Bug Squad

Oh, the life of a praying mantis... You can hang upside down like an acrobat, shading yourself from the sun while waiting for prey and avoiding predators. You can crawl beneath dense leaves, the better to ambush, snatch and eat an unsuspecting bee.

The buck stops here. The buckeye butterfly (Junonia coenia), that is. Whether it's doing the fandago on the plantago, the can-can on the lantana or the waltz on the sedum, it's easy to spot. That's because of its large eyelike circles on its wings.

When Eric Carle designed, illustrated and wrote the children's picture book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, it's a wonder that all his young readers didn't become lepidopterists. No doubt many of them did.

Ah, the Gulf Fritillary... We spotted this orange-reddish butterfly nectaring lantana last Saturday near downtown Vacaville. In fact, the patch of lantana (family Verbenaceae) drew assorted butterflies, including buckeyes, alfalfa, monarchs, and painted ladies.

Some folks enjoy a doughnut, bagel, muffin or fruit for breakfast--and maybe some cream cheese on the bagel and honey on the muffin. Not so the praying mantis. If he were in a restaurant, he'd tell the waiter "I'd like a bee for breakfast, please.