Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: cucumber beetle

My friend Robin gave me 4 young plants this spring, and two of them are finally blooming, so I went out to take some pictures of them today. As it turned out, I found a pair of cucumber beetles on the blossoms and those pictures turned out much nicer than the flower pictures did, so I will try again in the next couple of days for better images of the flowers! :)

By the way, do you know what kind of plant this is? Thyme? Facts about Cucumber Beetles: Cucumber beetles are found throughout the United States and southern parts of Canada. The adult cucumber beetle overwinters under vegetation debris or thick grasses. In areas where winters are quite cold, the cucumber beetle migrates southward to warmer regions. They return to their northern habitats during the spring of each year. They search for food in nearby fields, eating wood pollen and stems while waiting for the emergence of their favorite crops such as cucumber, bean, and various squash and melon seedlings. The spotted cucumber beetle will also feast on corn, peas, potatoes, tomatoes, and peanuts among other vegetation.

4 more pictures above! Today I didn't have any plans for my Picture of the Day so I just popped outside and started looking around. I think I wasn't as inspired as I could be--the truth is that I was really hungry and that's not the time to be taking pictures--so I took about 30 pictures before I decided to go home and try again after lunch. However, as I was about to walk into the house, I noticed a splotch on a Zinnia leaf and went over to investigate. OH!! One of my favorite insects, a Cucumber Bug! It was crawling around under a leaf, and I managed to get a couple of pictures before it went around to the other side to hide. "Little bug, you cannot hide from me!" And I took a picture of its shadow too! :D Napoleon Hill (October 26, 1883 – November 8, 1970) was an American author in the area of the new thought movement who was one of the earliest producers of the modern genre of personal-success literature. He is widely considered to be one of the great writers on success. His most famous work, Think and Grow Rich (1937), is one of the best-selling books of all time (at the time of Hill's death in 1970, Think and Grow Rich had sold 20 million copies). Hill's works examined the power of personal beliefs, and the role they play in personal success. He became an advisor to President Franklin D. Roosevelt from 1933 to 1936. "What the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve" is one of Hill's hallmark expressions. How achievement actually occurs, and a formula for it that puts success in reach of the average person, were the focal points of Hill's books. Wikipedia: Napoleon Hill

I have always loved these pretty little beetles. They are about the size of a ladybug, and like to eat plant matter. I have always thought they look like little walking jewelry! :) From Wiki: The spotted cucumber beetle (Diabrotica undecimpunctata) is a major agricultural pest insect of North America. In the adult form, it eats and damages leaves of many crops, including cucumbers, soybeans, cotton, beans, and many others. In the larval form, which is known as the southern corn rootworm, it tunnels through the roots of young plants, stunting or killing them. These native pests have a wide range of host plants, but will readily infest a field of crop plants, most notoriously corn.

It's nearing the end of June and today it rained on and off all day long! Such an amazing event, I wanted to get at least one picture with droplets in it. I would have made this cute little guy my picture of the day but I have been featuring so many bugs as my first picture lately that I thought I should put him second!

[best appreciated at full size against black] I have discovered that ladybugs and cucumber beetles can be found wandering around on thistle plants, which are now beginning to pop out of the ground all over our meadows. A couple of days ago, I was quietly watching this ladybug and taking pictures when I noticed a cucumber beetle nearby. "Hmmm...I wonder what will happen if these two meet?" You may not know this, but cucumber beetles are herbavores and suck the sap out of plants, though they will sometimes eat aphids. Ladaybugs are predators, and cucumber beetles are something they like to eat. I watched the scene unfold, and as they walked up and down leaves, they got closer and closer, until they made their way towards each other on the same stem. The second they met, they quickly touched antennae and both did a 180 and zoomed away from each other as fast as they could go! Honestly, I was so excited that both pictures I took came out blurry, but happily, this one was perfect! YAY! I've uploaded two other pictures today and I hope you'll visit them too! Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :) NOTE! I have finally updated my profile and I hope you'll take a look to find out a little more about me and how important all of you are to my experience here on Flickr! www.flickr.com/people/sfhipchick/ This image was taken in March, 2012.