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True and lasting felicity, as intense happiness, is an inner phenomenon; it is not merely the result of outer stimuli.
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[Leaves of the Ginkgo Tree. Ginkgo Trees were around during the time of the dinosaurs.]
Ancient and alive… kind of like me! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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One can intelligently question with a mind that observes with childlike wonderment. One can care lovingly like a heart with a passionate harmony.
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[Two Turtles at the Shedd Aquarium.]
Two Turtle Doves (or, rather, dives). Photo by Thomas Peace 2015
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Ecclesiastes 1:9 (New International Version):
What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.
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Happy Katydid! Photo by Thomas Peace 2015
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The painter is the painted. The cleaner is the cleaned. The climber is the climbed. The thinker is the thought.
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Elegant Lady. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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There’s no magic guru to blindly chase after, to cling to the apron strings of. There’s only you… and no distance to insightful awareness/reality/truth.
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[Leopard Frog nestled deep in the underbrush, far from the beaten path.]
Far from heavy traffic. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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It may be that merely looking at life through (and “as”) a screen of symbols – as most do – isn’t really looking at life at all.
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Plants can be blue… humans needn’t be. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Go beyond merely having ideals of what you want to be or “should be.” Such ideals often create inner conflict and friction within (and “as”) the mind and are usually a waste of energy. Look at your actions — without separation — from moment to moment without images of desire or idealism. This doesn’t mean that one just goes on to live in a crazy, disorderly way; it does mean that perhaps attention is looking without “learned patterns,”… and, instead, with a natural, field of order that is beyond conflict, beyond the mind’s (or others’) imposed fabrications. Profound understanding and keen (uncontaminated) “observing” changes things… not stale, concocted ideals.
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As a caterpillar, I didn’t desire this. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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If the mind renews itself each and every moment… there is no boring job of drudgery.
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[Ladybugs are largely carnivorous and eat little insects called Aphids. In this photograph, the captured Aphid is ejecting (i.e., offering) some honeydew, but to no avail. Ants herd Aphids — and protect them like cows – to get honeydew from them (like getting milk from protected cows); but this Ladybug is not just interested in the honeydew; it wants steak for dinner. (There were no protective ants within or around this particular Aphid colony.)]
It likes it medium rare. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Perhaps real spirituality is not found — locked up in confinement — in temples, where masses of people often worship self-created images, but is found when one understands oneself alone, such as when one is out in nature (without deception, without fabrication, without endless, internal chattering, and without a bunch of pretense).
After the death of the historical Christ, there were many Gospels and bibles about Jesus that different groups of people cherished and felt were legitimate. Many years after the death of the historical Christ, The Gospel of Thomas — which many of the world’s top (current) Biblical Scholars feel was written before the standard four — was declared heretical by the high priests who catered to Rome’s Emperor Constantine… no doubt largely because it called for finding God for oneself and not by following others (such as priests, leaders, and gurus). Some top scholars even feel that the Gospel of John was written as a rebuttal against the Gospel of Thomas. (Jesus was initially an ardent follower of John the Baptist, who advocated finding God far from the temples, out in nature; John was terminated by the authorities.) From the early Greek version of the Gospel of Thomas found at the ancient Oxyrhynchus site:
Jesus said, “Where there are three, they are without God. And where there is only one, I say, I am with him. Lift up the stone and you will find me there. Split a piece of wood and I am there.”
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[The Christmas ornaments are on the left. One of Santa’s reindeer is on the right.]
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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It’s “there” waiting for you… that “there” that isn’t separate from what you are.
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[Clouded Sulphur Butterflies getting some much needed minerals from the river bank.]
Two into one. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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The turning of the knob was the door opening and the movement towards being closer to nature.
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Knobs and entry ways… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Meditation is never a practice. You can’t practice profound perception, deep awareness, and alive/dynamic wisdom.
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[Fossilized dinosaur bone, Jurassic Period, Southern Utah. Dinosaur bone had chambers within it to store air from the lungs and was more advanced than what mammals had (and still have).]
Bad to the bone. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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It’s great to get together with family for Christmas!
(Be sure to see the video below.)
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Evergreen. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Schools and educators would do well by putting much more emphasis on cooperation rather than on ruthless competition. T(ruthless) competition bestows a mentality that leans more toward domination and indifference. Cooperation confers more learning in terms of helping, consideration, sharing, and kindness. Perhaps one of the reasons our world is going to pot is that so many are just out for themselves (accepting a crass, dog-eat-dog mentality).
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[The gills of the mushroom help support each other (as the whole).]
Not competing. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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To be truly bankrupt is to lack compassion.
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[Bracket Fungi on an old, sawed, fallen tree trunk.]
Well stacked! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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To look through the screen of learned, old patterns (that they instilled) is to gaze at them (i.e., at their mental images and labels)… not at the fresh, alive actuality.
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Whatever… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Live life magically, not heavy-footed and ungracefully!
