25 May
I found this slug on a leaf of a Solomon’s seal plant.
A slug is a snail without a shell.
Slugs live underground where they can remain moist.
They feed on tender leaves, seedlings, soft fruit, fungus and decaying matter. They breathe through the “hole” in its shell called a mantle.
Birds, toads and ground beetles are a few of the predators that eat them.
Slugs are one thing I rarely see, and I wouldn’t have seen this one if it wasn’t for the wet weather.
9 Sep
“Parts” on this tobacco hornworm aren’t what they appear to be.
What looks like an eye is actually a fake eye.
There are four teeny tiny eyes just above the three thoracic legs — the white legs with black bands. They are very hard to see.
The larger black spots along the side of the body are actually spiracles where the caterpillar breathes.
This was the only hornworm feeding on my tobacco plants (nicotina sylvestris).
The moths have a wingspan up to five-and-a-half-inch. The adults visit tubed flowers at dusk.
