Category Archives: Insects

Tropical Milkweed

An Asclepias curassavica flower in Hawaii
An Asclepias curassavica flower in Hawaii

Tropical Milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) is an introduced species here. It’s become popular in part because milkweeds are food for butterflies, including Monarch Butterflies, whose numbers have been falling for some time. However, there are questions about whether planting Tropical Milkweed is a good or bad thing.

One concern is that Tropical Milkweed’s perennial habit might be disrupting the Monarch’s epic migrations. Another concern is that the plant hosts Oe (Ophryocystis elektroscirrha), a parasite that adversely infects butterflies, and that is passed down to subsequent generations. This parasite is more prevalent in non-migratory butterflies such as those in Hawaii, but it’s not clear whether Hawaii’s population is suffering in the same way as some of those on the mainland. Hawaii’s Monarchs primarily use Crown Flowers to lay their eggs.

Hi honey I’m home

Bees returning to their hive in Hawaii
Bees returning to their hive in Hawaii

On a recent walk, I noticed a lot of bees about. When I poked my head through a hedge I saw this hive, which was where they were heading to, or coming from. I think this might be the first hive I’ve seen here, though I know there are a lot on the island. They’re just not in places where people tend to walk by, which is probably a good thing!

Bees returning to their hive in Hawaii

The Numbers Game #11

A distant view of Pu'u O'o vent from the Napau Trail at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
A view of Pu’u O’o vent, when it was erupting, from the Napau Trail in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 132.

You can see more responses here.

A parachuting clown hangs from a tree.
A flying clown. That’s all the world needs!
A grasshopper on a curved stem
A grasshopper keeping watch.
Banana stalk flies mating on the spadix of an Anthurium schlechtendalii
Two Banana Stalk Flies doing, well, you know what.
A rock sits balanced on the coast of the Big Island of Hawaii
A well balanced rock on the North Kohala coast.
Post office boxes in Hawaii
Couldn’t resist taking this one at my local post office. I can run this several times!

The Numbers Game #10

Green darner dragonflies mating at Kiholo on the Big Island of Hawaii.
Green darner dragonflies mating.
Coconut palms line the beach north of the park at Kiholo on the Big Island.
Palm trees line the beach.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 131.

You can see more responses here.

A Brown Booby skims the ocean.
two Hawaiian sea turtles look like an impressionist painting as they swim underwater
Green turtles in Kiholo lagoon.
The entrance to Emesine Lava Tube on the Powerline Trail off Saddle Road.
The entrance to the Emesine lava tube.
A gold dust day gecko with a forked tail.
Snake the gecko!
One of the ocean-side campsites at Kiholo Bay on the Big Island of Hawaii
A campsite at Kiholo campground.

The Numbers Game #9

A Black-Crowned Night Heron juvenile in Hawaii
A juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron on alert.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 130. You can see more responses here.

A passion vine butterfly lays an egg.
A Passion Vine Butterfly lays an egg.
Webs on the ground catch the early morning sunlight.
Early morning webs.
Late afternoon light streams through lowered blinds to create this pattern on the lace curtains inside.
Light through the blinds.
A man harvests opihi off the coast of the Big Island of Hawaii.
Not a castaway, but an opihi picker.
A V22 Osprey aircraft at Upolu Airport, HawaiiA V22 Osprey aircraft at Upolu Airport, Hawaii showing how it is operated
A V22 Osprey aircraft…and how it works!

The Numbers Game #8

A cattle egret stands on a sleeping cow in Hawaii
A Cattle Egret stands on a resting cow. No, it’s not dead!

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 129. You can see more responses here.

A Mourning Gecko on a Bird of Pardise flower.
A gold dust day gecko licks moisture off a bird of paradise flower in Hawaii
A Gold Dust Day Gecko on a Bird of Pardise flower.
A black stink bug next to a black strap on a red shirt.
This stink bug landed on my shirt as I was trying to photograph it.
A dive boat anchored off the Kona Coast in Hawaii
A dive boat off the Kona Coast.
A pair of zebra doves resting on a branch
Two Zebra Doves enjoy the late afternoon sun.
A drop of water on a passion vine leaf in Hawaii
A drop of water on a Passion Vine leaf.
Sunset over Kohala
Sunset from the lanai.

The anole and the ant

A green anole on a ti plant in Hawaii

I was photographing this green anole on a ti leaf when an ant appeared on the scene. The anole gave it the ‘Is that a snack?’ look, but decided that maybe that wasn’t a good idea. Some ants are not good eating.

A green anole on a ti plant in Hawaii

The anole resumed keeping an eye on me, while the ant meandered around getting closer. At one point, the ant bumped into the anole’s foot and the anole flinched and yanked its foot away, as a person might do.

A green anole on a ti plant in Hawaii

Following that incident, the anole began a half-hearted sequence of displaying its dewlap to show that this was his territory, but it seemed more aimed at wishing I would go away rather than doing anything about it!