After a visit to our local park (where ducks get fed gourmet food), a little creature reminded me how the bark of a tree is host to so many lives (I’ll call them minibeasts!) Trees hold creatures galore and learning aplenty.
Standing under a tree for shade, watching Miss Possum playing on the swings, I saw something move out of the corner of my eye.
It was a little orange ladybird.
I watched it for a few minutes, crawling up through some loosely hanging bark. Its funny, illogical way of moving up the tree intrigued me.
After a quick glance to check that Poss was still swinging happily, I started to search for other minibeasts. I was amazed to find ten different critters on the one tree!
Ok, granted we didn’t actually find TEN animals – I found eight alive, then one getting eaten by a spider, and some eggs that hadn’t yet hatched.
I called Miss Possum over to have a look at all the little creatures and we talked about each one.
I don’t know as much about bugs as I do other types of fauna. We learnt more about them by looking at our field guide, comparing my photos to the pictures in the book. If you don’t have a field guide (like the one in the picture), it’s easy to get one from the library. That’s where mine is from!
Here are the minibeasts…
So next time you’re outside, take a closer look on the ground, on a tree trunk, in the sky. You just never know what’s around you!
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Aw, Pen. I love how you make us be so much more aware of what’s around us 🙂 I loved lady bugs as a kid. Still do. Your micro (or is it macro ?) shots are just amazing !
I think they are termed Macro shots. I can’t be sure though, I’m no professional photographer!
Yup, there is something magicking about Lady bugs…or are they Lady Birds?
I’m actually really interested in learning how to identify a bull ant from a green ant from a ant that is just largeI I keep on getting bitten and every time it’s a surprise, albeit a burning, itchy one.
Brr! What’s the yellow beast on the last photo? Is it a batch off eggs or something like this?
Yes, a bunch of eggs. Almost another critter. Thanks for dropping by. 🙂
That is very interesting Penny – my boys love nature and bugs – I am going to try this.
Thanks Trish. Make sure you pull some bark away too. You can find so many hiding away there!
I did a double take when I saw your post title. My SIL is a teacher and she made a Mini Beast Detective game for her class and one for my daughter. The sheet has nine different mini beast pictures on it, and corresponding picture cards that can stick to the page with velcro. One person goes and hides the mini beast cards and the mini beast detective hunts them down and matches them back to the sheet. My daughter loves it so much that we got her a magnifying glass to make her feel like a true detective.
Wow, That’s awesome! What a creative game. Sounds like my daughter would love it too.
So true Pen you really do have to stop and check out the bugs to really appreciate what’s going on around you. We often hang out in our herb/veggie garden to see what insects are visiting. It enthralls the kids and to be honest I find it fascinating too. Great pics xx
Thanks Jacqui, I’m so glad you and your boys go bug hunting. I might be a wildlife Ed officer but before this blog, I really didn’t see things the way I do now. This blog keeps my eyes open and I’m LOVING it!