Nature and Some Ants

It's been warm for the past two days in a row, but I've had to work so I haven't been able to get out there and do much. Today I went for a short walk to see if I could find any Prenolepis imparis flying, but it seems I've missed the flight. There were a few males here and there, but nothing that impressed me enough to hang around and wait for queens to show up. (They may fly again after a brief rainfall in the coming weeks.)


I did notice some Spice Bush, Lindera benzoin, flowering which I can now add to my collection of wildflowers photographed. This is the host plant to the Spicebush Swallowtail Butterfly who's caterpillar mimics a snake. I'll try and visit them later in the year to see if I can find any.


Along the way to the woods and back I came across a pavement ant war, where two colonies of Tetramorium cf. species E.were battling it out. A women thought I was recording this and commented "I'm sure that video will get like five million hits on youtube."





Also by the park there's a patch of Japanese Knotweed. This nonnative plant is so invasive that stems can actually push up through the road.