Henderson C.A.

I saw my first Yellow Garden Spider of the year today. When looking closely at the abdomen, I saw a Martian with his hands on his hips looking back at me! 

We had to do some fancy dance steps to avoid stepping on this small Dekay's Brownsnake who was trying to cross the path under our feet. These snakes are primarily nocturnal, though they may be active during the day as well. They eat a variety of invertebrates such as insects, slugs and earthworms, and occasionally small fish or amphibians. 

https://ontarionature.org/programs/community-science/reptile-amphibian-atlas/dekays-brownsnake/

Some bright white textured clumps on a branch caught my attention.

Upon closer inspection, I found a few Two-marked Treehoppers and they were laying egg masses! Treehoppers are plant-sucking insects that have the ability to leap both far and fast. This is a fantastic escape maneuver when threated by a predator. The movement is so quick, it is often impossible to tell which direction it went. https://www.insectidentification.org/insect-description.php?identification=Two-Marked-Treehopper

Western Honey Bee enjoying the Goldenrod nectar!

A Geocaching Event brought me to Henderson today. It was lots of fun exploring the trails with geocaching friends and discovering some cool insects!