Rewilding My Lot

Not surprisingly, I get a lot of insect visitors here. Every now and again I’ll intervene if they are attacking a vulnerable plant or something that I wish to eat myself, but if I can, I’ll let them do what they need to do. Insects are such an important part of the nature ecosystem.

Here are two that I’ve seen recently.

Plains Bee Assassin (Apiomerus spissipes)

As the name suggests, this insect can be responsible for killing bees, which one might perhaps prefer to be pollinating plants. However, the Plains Bee Assassin will also kill other insects that might be damaging plants. So who knows what is the overall benefit of these creatures. It’s all a part of the tapestry of nature.

Harlequin Bug (Murgantia histrionica)

This insect can be a pest on cabbage and related plants, but in my garden they seem to most like sunflowers. They certainly are colorful.