Catching the fleeting scenes of many splendored life
'Look closely. The beautiful may be small' — Kant

17 June 2013

Garden Nasturtium (Tropaeolum Majus) and The Forest Cockchafer (Melolontha hippocastani)

Garden Nasturtium (Tropaeolum Majus), Indian cress or monks cress) belongs to the family Tropaeolaceae and is native to the Andes from Bolivia to Colombia. Garden nasturtiums are grown for their showy flowers and as a medicinal plant. Besides, both their leaves and flowers are edible — they add beauty and a delicious peppery flavour to salads.

Deep orange garden nasturtium (Tropaeolum Majus) flower
(© LightColourShade. All rights reserved)

Deep orange garden nasturtium (Tropaeolum Majus) flower close-up
(© LightColourShade. All rights reserved)

This creature bumped me several times, so I deduced it wanted me to take its picture. The forest cockchafer (Melolontha hippocastani), colloquially called May bug, mitchamador, billy witch, or spang beetle) is a European beetle of the genus Melolontha, in the family Scarabaeidae. Adults reach sizes of 20–25 mm and display curious "leaves" on their antennae: males have seven whereas the females have only six. It lives in meadows, and gardens, and eats plants and tree foliage.

Forest cockchafer (Melolontha hippocastani) feeding on a grass leaf
(© LightColourShade. All rights reserved)

No comments:

Post a Comment

Speak out, I'm listening.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...