathena, Micrathena gracilis. Females have a large bulbous abdomen adorned with spines. They are quite common in our woods in late summer.Another armored spider, the Spiny Orbweaver, Gasteracantha cancriformis. Females have a rotund body that is white to yellow in color. The abdomen is surrounded by six stout spines that can be red or black. Their webs have tufts of silk along some strands, supposedly making them visible to birds which will avoid flying through them (and me, to avoid getting them on my face with all the other spider webs along our trails).
Mike, (for some reason my comments have not been accepted for awhile, so glad this one works!) First, I thoroughly and vicariously enjoyed your trip across the country, culminating in your favorite place. You and Melissa had such incredible adventures, and the photos are fabulous. As a southerner who loves the west it was especially fun to see your scissor-tailed flycatcher encounters in the midwest. It happened to me on one of our trips west. I especially loved the photo of Melissa in the Nebraska grasslands. Of course, summer back in NC is pretty different (as is how do you go outside when it’s so hot), but your critter-cam and closeup photo work is a delight. Your blog is a nice spot to visit, so keep it coming! Hope you guys are well.
Take care, Kathy
Roads End Naturalist 
Thank you so much. I am really enjoying your posts. Smiles on a very hot afternoon. 😍😎🐛🕸
Thank you.
Mike, (for some reason my comments have not been accepted for awhile, so glad this one works!) First, I thoroughly and vicariously enjoyed your trip across the country, culminating in your favorite place. You and Melissa had such incredible adventures, and the photos are fabulous. As a southerner who loves the west it was especially fun to see your scissor-tailed flycatcher encounters in the midwest. It happened to me on one of our trips west. I especially loved the photo of Melissa in the Nebraska grasslands. Of course, summer back in NC is pretty different (as is how do you go outside when it’s so hot), but your critter-cam and closeup photo work is a delight. Your blog is a nice spot to visit, so keep it coming! Hope you guys are well.
Take care, Kathy
Thank you, Kathy. Sorry you had trouble with adding comments, but hope that the issue is now fixed.