Sometimes I feel that way. My daily constitutional, a pleasure so great it feels like a punishment. Turns out, it was okay. I mean, it depends on how you look at it*. Company with Docken on the phone was nice. I think being able to converse misery has its benefits. It was uncomfortable though, I walk fast and for me 78º F and 48% relative humidity simply is not pleasurable. Tomorrow is the autumnal equinox, I'll feel better soon. ☯ Basically, I did half of yesterday's walk. I also chased after several butterflies. Most of them got away. Here are some pictures.
The plant is Tradescantia pallida a species of spiderwort native to the Gulf Coast region of eastern Mexico. I actually donate to the Wikimedia Foundation so don't give me a hard time, okay?
The first shot was kinda rough. To be honest, all were a PITA, it was way bright and tracking at 250-300mm with a close-up lens on top wasn't especially smooth. But the first shot was fun because the smaller hoverfly was getting really testy with the bee and was insisting on that flower.
Gaillardia, AKA, blanket flower. It was named after Maître Gaillard de Charentonneau, an 18th-century French magistrate who was an enthusiastic botanist and apparently an egotist.
Verbena bonariensis and a grass skipper, specifically an adult male fiery skipper, Hylephila phyleus.
I followed four or five different monarch butterflies but this is the only one that cooperated. The plant is Salvia farinacea (I think).
*What have you got to lose? You know, you come from nothing You're going back to nothing What have you lost? Nothing!
I had to go back and look. I haven't posted a walk report since June 29th and that post wasn't titled as such. However, I have been walking, not as often as I would like and most of the walks have taken place in my general neighborhood with "beat the heat" departure times. For me, beating the heat means making efforts to get out during a temperature range between 65º F and 75º F with 80º+ being a sort of self-imposed constraint. Relative humidity also plays a role in this. Anyway, the addition of an often energetic kitten in the house has created a number of modifications in day to day activities and this is especially true in the morning and by morning I mean AM and by AM I mean anything from about 1:30 AM until I actually start my day anywhere from 5:something to as late as 7:something AM. This is due to devoting time with both my long time pal, Queen kitty, Lucy and my new companion, kitten, Junior. Since there's some tension between 19 year old Lucy, who mostly wants to sleep peacefully and curious and playful Junior, the house gets divided up in the evenings for my sanity and my own need for peaceful sleep. In other words, I divide the night and sleep with both cats in different rooms for several hours each. Hopefully, this will change in the not so distant future and we can all get along without any fuss. During the day I monitor proximity between Lucy and Jr. I'm working on it!
I didn't know I was going to explain all of that. Onto today's walk. I took a few pictures. Special thanks to Docken for joining me over the phone.
Coreopsis Tickseed 'Full Moon' and a hoverfly.
Calandrinia grandiflora and another hoverfly.
The Gulf fritillary or passion butterfly.
Finally the reason for the title of this post.
Pepsis mildei, also known as Milde's tarantula-hawk wasp, is a species of predatory spider wasp native to the Western Hemisphere. These wasps capture live tarantulas to feed to their larva; the adults graze on flowers. There is a pain scale rating for stinging insects called, the Schmidt sting pain index (any volunteers?). The original 1983 paper was a way to systematize and compare the hemolytic properties (refers to the premature destruction of red blood cells) of insect venoms. Ratings start at 0 for stings that are completely ineffective against humans, progressing through 2 for familiar pains such as those caused by common bee or wasp stings, and finishing at 4 for the most painful stings. Pepsis mildei is ranked a 4. This places it among the most intensely painful insect stings in the world. The command "lay down and scream" is famously attributed to entomologist Justin O. Schmidt, who developed the pain scale rating, as advice for anyone stung by a tarantula hawk wasp, such as Pepsis mildei. The wasp's sting is considered one of the most excruciatingly painful imaginable, and the suggestion is a practical survival tip to prevent further injury. Continuing Schmidt's description of the pain he notes it is "blinding, fierce, [and] shockingly electric." The pain is "immediate, intense, and completely debilitating." The good news is these wasps are not aggressive toward humans, they will only sting if they are provoked. Also, the excruciating pain is said to only last for about five minutes.
I took all of the photos in this post with a Canon 70-300 mm lens with a Canon 500D close-up lens attached. The 500 represents that the close-up focuses at 500 mm, which is 19.68". That's how close the front on my camera is in these photos. Fortunately not a distance where this lady felt provoked. This is a female, as with all stinging insects only females have a stinger. It's an evolutionary adaptation from the egg-laying organ, or ovipositor, which became a specialized venom delivery system. Also note, she only has one antennae. A missing antennae is an uncommon but possible occurrence for any insect. Wasps do not have the ability to regenerate a lost antennae after reaching their adult stage. The curled orange portion of the antennae is the way to differentiate a male from a female.
The other insect is Oncopeltus fasciatus, known as the large milkweed bug. The plant is Narrowleaf Milkweed (Asclepias fascicularis).
I know she looks black but she's actually a very deep purple and blue. I couldn't catch her under an angle of light that better showed off how pretty she is.
If you wonder why I picked this song today, you're not paying attention. Please pay attention.
The fact is, it has taken me a month to get a post up about Junior becoming an established member of the household. She came inside to stay July 31, at 6:44 PM. She had been inside the house several times earlier that day. The door was left open and she could come and go as she pleased.
Before I get too far I think some thankful acknowledgements should be made, all to Docken for her help...
