A fiery skipper butterfly, Hylephila phyleus, dips its proboscis into a passion flower.
Fiery skipper butterfly
Category Archives: Plants
Green bottle fly
A green bottle fly, Lucilia sericata, checks out a flower on a tree heliotrope (Heliotropium foertherianum).
Ironwood
The Common Ironwood (Casuarina equisetifolia) is something of an invasive weed. It has, in my book, two distinguishing features. The first is the creaking noise it makes when the wind blows, which can be an eerie sound at times. The second is its foliage, which, under the right conditions, looks like a cascade of water.
For more information about Ironwoods, go to wildlifeofhawaii.com/flowers/774/casuarina-equisetifolia-common-ironwood/.
Honoli’i Beach Park
A view of Honoli’i Beach Park with Hilo Bay in the background. I do love the lush vegetation on the east side of the island.
‘Ilima papa
This plant, officially called Sida fallax, does well in tough coastal growing conditions, hugging the ground as it spreads. In other situations, it can grow as a shrub.
For more information about this plant, go to www2.hawaii.edu/~eherring/hawnprop/sid-fall.htm.
Shell ginger
Originally from Asia, the shell ginger and its sensuous flowers is quite common in wetter areas.
For more information about Hawaiian flowers, go to wildlifeofhawaii.com/flowers/.
Japanese white-eye in a silk oak
The brilliant orange flowers of silk oak trees not only catch the eye, but are rich with nectar, making them a favorite of birds such as Japanese white-eyes. There were several flitting through this particular tree.
For more information about silk oaks, go to wildlifeofhawaii.com/flowers/1368/grevillea-robusta-silk-oak/.
No fly zone
Crab spiders (also known as spiny-backed spiders) came to Hawaii in 1985. They spread through all the islands and are especially numerous here in the winter months. They build dense thickets of webs such as these between two tangerine trees. They look threatening, but aren’t particularly. People do get bitten, mostly if a spider falls on them or gets lodged in clothing.
I usually encounter them when I miss spotting a web and end up with it wrapped around my head. Their webs, which often span a 10 or 20 foot gap, seem especially strong and sticky.
For more information about crab spiders, go to gardenguyhawaii.com/2011/12/crab-spiders.html.
Graham's Island 