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March and April 2009
Merchants Millpond State Park, Gates County, NC 4/29/09
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| Southern Pearly Eye | Green Treefrog | Ground Skink | Dog Tick | Northern Cricket Frog |
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| Tussock moth caterpillar (Dasychira genus, Lymantriidae family) |
Pettigrew State Park, NC 4/28/09
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| Web-spinning Sawfly (Onycholyda amplecta) | Peppered Jumping Spider | Ichneumonid wasp | Pearl Crescent | Concealer Moth (Mathildana newmanella). ID thanks to Bob Patterson. |
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| Longhorned Fairy Moth (Adela caeruleella) | Deer fly, caught while buzzing around my head. I later released it, although another that bit my leg was less fortunate. | Scorpion fly | Same scorpion fly, different view | Male Zabulon Skipper |
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| A true bug with exuvia from a recent molt stuck to a wing. It was able to fly away, however. | Flower crab spider | Snipe fly | Diurnal firefly (Ellychnia genus) | Elongate Orb Weaver with winged Eastern Subterranean Termite prey |
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| Redbelly Water Snake | Same Redbelly Water Snake. Photo by Karl D. Gottschalk |
Camden County (just north of Elizabeth City), NC 4/27/09
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| Fishfly, watching me? | Same fishfly, hiding (great camouflage!) |
Elizabeth City (downtown), Pasquotank County, NC 4/27/09
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| Wild roses |
Durham, NC 4/26/09
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| Seven-spotted Ladybug Beetle in mid-metamorphosis from larva to pupa; | Same beetle: cast-off skin is in focus. Note that the legs are holding this insect to a grass stalk. | Adult Seven-spotted Ladybug Beetle | Adult Convergent Ladybug Beetle |
Eno River State Park, Old Cole Mill Rd. access, Durham & Orange Counties 4/24/09
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| Velvet mite | Click beetle playing dead (the leaf twitched when I tried to hold it still, scaring beetle) | Jumping spider | Fowler's Toad. Photo by Karl D. Gottschalk | Tiny beetle (Hypebaeus genus, Melyridae family) |
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| Carolina Satyr | Ovenbird | Pink Wood-Sorrel | Crane Fly Orchid leaf (the last sign of winter around here!) | Yellow Buckeye flower |
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| Dwarf Iris. Photo by Karl D. Gottschalk. | Small wild azalea (Rhododendron genus). Photo by Karl D. Gottschalk. | Probably more Wild Azaleas (seen from across the Eno). Photo by Karl D. Gottschalk. | Large flower, about the size of an Atamasco Lily. Photo by Karl D. Gottschalk. | Field Cricket. Photo by Karl D. Gottschalk. |
Museum of Life and Science, Durham, NC 4/23/09
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| Carpenter Bee |
Penny's Bend Nature Preserve, Durham County, NC 4/22/09
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| Diurnal firefly beetle (probably Ellychnia genus). See other beetles. | Ichneumonid wasp | Female Bowl-and-doily spider | Pink Wood-Sorrel (Oxalis corymbosa). See wildflower pages: Wildflowers by Date within Flower Color or Wildflowers Organized by Taxonomy. |
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| Tulip Tree flowers and leaves | Green-and-gold | Honey Locust, a fearsome tree with many thorns | Golden Alexander | Lyre-leaved Sage (Salvia lyrata) |
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| Stonecrop (Sedum ternatum) flower | Stonecrop (Sedum ternatum) leaves | Grass Miner Moth (Antaeotricha genus, probably Schlaegeri species, Stenomatinae subfamily, Elachistidae family. ID thanks to John and Jane Balaban. This moth was ~5 mm long and looked like a bird dropping at first glance. | Cuckoo Bee (Nomada genus, Heminomada subgenus, most likely Imbricata species). ID thanks to John S. Ascher. |
Durham, NC 4/20/09
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| Asian Multi-colored Ladybug Beetles mating | Male Common Green Darner, in all of these photos, which suggests that forewing movement is independent of that of the hind wings, with varying speed of wing movement. Here, the Darner is hovering. See other dragonflies. | Here the hind wings seem to be doing all the work. | Lots of wing activity in general, all above the dragonfly. | Yet another variation. |
Johnston Mill Nature Preserve, Orange County, NC 4/18/09
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| Harvester | Bashful Wake Robin (Trillium catesbaei). See wildflower pages: Wildflowers by Date within Flower Color or Wildflowers Organized by Taxonomy. | Female Bowl-and-doily Spider | Orchard Spider with prey | ||
