Meet the Locals: Summer 2011

aka Darkling Beetle

Tenebrionid Beetle

Ahhhh, the ubiquitous NM stink bug.... these guys are truly everywhere, and yes, I know they are not bugs.  Darkling Beetles (their real name) have a distinctive gait, tromping purposefully from place to place with legs akimbo. When disturbed, they do a headstand and puff out a blast of stinkiness - I'm one of the few who can't smell it, so I pick them up all the time. Even though they are small, they are strong!  It's difficult to hold them because they push back firmly and it's like holding a bundle of wire. 

Gibbifer californiatus

I know how Pleasing Fungus Beetles got their name; I'm always highly pleased when I find one trekking through the yard.  These are handsome beetles and, for such an obvious insect, they are quite common.  They are found throughout the southwest, but I've only every seen them in NM, lots here in the Gila and quite a few up north in the mountains around Santa Fe.  They emerge during summer and plink around looking for fungus to eat; there must be plenty of it because there are a lot of these beetles around.  The intensity of blue on the elytra varies from locale to locale, but all are strikingly visible from the natural tones of vegetation and soil. 

unidentified sphingidae

This is a sphinx moth caterpillar chomping away on one of the native nightshades in the yard.  If this individual resembles the nasty tomato hornworm you know and probably don't love, it's because it is a relative (the nightshade is related to your tomato as well).  When this caterpillar emerges as a moth, it will be large and probably very beautiful.  Hawkmoths, Hummingbird Moths, and Sphinx Moths are gorgeous and appreciated so much more than their younger selves. My favorites are the Hummingbird Moths which from a short distance are indistinguishable from the eponymous birds.

Agrius cingulata (?)

When harvesting aged wood from my mom's house, I found this Hawkmoth lounging on a fencepost.  It's difficult to tell from the photo, but there is a lot of pink on this individual - I think it is a Pink Spotted Hawkmoth.  These moths are in the same family as the caterpillar above.

Myrmelo sp.

New Mexico has been given two great gifts - dust in a mind-boggling array of varieties and a similarly stunning diversity of ants.  Antlions take advantage of these plentiful resources and can be found just about anywhere ants and dust are found.  The larva sits at the bottom of of the pit and flings sand up to catch an ant.  As the larva grows, so does the pit.  The adults are pale green, delicate and quite lovely.  They flutter around lights at night, vaguely resembling damselflies

Pogonomyrmex rugosus

Seed harvester ants are literally the queens of the desert. Colonies can live for decades and have a profound influence on everything around them.  This colony is new in the yard, and I'm happy to see it thriving, even though it in the middle of a path (why do they always do that?).  The property has been without a colony for a few years and I've been a bit sad about it.  The previous colony was well over 35 years (I remember playing with it as a little girl) and had multiple exits covering an acre or so. Even after five years, the gravel clearing is still there and will probably remain for a few more years.

Argemone sp.

The pricklepoppy has a lovely flower, but the rest of the plant is not as nice.  Lots of spines, toxic leaves, and when the plant dies and desiccates, it sticks to you like glue.  Still, the flowers are nice and the bees love them, so I let them bloom, then cut the whole thing down.  These flowers are seen everywhere in arid, mountainous areas, but not as much in full blown dessert.  One of the few flowers that will bloom in drought conditions.