Month: August 2012 (Page 1 of 5)

Bug of the Week: Damselfly and Photography

Have you ever wondered how nature photographers capture such wonderful shots of flighty insects?

Take damselflies like this one. Damselflies, and their relatives the dragonflies, are fast, strong fliers. How do you ever catch one sitting still enough for a photograph?

It helps to know the damselfly’s behavior. For example, this damselfly was not exactly sitting still, although it looks like it from the photograph. What it is doing is perching, waiting for a fly or some other potential food item to fly by. See those big eyes? When it spots something, it launches into the air and grabs the prey. The beauty is that these insects often return to the same exact perch to hunt again and again. With patience, you can set up your tripod and grab a good shot of an active insect in a moment of stillness.

Mystery Seed of the Week 129

Sometimes it is important to know what plants or seeds not to eat, or even to grow.

Today’s mystery seeds fall into that category. The plant these dried fruit came from is considered an invasive weed in several states.

The fruit should not be eaten and the plant is poisonous.

Any ideas what kind of tree these are from?

The answer will be posted next Tuesday.

Seed of the Week: Soybeans

You might have recognized our mystery seeds last week if I had shown you this photograph of the unripe seeds (cooked). This form is called edamame.

The seeds were from a soybean plant, Glycine max.

The seeds grow in fuzzy pods.

If you are growing soybeans for seeds, allow them to mature and the pods to turn brown.

Don’t look much edamame do they?

The plants have leaves made up of three leaflets. The stems are also fuzzy.

Have you every grown soybeans?

What is your favorite way to eat them?

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