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[Female Whitetail Dragonfly]
Natural and balanced. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Don’t lose your innocence. Don’t ever merely crave to “fit in” with the crowd. Don’t ever fear “being made fun of” or fear “being rejected.” Stand alone without being a slave to “what they think.”
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[Here we go ’round the mulberry bush,
The mulberry bush, the mulberry bush.
Here we go ’round the mulberry bush,
So early in the morning.]
So early in the morning… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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What motivates you? Is what motivates you rather ordinary, limited, and superficial… or is it something with tremendous depth?
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[A session (i.e., social gathering) of the Nature Appreciation Club.]
Nature Appreciation Club. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Face life and truth as it actually is… not merely as what you want it to be or as what you were taught.
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[Meeting with an old friend.]
Discussing the day’s events. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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The divisive notion of “us” and “them” causes wars.
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[The single queen that laid these eggs was well fed indeed!]
Many new sisters are on the way! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Can one ever remain truly happy if one is constantly looking at the world through the labels that others instilled in one?
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[Buffalo Treehoppers feed on the sap of flowers, vegetables, shrubs, and deciduous trees.]
There’s a hole in their theories! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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If, each and every day, one is wisely psychologically dying to the hullabaloo and clamor of superfluous thoughts, then one isn’t afraid of the mystery of dying (as so many are). Then living and dying aren’t two separate things… nor the latter something horrible to be frightened of.
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[Widow Dragonfly]
Black Widow. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Few of us actually live between the past and the future because we are obtrusions of the past reacting to (and “as”) past learned images and desires.
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[Eastern Comma Butterflies are found from spring through fall in woodland and forest openings and along the edges of thickets, streams, and rivers. This one is resting along the bank of a river.]
Moist environments rock. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Thought is a necessary and extremely helpful tool; but it’s only a tool… not the true essence of the organism. When the mind is cluttered with a myriad of needless thoughts throughout the day (as it is in so many, with their endless fears and habitual, repetitive imagery) … it’s, in a way, like a plant burdened with many insects. However, don’t merely “try” to eradicate excess thoughts… because that would likely be some thoughts trying to eliminate “other” thoughts (accomplishing, in reality, nothing)… leaving the “plant” remaining rather “buggy.” (Fabricating more bugs to chase away other bugs leaves one remaining “buggy.”) Simply observe each series of thoughts without psychological separation (being aware of the space between thoughts as the thoughts perish and end)… and then a natural silence may beautifully occur without effort (i.e., without another fabrication trying to get rid of them). That natural silence would occur without struggle, without concocted manipulation, without friction, without conflict.
(Of course, there are endless people who prefer to remain buggy!)
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[Aphid insects on a wild plant.]
Too much of a good thing. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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To have a decent rapport with nature… go beyond the self and become “one with plants and animals.”
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[A Grasshopper (with a penthouse view) and a Ladybug. Most Grasshoppers are vegetarian, while Ladybugs are mostly carnivorous. The Ladybug will not attack the Grasshopper, though, since the prey of Ladybugs is much smaller.]
Penthouse View… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Love all beings and creatures in life… not just your little self and family, race, and nation.
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[A pair of Black Phantom Tetras. The male is in the foreground… the female in the background. The tiny adipose fin — at the top of the fish between the tail fin and the much larger dorsal fin — is clear in the males and red in the females. The males also have larger and more flamboyant dorsal fins. Most freshwater tropical fish of the Tetra group have the little adipose fins… but few have such distinctive indicators to distinguish the males from the females.]
Black Phantoms in our midst… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Friction and conflict — in the mind — begins with thinking the “me” as separate from (and in control of) the “other” thoughts.
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[Black Ants on a very large Oak Tree.]
Busy as bees… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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The subject thought that it was separate from the object. At least that is what it was taught. But without all the objects, what would the subject be?
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[Young Long-tailed Jaegar in a Pine Tree.]
Resting by the lake… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Beyond separation, the river finally felt compassion for the (not so distant) fish and so put the fishing pole down forever and went home.
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[A local largemouth bass. (Many years ago, I used to be an avid fisherman; I could even catch fish when others failed; I no longer fish whatsoever.)]
Unhooked to fishing… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Real learning is not merely absorbing. Real learning involves multi-faceted wisdom, consideration, profound passion, penetrating perception, and transcending inner/outer conflict.
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[Close to the edge…]
Close to the edge… down by the river… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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We must not merely inculcate children with mechanical, stale facts… but teach them much about compassion, empathy, and green energy.
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[Sanddragon Dragonflies prefer to lay their eggs in streams and lakes with sandy bottoms; their larvae burrow into the sand. The abdomens of these dragonflies are of a unique shape.]
Sanddragon Dragonfly cooling off. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Nature doesn’t have its own sponsors — in the media — telling us to be less materialistic and to travel less (thereby using less fossil fuels); but big, materialistic corporations have plenty of promoters making earth-damaging practices seem “OK” and “normal.” We truly need to go beyond the advertising propaganda.
