Benjamin Park, Waterloo, ON

03 August, 2025 

     This park is a mere five minutes from our front door, so we often visit for an hour or two. It is a long narrow park, sandwiched between houses on both sides, but is home to a variety of creatures and vegetation.

       Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides) was looking quite splendid.

     Yellow Archangel (Lamium galeobdolon) covered a lot of ground; the leaves are especially attractive. 

     Flies in the genus Condylostylus are both common and attractive. Three examples follow.

     Riverbank Grape (Vitis riparia) has produced a fine crop of fruit.

     A Cluster Fly in the genus Pollenia.

     Flesh Flies and Satellite Flies (family Sarcophagidae) are impressive insects.

     The common name "flesh fly" derives from several abundant members of the family that develop in cadavers and carrion.

      Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) is common and appealing, an opinion tempered somewhat by gardeners!

     Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) is loved by all.

     Perennial Sow Thistle (Sonchus arvensis) produces a burst of colour that brightens everyone's day.

    It is often found in derelict areas and alongside roads, lending life to desolate spaces.

     Cross Orbweaver (Araneus diadematus) is easily found with a minimum of searching.

     Lesser Burdock (Arctium minus) is not a plant that receives a lot of affection, but it is undeniably beautiful.

     Anyone who has brushed up against it knows the tenacious manner in which the burs stick to clothing - or pets. So effective is it, the plant served as the inspiration for Velcro.

     A Common Eastern Bumblebee (Bombus impatiens) evidently found a source of nectar and was quick to exploit it.

     Masked Bees (genus Hylaeus) lack external pollen-carrying structures; instead they transport both nectar and pollen in the crop.

     This Common House Fly (Musca domestica) was perhaps seeking salt from human sweat.

      Common House Fly possibly originated in the Middle East and accompanied humans around the world as a commensal. It is known to spread many diseases; cleanliness is the best defence against them. Stephen Marshall says, ".....is now one of the most widespread and dangerous of all insects because of its association with humans and their associated filth."

     We are our own worst enemy, aren't we?

Addendum

     Recently I led a couple of nature walks for children, and one exceptionally bright and curious participant asked a couple of probing questions about "what makes an insect an insect?"  It occurs to me that others might be interested to - so here are the facts!

     Insects share eight of the ten body systems we have - nervous, respiratory, digestive, circulatory, excretory, muscular, endocrine, and reproductive. Our remaining two systems, our skeleton and our skin, are replaced in the insect by an exoskeleton, and an open circulatory system that moves hemolymph (the insect equivalent of blood) throughout the body.

     This is a brief summary, but gives you the essentials. There you have it!