Hello again, folks, and welcome to another edition of Doug Duncan, Amateur Entymologist. I've had such fun lately taking photographs of our wee winged friends, I've decided to post a few more just for fun. Here's another variety of a past subject of mine -- the Chinch Bug. I found this little guy on the Window Trail a few weeks back, and he seems a bit perturbed at my photographic persistence. I don't know if his abdomen is capable of spraying or not, or if it's just the least tasty part of his body, but he's certainly got it up for me.
Well, it would seem that he's either decided that my presence is okay, or else he's just finally given up trying to scare me off. Now he's just trying to get away as fast as he can, but he didn't reckon with Doug Duncan, AE.
Another denizen of the park I ran across at work one day is the beautifully-colored Lubber Grasshopper, seen here in its early phase before it grow its wings. This guy was very shy and wouldn't hold still for a photo, but I didn't let that stop me.
Here's a more recent photo of a Lubber, taken just a few days ago on my way to Panther Junction. I'd seen about a hundred of these dark objects slowly crawling across the road on some mad suicide mission (I was dodging them like mad for a few miles trying to give them a break, but then stopped so I wouldn't get pulled over for drunk driving), so I finally stopped and took a picture of one. You can see they've started sprouting their wings now.
Then look at what I found on my thermometer just yesterday -- two Lubbers in the midst of reproduction. Casting all decency aside, I promptly ran back into the trailer and grabbed my camera. I call this shot "Lubbers In Lub." (groan!) 
Since these two were being such wonderful models (other things on their mind there, Doug), I took the opportunity to engage in a little scientific photography, capturing the very workings of their reproductive organs. This is a really great shot, I think. You can click on the picture to enlarge it, if you want to see it up close. It's really fascinating. 
Okay, moving right along to more G-Rated endeavors, here we have a young Katydid, captured in the early morning light. It, too, hasn't yet sprouted its wings. They're such beautiful little creatures, all lime green.
He, too -- or should that be "She, too"? -- didn't much care for having his/her photo taken, but its attempt at escape allowed me to capture it in a different light.
And here we have a shot taken just yesterday, with its wings now grown out and ready for flight. 
And here we have one that didn't quite make it, ending up as a nice, tasty lunch for one of our local spiders (variety unknown). Well, that's life in the Great Outdoors for you, I suppose.
And last but not least, here we have a Mockingbird chick, clinging for all it's worth to the side of a tree. At first I thought it was a Ladderback Woodpecker, due to the way it's clinging so tightly to the trunk, but there is a Mockingbird nest in this particular tree, right over my front door. With those markings, it has to be a Mockingbird.Well, I guess that's about it for this edition. Thanks for tuning in!
