Both the presenters and participants braved the heat, with record-breaking temperatures reaching 105° F plus on Saturday.  It felt more like the first day of summer than the first day of spring.

We had smaller crowds, but everyone was having fun. We met some new friends and re-connected with some old ones.

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In the yard we still have a few insects in spite of the above-normal warmth.

Last week the pallid-winged grasshoppers were everywhere, probably part of a migration. This week, however, I found evidence that they aren’t simply migrating. Can you tell why?

Here’s a closer view.

This is a nymph rather than an adult. Because it doesn’t have wings, it is unlikely it flew in from somewhere else. This one is perched on a desert marigold flower, resting in the heat.

The wildflowers are starting to finish up and go to seed, but those few that are still open are quite popular.  Here is a plant bug on a golden Dyssodia. The dainty sulfur butterflies love these, but I wasn’t able to catch a photograph because they flit around too much.

Do you have any plants in your area that attract a specific kind of insect?

I was impressed by the number of buds on this bilberry cactus, Myrtillocactus geometrizans (also called blue candle cactus).

The honey bees have a lot of different blooms to chose from, but these cactus flowers were popular.

Sorry the photos aren’t better, I had to use my phone.

We’ve also had a bunch of pallid-winged grasshoppers. They seem to like to sit on my car for some reason.

We are expecting extreme heat this weekend (107°F!!). Hopefully it doesn’t harm the plants and insects.

How is the weather where you are?  Can you find any insects this week?

Of course, anywhere there are flowers. we can expect at least a few insects and with them come stories.

Story 1.

Up first we have a bee. It is simply sitting quietly in a desert marigold flower, not moving at all. This actually tells me a lot about the bee.

Let’s take a closer look. Perhaps you can see the drops of dew on the antennae and wings. This bee has been sitting here for quite a long time.

But no worries,  it is fine.

I should say, he is fine because two things from this photograph tell me this is a male bee. Can you tell why?  Think about it. I will give the answer at the bottom.

Story 2.

There’s a different development going on over at the brittle bush plant.

Do you recognize this insect with its head in the center of the flower?

That is a ladybug larva. It may be feeding on a bit of pollen from the flower because ladybird beetles and their larvae do eat some pollen, especially to get through times when their favorite food isn’t available.

But they should be able to find their favorite food soon. Not far away sits a winged aphid, also called an alate. In no time there will be more aphids to eat!

Yes, there are stories to be found on spring wildflowers.

Answer to question above:

The clues the bee is a male are

1.   It is sleeping overnight in a flower. Females of this kind of digger bee sleep overnight in their burrow.

2. It has longish hairs on its middle legs. The Washington Native Bee Society has some great photos of another species of male bees with these distinctive long hairs on their legs.

What have you found in your yard or neighborhood this week?