Spider, butterfly and fly!

I love seeing a spider’s web! Such industrious work goes into creating a web to capture their prey that I simply admire the work done by spiders. Then I want to find the spider! In my perfect world I would have loved to have sprayed the web with some water so I could photograph it better, but I did not want to harm any of the work this spider was doing and actively working on. With the help of iNaturalist app, I have identified this spider as a western spotted orb weaver. Notice the spiral wheel-shaped web, orb, used to capture other insect prey.

As I was looking at nearby plants, I noticed another insect. Butterflies are a challenge to photograph; however, this one was slow in the heat of the day so I took advantage of that. This is a common gray hairstreak. They are found throughout North America and only live 3-4 weeks on average.

Butterflies appear in many myths around the world with the butterfly as a spirit guide. Depending on the stage of its metamorphosis there can be various meanings. Overall, they remind us to expand our awareness and insight, done in many ways such as: reading, travel, art and in healthy relationships with others who encourage us to grow and be better versions of ourselves.

I then thought I was seeing a bee, yet it was a type of hoverfly. Three hundred species of these Copestylum flies exist. Four of the species exist outside America having probably been introduced inside cacti. This is a Copestylum marginatum:

So they are the insects on the plants today, but tomorrow is a new day! Take time to notice the insects making use of or enjoying your yard of plants. No insecticides are used on our property so we can enjoy a variety of insects! They are important animals in the overall web of life and need to survive even for their short lifetime!