Category Archives: Unsolved Mysteries

The Yard List(s), Part 11

Posted on June 10, 2020 by

Now that I’ve declared my intention to find as many sawfly larvae as possible, they’re starting to show up everywhere I look. Today Julia and I made a rare trip away from home, lured by the news from my mother … Continue reading →

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Rhubarb Riddle

Posted on June 8, 2020 by

To make up for some of my recent extra-long posts, here’s one that’s short and sweet… If something involving rhubarb can be called sweet. The vast majority of email queries I receive are along the lines of, “here’s something I … Continue reading →

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Ten Years Later

Posted on March 15, 2020 by

Since we have ten fingers and ten toes, I suppose it’s worth mentioning that it was ten years ago today that Tracks & Sign of Insects and Other Invertebrates was first published. People are often surprised when I tell them that … Continue reading →

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In Search of the Lost Sawfly

Posted on February 11, 2019 by

Greetings to everyone who subscribed to this blog after my recent post about the inhabitants of a clump of sod in my front lawn! This one will take us a little farther afield. As most of you know, I’ve been … Continue reading →

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In Search of Spring Beauties

Posted on May 7, 2018 by

Although spring is technically already half over, it only really got started around here in the past week or so. Yesterday I saw my first spring beauties (Montiaceae: Claytonia caroliniana): These little wildflowers are only around for a few weeks before … Continue reading →

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Another Day, Another Mothy Mystery

Posted on October 19, 2017 by

Yesterday Cheryl Harleston of Yelapa, Mexico showed me these photos she had recently taken, and asked if I had any thoughts about them. She called the subject a “corral made of grains of sand.” My immediate reaction was “I’ve never seen … Continue reading →

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Mailbag

Posted on October 16, 2016 by

People regularly send me photos of mystery objects and other bug-related phenomena to see if I recognize them. Often I’m able to respond with a precise (or approximate) identification, and that’s the end of it. Other times I’m intrigued by the … Continue reading →

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Things To Look For This Spring, Part 3

Posted on April 27, 2016 by

First, a quick update on the hackberry galls: Mike Palmer has found a bunch of them in Oklahoma, and in fact they may already all have been abandoned there. Some of them have holes near the base, and others have … Continue reading →

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Things To Look For This Spring, Part 1

Posted on April 4, 2016 by

I have a pretty much endless mental list of natural history mysteries that I would like to follow up on at some point, but there are several that, for various reasons, are in the front of my mind right now. A few of … Continue reading →

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Dune-burrowing Moths

Posted on October 12, 2015 by

In late July of 2008, Noah and I were on our way to Zion National Park in Utah when we spotted a sign for Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, which we had never heard of. It sounded like a good … Continue reading →

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