Photos... Lots of photos!

Rosy Maple Moth, Dryocampa rubicundula

If you read this blog with any consistency, it may seem like I'm out in the field all of the time. Were that only true. The fact is, my job keeps me in my office the vast majority of the time, at least during the week. When home, I should (and try) to spend much of my time on writing: columns, articles, and a book project.

Thus, when I do get an unfettered full day field excursion I do my best to make the most of it. Yesterday was one of those days. I was off before the crack of dawn to head to my favorite region of Ohio, Adams and Scioto counties.

Your narrator is greeted by two jumbo pups at John Howard's house. I was off to meet John Howard, who lives deep in Adams County and is a fabulous field companion. He'll go anywhere, has an encyclopedic knowledge of natural history, and a real knack for finding unusual things. And, I got to renew my acquaintance with Chloe, his 100+ lb. St. Bernard puppy. Her sister Lula was visiting, so it was a double-whammy!

In all, yesterday was a 20-hour day, and I returned with over 1,700 images (most won't make the cut) of all sorts of strange and interesting organisms. A pretty decent case of chiggers, too, but that's a small price to pay. John and I were out working nighttime stuff until nearly midnight, and the Rosy Maple Moth pictured above was just one of many cool moths that came into our sheet.

More to follow from this excursion, as I get things sorted out...

Red-banded Hairstreak, Calycopis cecrops, as fresh as can be. An almost insanely good-looking bug!