Cricket catching! Now this is great fun. We listen for their chirps amongst the tall grass or amongst the wheat. Approach slowly, they hush, we look really carefully and then catch! They are fast, but then so are we! They have lovely long antennae packed with sensory receptors. Their song, so familiar in spring and summer months, is made by the cricket rubbing their outer wings together. They have a complex acoustic system and some of their song variations cannot be heard by the human ear. In China, a particular variety of cricket is often kept as pets for their happy song. They are a tasty food in some parts of Asia and Africa. In Zimbabwe and South Africa, the giant tobacco crickets are an important source of animal protein.
We also enjoyed watching the numerous little frogs that burrow in the ground around the sunflower fields. The boys enjoyed digging for them and trying to spot them. They were well camouflaged on the ground.
Leo decided to pick up a very big bumblebee and subsequently got stung on the tip of his thumb! Ouch! They both must have got a terrible fright.
Noah and a ladybird.
Today we also came across a very big black hairy caterpillar who raced away super fast. I wonder what he will become...
Those are tiny, tiny frogs!
ReplyDeleteI love spending time in nature. It's amazing how many little creatures are surrounding us that we normally don't notice until we take the time to be still and notice. :)
Morning dear friend
ReplyDeleteTo have three bug hunters...I do love little bug people. Aaron my bug man is hibernating at the moment. Other than our lizards spotted along the wall catching some Winter sun, we are finding very little movement in our garden. He does however love looking at Sol,Noah and Leo's interesting finds. Come Summer,we are sure to find some interesting African beauty's which we will share with you.
Happy day to you Kelly from Africa.
XX
Suzanne
A lovely day!
ReplyDeleteWe were eyeing grasshoppers the other day, but haven't caught eithr crickets or grasshoppers yet!
The frogs are delicious... how great to be able to touch and hold the little tiny friends.
A great day of exploring, for sure!
Tammy, those frogs were incredibly sweet. You are so right in saying that there is so much life around us when we stop to look.
ReplyDeleteSuzanne,
Each time I visit your blog, Sol recognises it by your lovely Down in the Meadow illustration and he asks what Aaron has found recently. He looks forward to his interesting finds when spring/summer arrives!
Hi Stephanie
Yesterday, we were catching grasshoppers. Those little chaps are fast! Faster than crickets. Have a fun weekend!