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| Rue Anemone | Male midge. See other flies. | Maybe a stonefly | Seedling |
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| Round-lobed Hepatica | Crane Fly Orchid leaf, starting to fade | Heartleaf Foamflower | Violet | Violet |
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| Jack-in-the-Pulpit | Asian Multi-colored Ladybug Beetle | Flower fly (Syrphus genus) | Clubtail. See other dragonflies. |
Durham, NC, 4/17/09
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| Two-lined Leatherwing Beetle | Toad Bug, which was hopping wildly on a walkway near a creek. | Bumble Flower Beetle, digging a hole. |
Lake Crabtree County Park, NC, 4/16/09
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| Dwarf Iris | Jack-in-the-Pulpit | Atamasco Lily | Male midge |
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| Eastern Box Turtle | Carolina Vetch (Vicia caroliniana) | Red-banded Hairstreak | Narrowleaf Blue-eyed Grass |
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| Carolina Cranesbill | Sweet Gum | Mayapple | Giant Chickweed | Rue Anemone |
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| Blue Star | Jack-in-the-Pulpit | Jack-in-the-Pulpit | Jack-in-the-Pulpit | Dwarf Dandelions |
American Tobacco Trail (Miles 4-6), Durham, NC, 4/13/09
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| March fly | Blister beetle (Lytta aenea) | March fly | Sassafras flowers | American Wisteria |
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| Black Cherry (Prunus serotina), American Tobacco Trail (miles 4-6), Durham, NC, 4/13/09. See wildflower pages: Wildflowers by Date and Color or Wildflowers Organized by Taxonomy. | Blackberry (Rubus genus), American Tobacco Trail (miles 4-6), Durham, NC, 4/13/09 | Vetch (Vicia sativa), American Tobacco Trail, Durham, NC, 4/13/09. | Vetch, American Tobacco Trail, Durham, NC, 4/13/09. |
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| Winter Cress (Barbarea verna), American Tobacco Trail (Miles 4-6), Durham, NC, 4/13/09 | Common Cornsalad (Valerianella locusta), American Tobacco Trail, Durham, NC, 4/13/09 | Coral Honeysuckle (Lonacera sempervirens), American Tobacco Trail (miles 4-6), Durham, NC, 4/13/09 | Big Periwinkle (Vinca major), American Tobacco Trail (miles 4-6), Durham, NC, 4/13/09 | Grass flowers, American Tobacco Trail (miles 4-6), Durham, NC, 4/13/09 |
Durham, NC 4/11/09
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| Two-lined Leatherwing Beetle | Bee | Large Bee Fly |
North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC 4/10/09
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| Green-and-gold (Chrysogonum virginianum), North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC, 4/10/09. See more wildflowers at Wildflowers Page. | Eastern Blue Phlox, North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC, 4/10/09 | Blueberry (Vaccinium genus) flowers, North Carolina Botanical Garden, 4/10/09 | Florida Azalea (Rhododendron austrinum), North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC, 4/10/09 | Hercules' Club (Aralia spinosa) |
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| Witch Alder (Fothergilla major), North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC, 4/10/09 | Fringed Bleeding Heart (Dicentra eximia), North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC, 4/10/09 | Wild Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC, 4/10/09 | Golden Alexander (Zizia aurea), North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC, 4/10/09 |
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| Spurge (Euphorbia genus), North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC, 4/10/09 | Red Buckeye (Aesculus pavia), North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC | Carolina Buckthorn (Frangula caroliniana), North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC, 4/10/09 | Heartleaf Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia), North Carolina Botanical Garden, Orange County, NC, 4/10/09 |
Durham, NC 4/9/09
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| Male Eastern Tailed Blue | Green Treefrog | Male march fly | Green Six-spotted Tiger Beetle (actually has 8 spots, also notice part of the wing sticking out). | Crane fly | Violet |
Durham, NC 4/5/09
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| Male March Fly (Bibio genus) | Tiny scarab beetle, caught while flying |
Occoneechee Mountain Natural Area, Orange County, NC 4/5/09
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| Brown Elfin, seen on the main mountain | Another Brown Elfin, seen nearby | Juvenal's Duskywing | Eastern Tailed Blue |
