Friday, May 2, 2014

Where to Collect Bugs in Early Spring - Our Family Hobby Insect Collection

We are very excited about a new season of bug collecting. The kids are even bringing up ideas and where we should go and look for bugs this year. While the Polar Vortex has been been haunting Chicagoland, with 40 degree weather on May 1st, we are already finding some of our tiny world friends.


Where to Collect Bugs in Early Spring - Our Family Hobby Insect Collection


We had a patch of warm weather with 60-70 degree temperature in April. I was looking at our front garden flowers and heard this bumble bee buzzing around. Insects are around us year round, just hibernating the through the cold months.

These photos were taken with my Iphone 5. It gets the job done. This bumble bee was captured in three shots, happily finding nectar, hovering on the flowers edge and then I caught him just before he flew away. and he inspired me to write about where bugs can be found this early in the season. ESPECAILLY considering the insanely colder then normal tempaeratures around here.

We have started collecting this year already, and here's where we found our specimens.


Where to Collect Bugs in Early Spring: Our Insect Collection by areyousureaboutthatblog
I'm still very pleased with my self and this photo of our little friend in our front garden. 



LIFE IS STILL EXCITING AT OUR HOUSE! 
With more insects. . . 


AMI Studios Chicago

It's mostly baby girls videos and here slime making, she spends time with friends, goes on road trips, lots of coloring activities and make good choices while having fun. During the covid stay at home orders - she had many many many facetime pandemic playdates - we made time work for us and not be bored.


Where to Collect Bugs in Early Spring - Our Family Hobby Insect Collection


Where to Collect Bugs in Early Spring: Our Insect Collection by areyousureaboutthatblog

Here the bumble bee is really in deep, he stayed inside for several seconds enjoying a goog long drink I suppose.

Where to Collect Bugs in Early Spring: Our Insect Collection by areyousureaboutthatblog


The Bumble Bee is flying away. He's gotten his fill of our flower for the day.


Early Season Bug Collecting

What you'll need:Collecting jars, and kill jars.

Where to Find Bugs in the Early Spring:

- in the house: Clearly spring cleaning brings out some bug who died already. I've found box elders in my attic door jam, flies on a windo ledge- between the window and the screen too. Recently a house centipede was on my daughters room curtains, he was captured. And the House Centipede is the First Specimen after deciding to start Live COllecting Bugs. Flies on windowsills and even some ants have attempted to come indoors.

- play lots: a wasp came out of early hibernation (see him in Step 6. Staging on the link) in the warm days and he became bound for our collection, as he wouldn't survive the frost later that night. He was in the kids playlist amongst the wood chips.

- under trees: last seasons cicada nymph shells are scattered around still. The kids like exploring these, their shapes and sizes, as well as where the spot is that the cicada emerged from its shell.

- ants are out already too. Especially on days where we get a few hours of sun, the warmth teases them out of ground.

- gardening brings out bugs too. I found several slugs, snails and spiders in the garden as I've moved a few plants around. These are around all season long, but they help us get our early bug collecting fix. And it's a great start for my kids to practice on in the Spring.

- bees and wasps collecting nectar on warm days: the early bumble bees as pictured here. Capturing them with a net us easier then trying with a collection jar :-)

- hidden under logs and growth: we have a forest preserve near our home, so turning over logs, rocks and other things that built up or fell over in the autumn months are a nice source of bugs too.

We try as best as we can to take advantage of warm days and simply enjoy the outdoors. Collecting bugs is just an added bonus.

Make mistakes. Breathe, reflect and Laugh.Out.Loud.

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