Butterfly Pals - Visitors to My Garden

One of the many joys in the garden is the profusion of winged creatures such as butterflies. These garden fliers are so fun to look at, it's easy to forget they are working hard for the garden, transferring pollen from one plant to another, fertilizing apace.

And because of the food source in my backyard, these butterflies won't leave, and they are quite entertaining. These beautiful butterflies - Junonia (from the family of Nymphalidae) are year-round residents. They are very common and widespread and are highly sensitive to movement. I see many of them daily, flitting happily among grasses and wildflowers.

But then butterflies, just like other wildlife creatures, do not like being photographed and taking great photos of these airborne insects isn't quite so easy. My neighbours think I am a little crazy as I chase these butterflies around! 

Grasshopper Tales

Love is in the air! My backyard is alive with the sights and sounds, of the start of mating season, with couples of Javanese Grasshoppers (Valanga Nigricornis) leading the way. I spotted 2 pairs mating among leaves and tall grasses and others were sunning themselves under the warm sun. These grasshoppers are often found in forest clearings and shrub thickets, feeding mainly on leaves, and most feeding is done during the daytime. 

Javanese Grasshoppers love sunlight and seek out sunny areas for basking, either at the top of vegetation or on open sites. These giants species however are regarded as agriculture pests as they can cause severe damage to crops, but on the upside, they can be greiled or roasted and eaten as they are high in proteins. Dare to try?  

Blooming Marvelous

After so many consecutive days of rain, the weather has now been really co-operating. The sun has emerged and the days have been dry and sunny with not so high temperatures - making the meadows and the woodlands are glowing in the sun's light. This also means that garden plants and wild flowers are blooming away and many more shrubs and flowers are about to explode.

Often found in undisturbed areas and roadside verges, this striking wild flower - Barbados Lily (Hippeastrum puniceum) deserves some attention. Native to tropical regions of South America, it is a bulbous perennial that requires full sunlight. During 'summer' or hot season, the vivid orange-red flowers are borne in an umbel on a stem and each blooming lasts just five to seven days.

These flowers I discovered recently were growing wild in the midst of an undisturbed lawn, not too far from my home.