One of the greatest things about summer for me is the insects, of course.  I love them.  They are an example of evolution that went in a direction completely at odds with other animals.  They don’t have skeletons.  They have armor.  They have compound eyes.  They sport six legs, as opposed to the standard four limbs found among reptiles and mammals alike.  I could go on and on ad infinitum, but I don’t want to belabor the point.  Insect are just plain cool.  This post is for Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Summer Scenes.

Any discussion of insects would be remiss without a look at a beautiful butterfly.  Here’s a bit of trivia.  Butterflies used to be called “flutter-bys.”  Somewhere along the line, it got twisted around.  I’d like to call them flutterbys.  Yes, indeed.  Another interesting tidbit.  It is my understanding that the Aztecs considered butterflies the souls of their people on their way to heaven.  What a lovely and poetic notion.These insects are abundant here in Maryland.  At first I thought it was a firefly (aka lightening bug) but upon inspection, their abdomens don’t look like they can glow in the dark.  If anybody can identify this little critter for me, I’d be very gratefulIs there a difference between wasps and hornets?  Or they just different names for the same creature?  I’ve never been one for big vacations.  I much prefer the occasional day trip.  Here’s a selfie from nearly twenty years ago.  Los Angeles was my home then.  One day a friend of mine asked me if I had ever seen the Watts Towers.  “Seen them?  I’ve never even heard of them!” was my response.  Fascinating constructs, they are.  A lovely summer day it was.