Wasp Moth and Seedlings

Scarlet-bodied Wasp Moth (Cosmosoma myrodora) on a marigold

Whilst planting the winter seedlings today (yes, I'm a bit late...) I was graced with the presence of this beautiful wasp moth (Family Arctiidae). You can see the marigold through its clear wings in the photo above, a trait not shared by all wasp moths. The moths mimic wasps in their general form and shape and imitate either the flight habits or resting positions of wasps. Some feed on poisonous plants as larvae and attain the added defense of integrating the host plant's toxins into its body as a deterrent against predation. Bright coloration is a warning of the moth's toxicity, however this particular moth is banking on everyone else instilling the fear of indigestion on would-be predators since its larvae do not feed on toxic plants; it merely uses the bright colors as a bluff. Both pretending to be a wasp (in form and behavior) and utilizing false warning coloration are examples of Batesian mimicry...pretending to be bad-ass when you're not. Perhaps there is someone you know who employs this same type of defensive strategy. ("You're not fooling anyone, you know..." ~MP)

Winter seedlings in their trays

A row of newly planted Johnny jump-ups (Viola tricolor)

The winter seedlings are just over a month old and most are about an inch all around in size - tiny! Since I was so late getting these started, I decided to forgo the process of "growing out" in a pot. Along with the aforementioned Johnnies, I've planted:

blue lobelia 'Crystal Palace' (Lobelia erinus)
giant red mustard (Brassica juncea)
purple ornamental cabbage (Brassica oleracea)
dwarf pak choi 'Toy Choi' (Brassica rapa)
leeks (Allium ampeloprasum)
pink-ish calendula 'Zeolights' (Calendula officinalis)
flat leaf parsley (Petroselinum crispum)
feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium)
carnation 'Siberian Blue' (Dianthus amurensis) and
Stoke's blue aster (Stokesia laevis)

The latter three I don't expect to bloom until spring. Tomorrow, because I demand they grow quickly, I'm going to douse them with fish emulsion. In the meantime, the Devil's Trumpet and marigolds have been blooming like crazy. They certainly didn't do that over the summer, but they're lovely now.

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Day 82 (Day 5 CS) - Collection

"What do you collect? Work with a collection of your own or borrow one." Pure Admiration It's funny, I only recently acknowledged to myself that yes, I do collect something: literature and art books from Heian-era Japan (794-1185), and here is a prompt for that. I just acquired the Choju Giga art book seen in the background (hooray!) which inspired me to recycle two projects from October 2015's CreativeSprint and use them in a different context. The mantispid was made on CS 2015 Day 1 and the painting is a miniature print-out of a mock Choju Giga drawing I did on CS 2015 Day 8 . The easel and paintbrush are made of kraft cardstock. [April 6, 2016]

Day 15 - Historical Precedent

Day 15 Learn about something that happened today in history and make something inspired by it. Rhinoceros Beetle Gong I now realize I may have misread the prompt. I thought I had to merely learn about some piece of history and use that as inspiration, but I'm sure on this day 1,000 years ago, 500 years ago, or even last year, a gong was sounded. Oh well! On the 15th I went to the Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) in Phoenix and based my project on the many gongs in their collection. They had a display illustrating how gongs are traditionally made (i.e. - labor intensive), and I learned that there are generally three types of gongs ( suspended gongs or tam-tams which are flat; bossed which have a raised center, are tuned, and sometimes suspended; and bowl gongs which are more like large bells). They originated in China, their first uses are thought to be as a signal for the workers to return from the fields since some gongs are loud enough to be h...

Day 8 - Master Works

Day 8 Recreate or interpret a work of art you admire. This is based on a famous panel of the Choju Giga scroll (Animal Caricatures or Scrolls of Frolicking Animals) which was created sometime in the late 12th century in Japan. Similar to the original's ink on paper, mine was rendered in India ink and red acrylic ink on Bristol paper. I've replaced the rabbit with a click beetle trying to right itself, and the frogs were replaced with mantids (feeling ill today and my hand started cramping after I drew the beetle. The mantids aren't as well done as I would like. I may redo this sometime because I think it came out cute otherwise). The top "seal" in red says sumimasen , which is Japanese for excuse me! and the lower one is my name in Japanese. This was fun to make, but sketching with a brush is a lot harder than it looks, and no erasing! The Choju Giga artist was truly a master, I very much admire the brush work in the original. Here is the o...

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