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[Honey mushrooms along rocks on the river bank. Honey mushrooms, like most mushrooms, are just the visible fruiting body of the fungus. The main part of the organism is underground and is called the mycelium. Mycelium can spread for many miles… and this accounts for mushrooms being some of the world’s largest organisms. It is estimated that some honey mushrooms (that are very large, over many miles) are over 400 years old. (My photos, by the way, are all taken locally; I don’t travel any appreciable distance to take my photos. For instance, one walked to where these mushrooms were photographed.)]
Fruit of the mycelium. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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It’s easy to harm something else when you think that it is separate from what you are. In the actual tree of life, we are all connected… all one.
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[A frisky squirrel eating one of many acorns.]
Wisely plumping up for winter. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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No one – not anybody – can accurately define what true awareness is… because true awareness is too dynamic to merely be put into words and categorized.
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[Local natural rock-work formation. (There is, by the way, something man-made in this photo. Can you see it?)]
Natural beauty! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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A mind that does not depend on images throughout the day (to be aware) can sleep without crass and crude dreams occurring whatsoever.
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[Leaf-footed Bug with its footing on a leaf. In these, the first three antenna segments are red or reddish brown; the forth is contrastingly yellow-orange or nearly white.]
Leaf-footed Bug exploring. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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A mind that merely clings from one experience to another in order to be happy is, unfortunately, a rather infantile, impoverished state of affairs; it need not be that way.
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[Poison Ivy leaf cluster in the fall.]
Not a good thing to walk through! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Love often acts without self-motivation.
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[Grapeleaf Skeletonizer Moths are interesting in that they are both diurnal and nocturnal. I’ve got the same attributes for sure!]
Night or Day… Day or Night! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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This is how — being a vegetarian — I shoot my turkeys for Thanksgiving. (It’s not the best shot; they’re not that easy to shoot!)
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I bagged two at once! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Going far beyond depression – rarely, if ever, letting it flower – is an essential function of a stable, healthy, compassionate mind.
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Together in nature. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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In most minds, the thought of “I” or “me” is the most exalted, elevated and high-ranking; but it is just another thought; real wisdom happily exists beyond such projections.
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[Black Turpentine Beetles eat the inner, lower bark of pine trees.]
Tree eater! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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I’d much rather listen to a natural, babbling brook than the babbling from all the bourgeois, self-important, stale politicians and bureaucrats.
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[Close-up of a natural, babbling brook that one was passionately listening to.]
Alone again… naturally… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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True enlightenment — not all of that phony stuff — involves being beyond the “conditioned”; few ever exist in (and “as”) the timeless, the “unconditioned.”
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[A female Cabbage Butterfly resting. They were introduced into the U.S. from Europe at around 1860. Well… we’re used to immigrants!]
She’s not a legal citizen… but I won’t turn her in! Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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The only true and profound revolution worth fighting for is a nonviolent, spiritual one.
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[A Meadow Spittlebug weathering out the rain. They are very small and feed on a variety of weedy plants. Adults readily jump or fly when disturbed.]
Raindrops keep fallin’ on my head… Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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In a big way, everyone in the whole world is facing in one direction.
Can you turn around?
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[These are Tetras in one of our aquariums… all facing in one direction. The ones with the red dot on their sides are called Bleeding Heart Tetras. The others are Black Tetras. The plants are a type that grow on rocks or logs and do not need soil; they are called Anubias coffeefolia.]
One direction. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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True happiness is not merely an acquisition… it’s a wise, intelligent, aware, and blissful state of being and non-being.
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Go beyond grasping. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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If you bully the small one… you are bullying the whole, bullying life’s child.
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[A Hover Fly and a couple of other small insects on a wild Chicory Flower.]
Little and frail. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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True insight is instantaneous (and timeless)… no time (or practice) is involved for it to finally come about.
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[From earlier this year… these are the Stamen of a red Lily Flower. The Anther is the top part of the Stamen and contains the Pollen, the male reproductive cells. The Filament is lower down and holds the Anther.]
Pollen machines. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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If you are very wise, every time you throw a rock it always lands in the same place.
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[Photos of local river in the fall season.]
Always and never (1) Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
Always and never (2) Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
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Lucid wisdom doesn’t take time… but sequential, symbolic thought does.
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[This Acrea Moth larva, also called the Salt-marsh Caterpillar, is eating heavily and preparing for winter. These caterpillars are relatively abundant in the fall and over-winter as pupae in cocoons. The Salt-marsh Caterpillar feeds on herbaceous plants. There are small rain droplets upon this one, as it was beginning to rain when the photo was taken.]
Salt-marsh Moth Caterpillar preparing for winter. Photo by Thomas Peace 2014
Tom's Nature-up-close Photography and Mindfulness Blog 