Observations of Nature

With the exception of a protracted contest of wills with a black snake over control of a dry path through a bog (it won), today's trip to the ecological preserve was mostly uneventful. The Blackwater River had receeded to the point where the lower reaches of the preserve were once again accessible, although a bit soggy. The ground down by the river was covered witth this muddy silt deposited during last weekend's flooding event. The usual shades of brown and green of fallen leaves and pine straw and the occasional low plants were masked with black. As I traversed this seemingly foresaken area on foot I noticed a large velvet ant ambling across the muddy terrain, its brilliant red contrasting wonderfully with the black substrate. It would have made a great photograph, but the camera I left in the Jeep and did not have the desire to slog back through the fluvial debris to get it. So the ant, photographed only in memory, ambled on it way undisturbed.

Velvet ants (which are, of course, just flightless wasps) are common at the ecological preserve, though are always encountered in the high sand lens area and along sandy paths a good distance from the river. I can't even begin to speculate why this one was in such a disagreeable and unfamiliar environment. While the flooding may have had something to do with it, the most logical explanation is that velvet ants occur in this part of the preserve as well, but are usually not as visible in the mottled ground clutter. Change the backdrop to a solid color (in this case black) and one begins to see things they did not notice before.

Anyway..the image below is of a velvet ant taken a few weeks ago at the preserve.