Bug Squad

Whenever folks post photos of praying mantids, their readers expect to see prey. You know, the hapless bee or butterfly that made the fatal mistake of getting too close to those spiked forelegs. This praying mantis (below) appeared to have been a hapless victim of another predator.

Who knew? UC Riverside entomologist Peter Graystock and colleagues Dave Goulson and William O. H.

They look like shiny blue and black needles. Make that "flying" shiny blue and black needles. We spotted this damselfly foraging on a Mexican sunflower (Tithonia) this week in our family bee garden. The blue was breathtaking.

Honey bees sometimes get into little battles with one another. Here's a case of a tiff over a Tithonia. Two honey bees wanted the same Mexican sunflower (Tithonia). They each tried to claim the same blossom, bounced one another off, returned, and then battled again.

It's the butterfly we're supposed to hate. That would be the cabbage white butterfly, Pieris rapae. Its larvae or cabbageworms are pests of our cole crops, including cabbage, kale and mustard. Pests? You bet.