This Praying Mantis was literally a gift from heaven. I have only seen them once or twice before. My wife and I were sitting outside having a cup and I saw something landing. It was not a bird nor a butterfly but it was quite big. It landed a couple of feet from us and only then I saw what it was.
What an opportunity and what an amazing creature. Whether they are rare or not, I’ve never seen it before.
This is one of the biggest insects I’ve seen. It’s length is approximately 10 cm.
The antenna of this big Mantis are relatively small. Compare that with the biggest antenna ever on this tiny grasshopper.
I was walking through the field when I saw one little hop. Just one hop, so I knew it had to be there. I had to look hard and long to discover it but then I saw it hiding behind a piece of grass. It was very shy and very aware of me. When I stepped to the left it moved to the right. When I moved to the left it stepped to the right.
But after a while it became a bit curious and there it was with it’s lovely white eyes looking at the camera. The length of this grasshopper without the antenna is less than a cm.
Staying with the small. This toad is not much bigger than the nail of my thumb. I’ve no idea whether it will grow bigger or not.
This one will definitely grow bigger. It’s a Cane Toad of perhaps a close relative. This one is only 3 cm but it can grow to a length of 10 to 15 cm. Next to the eye you see the ear drum. And right next to that the enlarged paratoid gland. When attacked it secretes what’s called a Bufotoxin. They can be deadly to dogs and my dogs know that. They completely ignore them.
I showed you this lizard in older post as well. https://steemit.com/photography/@gardenbsquared/columbina-passerina-ecotrain
It came crawling through the bushes to enjoy a little bit of the late afternoon sun.
There are also bigger reptiles around. This cayman I photographed in a canal close to our house. It’s about 3 feet long and no threat to humans.
Unfortunately I could only take one picture before it swam off.
This is most likely another Esperanza species. With the naked eye these little white flowers it sits on look not really spectacular but with the macro lens I think they are gorgeous.
Two different dragonflies. Dragonflies are carnivores and you can imagine by the way it holds the leave how it will crab an insect and devour it.
Some of the plant life can be really spectacular close up. These are the forming leaves and flower buds from the Cassia alata bush.
These flowers look majestic with their purple crowns in the middle. I’ve no idea what it might be.
A garden is not complete without a couple of butterflies. These are the Banded Orange Heliconia (Drydula phaetusa) and the famous Monarch.
I want to end this post by sharing some photographs of these beautiful birds of paradise.
Thanks and much love,
Gardenbsquared
