Some Things Never Change

Yesterday afternoon while I was typing my blog, my son Jon came in from outside and brought me a present. On the cover of a book lay a big orange larvae. The boys have always brought me little gifts of nature since they were little, and because they expect me to automatically know what each and everything is. This specimen was a bit ugly and gave me goosebumps. I laid it in front of me on it's side so it couldn't make its way off the page, and began my research.

First I went to the webb and looked at images of moth larvae. There was quite an assortment of some of the creepiest looking specimens I've ever seen. Nope, this critter wasn't there. I studied the markings on the head of the gift and they looked familiar to a butterfly I had once seen. So next I went through all the images of butterfly larvae. At the very end, there it was, eyes, staring right at me. After reading up on it I discovered it was the Spice Bush Swallowtail Butterfly Larvae. The markings I had recognized were on the wings of the butterfly pictured next to the image of the larvae. How interesting I thought. The markings on the head looked like two eyes yet there they were, duplicated on the butterfly.

I then took my little gift outside and tried to put it on the branch of a tree to give it some protection against predators. It quickly fell to the ground. Mike came over to help me and he placed it on a wide leaf on a higher branch to give it some safety. Yea, it suddenly quit playing dead, grabbed hold and began inching its way along the leaf.

Maybe this isn't such earth shattering news, but it kept me occupied and I learned something new.

I'm so curious that I had to really have a closer look at the head, and while scrutinizing it, discovered that the real head was located deeper inside what I had first thought was the actual head. Nature's way of hiding the obvious. It didn't show itself fully until on the leaf when it came out and began its journey on familiar territory, free at last!

My lesson for the day was over. I did wonder how the poor thing felt lying here on my desk while I typed and searched. He played dead but he hadn't fooled me...

Today is a cool day but with sunshine. It is supposed to get up to 71 degrees but we shall see. I think I shall take a little walk out back and look on the ground to see if any more gifts await me. We just don't pay attention to nature around us if it isn't at eye level. When you walk with a cane, you are constantly aware of tree roots and other trip ups. I think it is sometimes a blessing. I find all kinds of gifts and each one is a learning experience.

Have a nice day everyone and be sure to search for your gift. It might be right in front of your eyes.

Hugs