There was a situation early on, Sunday, July 13th to be precise, where I jumped the gun on Junior coming inside with me to play and I quietly closed the door behind her. I made some poorly thought out assumptions. This did not go over well with Junior. Suffice it to say, I was pretty upset--for days. However, Docken calmed me down and gave me perspective on the event. I really appreciated that.
It was Docken's idea for me to haul Lucy's cat tree out of my office and stick it just inside the patio door. That was more than helpful in getting Jr. inside. Thank you, Docky.
This image is from July 29th.
There was also some random stuff, like Docken giving me the feather ended fishing pole, plus there were things left here from Doc, like ping-pong balls and spring toys for cats. The ping-pong balls especially got Jr, exploring the house on 7/31. She chased them wherever she swatted them. A side note, there are currently 14 ping-pong balls in the house. I can only find two.
There were other behavioral issues Docken helped me with too. The advice certainly made the adjustment of having a kitten in the house a lot easier for me, Junior and for Lucy too. So, thank you, Docken.
There was an event that first took place outdoors on the patio, Junior sitting and spending time in my lap. I told myself that once that happened indoors we might be good to go. This outdoor episode was early evening on July 25th.
By July 30th she was just starting to feel comfortable enough to doze a little in my lap.
Also July 30th, Junior was free to roam the house. Her venturing to go down that hallway and out of sight of the patio door was a big deal for me.
There were also moments like this one out near the patio. Jr was getting distracted by birds and ran outside from time to time.
This moment with Jr. on July 30th was another big deal. You can see by the timestamp that it was approaching nightfall. Jr. was getting some treats on top of her dry food, my way of insuring as best I could that she had enough to eat for the night. It’s not possible to leave food out overnight. As soon as I turned away from her dish, she went to hug my ankle. My heart melted. Here's some morning video from inside the house on July 31st, approximately, 8:00 AM.
I felt good about things early that morning but I was also apprehensive about closing the door. We went on like this throughout the day. Another thanks to Docken because we were on the phone together as I was trying to make the important decision of bringing Junior in to stay. Doc was getting a play by play over the phone and she helped to encourage me to finally pick Junior up, bring her inside and close the door. I think we both thought what if something happened outside later that night? You can imagine some of it and I'd rather not get graphic but, for example, there was this event. The skunk is looking at Jr., Jr., wanted to play with the skunk and the skunk was stomping its feet.
Meanwhile, Lucy, 9:10 AM on July 31st, she has no idea yet what was in store for her. During all of the trials with Junior coming into the house with the patio door left open. Lucy was closed off in our bedroom with an air conditioner running and dad visiting periodically. Junior did not explore the house unsupervised. She was already coming when I called her out in the yard. She would also come running to the patio if she heard the tiny bell on the fishing pole.
Now, there is trailcam video of me carrying Junior into the house at 6:44 PM on July 31st, however, I was in a t-shirt and underwear and I though it best not to put something like that out on the web.
All of the images in this post were taken with the least expensive iPhone one could buy, November 2022. Let it be known that I have a general aversion to using a phone for photography. In fact, I have a general aversion for using phones for what was their original purpose. In 2019 I was gifted a used iPhone 6 and I realized, getting older, going for walks, etc., having a phone on my person was a good idea. In 2007, when the iPhone was released, I was an Apple Product Specialist for an Apple reseller. Fortunately, the iPhone was about the only Apple product I didn't deal with--not directly anyway.
Out of pocket carrying simplicity here are photos of Junior taken once she was inside to stay. These should be mostly in order by date but as images were bounced around between applications and devices there was some chaos in keeping stuff organized. In case you've wondered, between keeping Lucy and Junior happy and gradually kitten-proofing the house, some changes have taken place.
For the cats... Junior was born feral. She made wonderful adjustments as time progressed but when I first saw her on June 1st she was extremely cautious over even the movement of shadows she detected inside the house. With 19 year old Lucy there has been a great deal of territorialism and resource guarding. Lucy views this home as her established territory and to be honest, she believes she owns me and not the other way around. She's right. Both cats are experiencing some stress and anxiety. Despite taking it on as a challenge, I also find that stressful. Junior is high energy. Lucy wants to and deserves to sleep--a lot. For me this can be emotionally draining. Fortunately, I can pretty much nap almost anytime if I want to. However, for the most part, I think things are going smoothly. Slow and patient.
Again, pictures...
Day one. August 1st. Wow, this is the softest thing I've ever slept on! (another thanks to Docken).
We watched a Dodgers game together.
She cuddled with her new dad quite a bit.
Day 2, August 2nd.
August 3rd - August 5th (yeah, I'm getting tired doing this).
August 5th - August 9th.
August 20th.
Lucy supervising her water bowl. Junior has two water bowls. Junior loves Lucy's water bowl.
Junior watching a King Crimson concert with me. Lucy already saw it but was listening from her nightstand. August 29th.
Lucy and Junior, they have good moments, mostly if Lucy is sleeping and they get along best when they are both sleeping. We're working on it. These images are from August 23 until today, August 31st. It has been a crazy month.
Excuse the mess. Lucy gets treats on the bed and I put my shoes on the bed.
One guy Junior really misses is Vit. Vit has a high probability of being Junior's kitty dad. They often meet at the patio windows. I try to play with Junior whenever I hear her mewing over Vit's presence.
Mama, just killed a mouse Ate it all except the head, that's your present on your bed Mama, a sign of my love Why did you scream and throw it all away?
