Maple Looper Moth (Parallelia Bistriaris), Taken April 19, 2025, In Georgia, US

Whitman's Jumping Spider (Phidippus whitmani), female, taken March 28, 2025, in Georgia, US

A jumping spider lifer for me! I initially caught a glimpse of her while trying to photograph a bee and thought she was a mutillid. That was until she peeked back out of the leaves to watch what I was doing! She was an excellent model, turning in all directions and moving slowly and calmly so I could get the best photos I could. It's almost like she knew what was happening!

Conifer Bark Beetles (Boros unicolor), larvae, taken February 26, 2025, in Georgia, US

I spent like two hours running around peeling the bark off of fallen pine trunks and found tons of these bad boys. I had no idea that they existed or what they were until I found them, but they're kind of epic! They remind me of if a beetle and an earwig had a child, but a termite became involved somewhere along the way. Just a weird mixture of morphological traits, though they're perfectly adapted for life under pine bark!

You can see the individual in the video almost snag the smaller insect as a snack. I came across one shortly after this eating a potworm!

Nomad Bees (Genus Nomada), taken April 12, 2025, in Georgia, US

Sleepy bees!! I found several nomad bees taking naps on the bare branches of some shrubs. None of them woke, even when I manhandled the branches for better pictures. I only see this species sleeping in this way, though I know other nomad bees do it. I assume other species use different objects to stay steady and that's why I haven't found them—it makes sense that larger bees would use larger anchors!

Nosy Pill Woodlice (Armadillidium nasatum), taken February 26, 2025, in Georgia, US

A nice pill bug family of four, living the life underneath a log I flipped. They didn't do much, but I suppose I too would be stiff with terror if a giant flipped my dark, unmoving house over and exposed me to the elements! I put them back after I was done, and they probably went right back to whatever conversation they were having before I interrupted them, so no harm no foul!

Hooded Warbler (Setophaga citrina), male, taken April 1, 2025

Quite the uncommon visitor showed his face at the feeders yesterday! I've only seen hooded warblers once before: a small group traveling south last fall. Males of this species can be distinguished from females by the black band around their face, which resembles a hood! Females can look much like other warblers such as Pine Warblers (Setophaga pinus). They can be distinguished from male pine warblers by their olive backs and easily distinguished from the brown females by color!

American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), taken May 20, 2025, in Georgia, US

A lovely crow yelling back to their partner who sits a few branches away. These two flew overhead and stayed a while to (I assume) yell about me from the trees. I think they were sandwiched between me on the ground and a hawk circling a little ways off behind them, and they clearly had a lot to say about it! They circled around above me a few times before continuing in the direction they were headed, and after they left the hawk started yelling instead. You can never have quiet in the woods!

American Robins (Turdus migratorius), female (1 & 2), males (3 & 5), and juvenile (4), taken January 23, 2025, in Georgia, US

A few of the robins in my backyard robin army! They're eating so much food. Hundreds, all day every day for weeks... I love them, but oh my god.

Common Loon (Gavia immer), taken July 19, 2024, in New Hampshire, US

Loons are absolutely fascinating to watch. This specific individual was going about the lake with its mate and another pair of loons, possibly from a neighboring lake. It got close enough for me to run out on the dock and try to get pictures at like 8 in the morning, but sadly the sun was on the wrong side of the lake lol! At least the backlighting looks cool!

Carolina Chickadee (Poecile carolinensis), taken April 30, 2025, in Georgia, US

A chickadee fluttering around the suet feeder! This individual seemed quite reluctant to use its right foot, possibly due to an injury. Despite that, it was able to perch upright and on the feeder bars fine after a bit of adjusting. The chickadees are always very bold, and even injured this one is no exception!