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| Maybe a Stream Cruiser. See other dragonflies. | Young Blue Corporal | Tadpoles | Tachinid fly |
Penny's Bend Nature Preserve, Durham County, NC 4/4/09
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| Checkered beetle (Enoclerus ichneumoneus), Penny's Bend Nature Preserve, Durham County, NC, 4/4/09. ID thanks to John and Jane Balaban. | Bumble Flower Beetle (Euphoria inda) | Assassin bug (Pselliopus cinctus) | White-lined Burrower Bug |
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| Small scarab beetle, maybe Hoplia trivialis, Melolonthinae family (May/June Beetles). Small (about 8 mm long) with visible hairs. | Two-lined Leatherwing Beetles (Atalantycha bilineata) | Brown lacewing, maybe. | Dutchman's Breeches | Downy Yellow Violet (Viola pubescens), Penny's Bend Nature Preserve, Durham County, NC, 4/4/09 |
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| Muscid fly | Juniper Hairstreak | Female Falcate Orangetip. Photo by Karl D. Gottschalk | Jumping spider |
Durham, NC 4/3/09
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| Northern Cricket Frog | Asian Multi-colored Ladybug Beetle | Ichneumonid wasp |
Johnston Mill Nature Preserve, Orange County, NC 3/31/09
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| Flower flies (Toxomerus genus), which alternately flew and landed. The bottom two are mating in this photo. | Female Falcate Orangetip | Green Six-spotted Tiger Beetle | Large Bee Fly | Juvenal's Duskywing. Photo by Karl D. Gottschalk | This Andrenid bee had gotten some white substance stuck to its one wing and quickly hid under this leaf. |
Pinehurst, Moore County, NC 3/23/09
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| This Eastern Fox Squirrel seemed to move more slowly than Gray Squirrels, and climbed a tree rather laboriously. Note the very long tail. | |||||||
Weymouth Woods, Moore County, NC March 22-23, 2009
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| This wasp (Campsomeris genus, Scoliidae family) was one of many that landed on the sandy trail and seemed to be digging around, 3/22 | A large snail, 3/23 | Leaffooted bug |
Mason Farm Biological Reserve, Orange County, NC 3/20/09
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| Juvenal's Duskywing. See other spreadwing skippers. | Male Fragile Forktail. See other damselflies. | Painted Turtle |
Penny's Bend Nature Preserve, Durham County, 3/19/09
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| Speckled Sharpshooter. See other leafhoppers. | Male Bowl-and-doily Spider | A type of cuckoo bee, Nomada genus. This bee was in constant flight. |
Durham, NC 3/18/09
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| Plasterer Bees (Colletidae family). It's mating season: that large, seemingly disorganized mass of bees is females coming in and out of their holes and males waiting outside to mate with them. Out here, this takes place for about two weeks every March in the same patch covered by pine needles. | Two-lined Leatherwing Beetle (Atalantycha bilineata) | |||||
Mason Farm Biological Reserve, Orange County, NC 3/11/09
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| Northern Cricket Frog | Painted Turtle, about 3 inches long. Those big yellow head spots are unusual in my experience, but no unheard-of in this species. | Spring Azure | Mourning Dove |
Durham, NC 3/11/09
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| Millipede, found on a log underneath bark | Millipede, also found on that log. Both about 1 mm thick. | Two more millipedes |
Carolina State Park, New Hanover County, NC 3/9/09
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| Springtail, perhaps Tomocerus genus, found with Beach Fleas (but not the one pictured in this row) | Bold-based Zale Moth (Zale lunifera), Carolina Beach State Park, New Hanover County, NC, 3/9/09 | Red-winged Sallow (Xystopeplus rufago, Xylenini tribe, Hadeninae subfamily), Carolina Beach State Park, New Hanover County, NC | Leaffooted Bug. This was very big, almost 2 inches long. | Beach flea. See other crustaceans. |
Snow's Cut Park, New Hanover County, NC 3/8/09
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| Beach Flea, Snow's Cut Park, New Hanover County, NC, 3/8/09. This little critter was hopping all over the Cape Fear River shore and was just about to hide under a log when I took this photo. | Yellow-rumped Warblers | Raccoon track | American Robin |
Durham, NC 3/6/09
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| These Boxelder Bugs were only two of 24 that I saw that day, when an unusual warm spell brought the temperature up to nearly 70° F. |
Copyright © 2008-2021 by Dorothy Pugh. All rights reserved. Please contact for rights to use photos.