Strange Creatures

We are all travelers in the wilderness of the world, 

and the best we can find in our travels 

is an honest friend.

~Robert Louis Stevenson

I love these old trees in the park.

There always seems to be something weird and new (to us anyway) on our walks. It's never boring.

We saw no beaver/nutria/river otter today - try as we might. So a plan is afoot to arrive a little earlier and stake-out the creek from the bridge above. An evening effort could also work, but that might be hard to arrange after a busy day. Still, we are determined to discover what it is.*

The Heron did not make a return appearance in the shallows by the sandbar.

But this creature was hiding in the Snailseed Vine. It seemed to be some kind of ant - as large as those painful wood ants, but shiny. I'd have to post it and rely on the experts. [Oh, but I was wrong - broad-headed bug nymph. Who knew? Well, perhaps I should have known the antennae were too long for an ant.]

I had no idea what I was looking at, only that he is shiny and beautiful. The "bug people" say he is a "broad headed bug nymph." I thought he was an ant.

The dogs ran and wrestled. They played a little "harder" than we thought they should. Someone was going to get hurt. So we shushed them, leaving the enclosure to continue down the path.

We walked along the creek and saw so many things going to seed. It is that time. Only a few plants continue to bloom - the Golden-Eye, asters, and a surprise of a Prairie Coneflower. 

This poor tree suffered damage in a flood, I imagine. The scar shows.

I've been asked to gather some seed today - of the Erect Spiderling (Boerhavia erecta)** - provided I can find the plant again. Time to go look.


NOTES:

*We looked at the potential for walking along that section of the opposite bank. We will need the right gear and, perhaps, another companion or two.

**I found it in a now empty lot across from the building where I do clay. I was killing time one day in September and looked at all the blooming things - many were strangers to me. Apparently there are 11 species of Boerhavia in Texas and this is one of the few in our area. The others are pink - this this is definitely Boerhavia erecta. Let's see if I can find some seed for another nature nerd.