A Science Lesson in the Front Yard

 Luke spotted this amazing site on our maple tree out in the front yard this morning.

A tiny ladybug....doing something??

After very close inspection, we realized we were watching a female ladybug lay eggs.

When it was first spotted, there were about 5 eggs, by the time she was finished she had laid 35 eggs.  Pretty amazing.

Guess what insect we are studying this week??

That's one bbbbbiiiiigggg bug!!!

Mark caught this cicada at soccer practice today. Dad said it was at least three inches long!

I am glad I wasn't there,

And I am really glad that is didn't come home with them!

What Kind of Bug do we Have?

This dreaded fly creature visited our screen this morning. You can see Laura's eye on the other side of the screen. This can help you gauge its size. This scary bug was at least 1 1/2 inches long.

Does anyone know what it is called?

Thanks to my 4Real friends, I now know that it is a "giant", "blood-sucking" horse fly. I am not so happy now that we all ran outside to take its photo!

A Little Beauty

Mommy had to catch this katydid this morning while Mark and Grace ran for cover. It was on the siding of the house and just waiting for us to put him in our bug jar.

Look at those big eyes.
It is also the best insect to identify as insect's body parts. You could very clearly see the head, thorax and abdomen on the underside of this kaydid. We are going to draw and label the parts before we let him go.