Some like it hot
June 09, 2006 Whale’s Tongue agave Since August arrived early, I’ve been griping about the heat—like it doesn’t do this every year. There have been maybe two relatively cool, rainy summers since I moved to Austin 12 years ago, but let’s face it: this is not a hospitable climate from ...
Second moth
May 19, 2006 Here’s another sphinx moth, freshly hatched but obviously having had time to dry its wings. The second one arrived around noon, and the third had come up by 4 pm. We took a good look and admired their size, then unzipped the lid and set them free ...
Metamorphosis
May 19, 2006 Overnight or early this morning the first sphinx moth emerged from the soil in the butterfly enclosure. I was excited to see it there, resting quietly on one of the walls. I placed a damp paper towel and a few stalks of gaura and Indigo Spires salvia ...
Visitor
April 23, 2006 I seem to have become a wildlife-in-the-garden reporter lately, but I enjoyed this butterfly’s visit to my coneflowers yesterday ...
Sphinx moth caterpillars
April 21, 2006 Recently I posted a picture of a sphinx (or hawk) moth that I photographed in my front garden. Today I spotted several large caterpillars on the gaura under the vitex tree, and after looking them up on the internet I learned they are the larvae of the ...
Hawk moth
April 04, 2006 I’m happy to be able to share this photo. I love to watch hawk moths, and yet—because they usually appear at dusk and move so fast—I’ve never been able to photograph one before. Early this morning I spotted one flitting around the salvia greggii (Autumn sage), dipping ...
October 2004
October 15, 2004 American beautyberry in fruit October ushers in my favorite season. After the endless Texas summer, cool northern breezes begin to push back the Gulf humidity by the end of October, earlier if we’re lucky. As a child, I loved October because it is my birthday month, though ...
