This morning a female Snapping Turtle toiled to excavate a nest hole in hard-packed gravel. After laying her eggs she carefully filled the hole using only fine material, mostly sand, leaving aside larger stones that might hamper the hatchlings when they dig themselves out of the hole.
Along the West River, Ninebark's rounded flower cluster were at their peak.
And a Goldenrod Crab spider waited patiently for prey to blunder into its grasp. The spider grabs and holds with its forelegs, injects paralyzing and digesting agents and feeds on the predigested insides of its prey. I've seen Bumblebees fall victim to these little spiders. Later in the season the spider may turn yellow to blend in while lurking on Goldenrod.
John
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| Snapping Turtle |
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| Snapping turtle excavating a hole for eggs |
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| Ninebark |
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| Goldenrod Crab Spider |
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