Dedham, after the rain

We've had a lot of partially rainy days this summer. It's been good for plant and mushroom growth. I wish these mushrooms were in my yard, but they won't be. This is "Old man of the woods," Strobilomyces sp., a mushroom whose parent fungus grows in association with hardwood trees. These were at the base of an oak. Our yard has Norway maple (which, as a non-native weed tree probably won't form mycorrhizae with native mushrooms--we'll see, I guess) and shagbark hickory, so I doubt we'll have this mushroom species.

Our yard does have lots of insects, and the rain can make them easier to photograph:
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3:00 snapshot #785

Trying out the self-timer. Could have focused a little better. And put on a shirt.

100 Species #85: Jagged ambush bug

These jagged ambush bugs, Phymata sp., are clinging to one of the stalks of goldenrod featured in an earlier entry.

Yes, yes, these ambush bugs appear to be gettin' in on. However, this insect is known to practice pre- and post-copulatory guarding behavior. In order to help ensure that he is the only male to fertilize the female, he'll cling to her back and deter other suitors. The female may not have even accepted this male yet, or maybe he's old news. I only stayed long enough to get the picture.

Jagged ambush bugs are lumpy and dense, with coloration that breaks up their outline. (The genus name means "tumorous.") They can be pretty hard to notice on a plant, hanging out near the flower. There they sit, motionless for as long as it takes, waiting for a pollinating insect of the right size (larger prey for the females, which are bigger than the males). Then they grab it with those inflated-looking front legs--"raptorial forelegs," a fun adaptation that has evolved in several species of true bugs, as well as in mantids--and suck out the goo inside with a beak-like "rostrum."

3:00 snapshot #786

A whole bunch of pet foods were donated to the zoo. None of the zoo animals eat Greenies, so I took them home for the dogs.

100 Species #86: Common bird's nest fungus

These bird's nest fungi, Crucibulum laeve, emerged from a high-traffic gravelly part of the yard, at the edge of the driveway.

Bird's nest fungi are rather small mushrooms that, without possibly knowing what bird's nests are, somehow look exactly like them. Of course this is just a trick of the human imagination: the "eggs" are packets of spores, called "peridioles," resting in a cup called a "peridium." When a raindrop lands in the peridium it splashes out one or more peridioles, distributing the reproductive material of the fungus. But boy that thing sure looks like a bird's nest. While the mushroom is developing, it is covered by a membrane called an "epiphragm;" there are three such mushrooms in the picture above.

This was 365 urban species #294.

A related species was featured in the urban nature pictures project.

3:00 snapshot #787

The front entrance of Butterfly Landing. If you go to Franklin Park Zoo on a really hot day, this is the best exhibit to visit: the butterflies get more active when it's hot and sunny. There are some beautiful species in there this year, sorry I have no pictures of them to share. There are also four hummingbirds in the exhibit, adding another level of interest for visitors.