This little critter is harmless to people.... just really annoying. It's a little black weevil. They somehow make it into our house come August 1st. They crawl on the walls, the ceilings, the bathtubs. Thank heavens they don't bite or I'd be outta here! As for crops... they eat em' up. The ones in my house are lucky or they'd been sprayed to death by the farmers. Although death by flushing may not be fun either. Hah!
The next one however is not so harmless. It's destroying my yard. Meet the stalk borer. It eventually turns into a moth but until then it's a MONSTER. In 1927, it was listed among the ten most destructive plants in the US. Basically, the moths lay their eggs and the eggs overwinter. They they hatch into little worms that take up residence in prairie grass. They drill a hole in the side of the stem and eat their way up the stem. As they get fatter, they seek out bigger host plants such as corn or as in my case... hollyhocks, lilies, delphiniums and coneflowers.
*insert scream here* You never see them until your plant is blooming beautifully and then one day... SNAP. You think it's the wind until you notice the hole in the side of the stem and start opening up that stem to see it's been hollowed out. I cut up the stem with scissors until I find the little bugger and then chop it's head off. Don't mess with my flowers. Ugly dude eh?
This last one however was saved because of it's looks. It's a beauty. Although it could deplete my asclepias plant overnight I couldn't kill it. Afterall, it will be a beautiful Monarch.
Am I prejudice for saving the beautiful bugs and not the ugly ones even though they both do damage? Don't answer that.
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