Bugs and Birds around your ponds

[CountryEscape]

Nope, that bug of mine is not a lacewing. It's much larger, over an inch long just the body and the wings are shorter than the body, and rounded on the ends, the body stuck out past the wings.
My sister is amazed at how many bugs I've taken pics of and how many varieties. Honestly, I had no idea this many were around either, but when you water plants and pull weeds, etc. you see all sorts of creatures you would otherwise miss.

 

[j.w]

You have me starting to want to take my camera w/ me again on my walks CE and near my pond to snap some bug photo's. We sure don't have as many bugs here tho compared to you there and ours are pretty boring compared to your alien looking ones. Today I saw another one of those lighter colored caterpillars crossing the road and I had to hurry a little snake across before a car came along. They are liking our paved roads to lay on for the warmth but leads to an early demise for some of them.

 

[CountryEscape]

Yes, for sure, JW, take your camera with you! My sister says she doesn't have so many bugs, but she has cute tree frogs, and I don't have any of them. Just thought bugs are fun to observe. Always enjoyed them as a kid, too. And, snakes will get run over this time of year and in the spring, when they lay on the roads. I've seen a few now smooshed on the roads. Poor snakes ... looked up the big snake that was in my mowing path 2 weeks ago, and still not sure what it was. All I know is that it was just under 3' long, but thick and I thought the head looked triangular, but maybe it wasn't. Pattern was really strange, not uniform but brown and light brown in a pattern that almost swirled as it went down the snake, instead of being uniform as you looked down the back. Not sure if that makes sense. I did stare at it, trying to remember what it looked like, as it stared at me for a while before I got off the mower and shooed it back to my farm pond, rather than across the road to where the neighbor's little grandsons were playing outside ...