Green on green in the greenbelt
In the greenbelt off Taylor Draper Ln. on October 7th I found what I think is the larva of a moth on a leaf of what I know is a buffalo gourd vine, Cucurbita foetidissima.
© 2016 Steven Schwartzman
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Portraits of Wildflowers 
On a mid-November morning that’s still relatively warm and comfortable, this little creature and its perch look surprisingly frosty. The larva, especially, has the appealing glisten-and-shine of a frosty morning, but even the little hairs on the leaf could be confused with frost needles. It’s such a cool photo (in every sense) it makes me want to reach for a sweater.
shoreacres
November 14, 2016 at 8:03 AM
This time we had quite different impressions, with mine not including anything related to cold. The stiff little hairs give the leaf a sandpaper-like feel if you run your finger across it. The plant as a whole has an unpleasant enough smell to have earned the alternate name stinking gourd. I don’t know if the caterpillar had a scent.
Steve Schwartzman
November 14, 2016 at 8:49 AM
Fascinating…
lensandpensbysally
November 14, 2016 at 8:24 AM
A moth was close by but flew away before I could get a picture of it.
Steve Schwartzman
November 14, 2016 at 8:50 AM
It’s funny, but I also felt an urge to reach for a sweater! But also, anticipation. What will you turn out to be, little green creature?
melissabluefineart
November 14, 2016 at 9:50 AM
Hmmm, two votes for cold. I don’t know what to make of that.
There was a moth on the leaf near the caterpillar but it flew away before I could photograph it. I seem to remember it had an orange-brown area on it. Not much help for identification, I’m afraid.
Steve Schwartzman
November 14, 2016 at 10:05 AM
I don’t know my moths anyway. I know people who learn everything~frogs, dragonflies, plants, moths, birds….my mind goes on overload just thinking about it 🙂
melissabluefineart
November 14, 2016 at 10:21 AM
I know what you mean. I can’t even do plants thoroughly.
Steve Schwartzman
November 14, 2016 at 10:31 AM
But you do them really well.
melissabluefineart
November 14, 2016 at 10:56 AM
Thanks, Melissa. Plants recommend themselves in Austin, which doesn’t have grand landscapes like the many we saw in the Southwest on the 26-day trip we got back from on Thursday.
Steve Schwartzman
November 14, 2016 at 11:01 AM
That is quite true. When I think of moving to Washington I realize I will be trading a botanical richness for a geological one and am not sure it will translate well in my art. Of course, I have a treasure trove of photos to take with me to paint from.
melissabluefineart
November 14, 2016 at 11:40 AM
But Washington (at least the coastal portion) has the many plants and mosses and lichens of its temperate rainforests. We got doses of that in several redwood parks in the Bay Area in California—including some rain.
Steve Schwartzman
November 14, 2016 at 11:45 AM
True, and don’t forget all the cool sea weeds that wash up, not to mention what one can find in a tide pool. Oh, boy, I can hardly wait.
melissabluefineart
November 14, 2016 at 12:07 PM
You’re sounding much more sure about a move to Washington.
On our trip I got to play a little with beach things in several places along the California coast. It reminded me of the fun in New Zealand last year.
Steve Schwartzman
November 14, 2016 at 12:12 PM
Can’t wait to see what you shot.
I’m pretty definite about Washington now, you’re right. It’s just that the prices out there are a bit beyond me still and it seems people in California are fleeing north, driving prices up.
melissabluefineart
November 15, 2016 at 9:19 AM
It’s taken a while to get all the pictures transferred to my main hard drive from the travel drive I carried with me on the trip. In fact I had to buy another hard drive in California because the one in the laptop filled up. This time I don’t have a Melissa to identify plants for me, alas.
For some time now people have been fleeing California for Texas as well, and that’s one factor in the continuing rise in home prices here. Houses (and therefore apartments too) have gotten especially expensive in Austin. Good luck on eventually finding something reasonable in Washington.
Steve Schwartzman
November 15, 2016 at 9:26 AM
Thank you Steve 🙂
melissabluefineart
November 15, 2016 at 9:38 AM