A milkweed bug checks out his new living arrangements.

Found this guy lurking on top of my clothes dryer. I thought it was a baby Praying Mantis but, after studying this photo of it, I discovered it's actually a Mantidfly, Leptomantispa Pulchella. Unfortunately, it died two days later. Too bad because I understand they dine on other bugs.

SKYNET is up again. They are sending down "Listener Drones" to monitor the populace. They do this every year during the summer months.

Below you see a Listener Drone and network node bot. Note the static wicks on the landing pods to dissipate static for a cleaner signal. Note too the large tail boom that does double-duty as a gigahertz antenna. The orbs that look like eyes are actually sensitive microphones and the only weaponry onboard is the gaping metal maw near the microphone-orbs. The wings are of a kevlar-like material with a pattern of ribs that contributes to their extremely high tensile strength. The wings connect to the fuselage, ahead of the tail boom, with advanced high-pressure hydraulic actuators. You do not want to be targeted by one of these rascals. Just sayin'...

In Jurassic Park, the local wildlife always has its eye on you. In this case, it is the butterfly population that needs to be cautious. The mantids lie in wait in the tops of ironweed plants for unsuspecting butterflies.

 

An almost futuristic appearance...

 

...especially in the head area!

I'm not sure how often these guys go to the hangar for maintenance, but this dude could use some new wings or at least some repairs to his old wings.

There can be no denying that these guys are really alien scout ships. Note the metal construction of the body (fuselage) and "head" (cockpit). Note too the serrated jaws. Though not visible in this shot, the underside of this bug (craft) reveals a complex hydraulics package for driving the mechanized wings. The two dark orb-like windows at the front give nearly 360 degrees of vision to the pilots.

I, for one, welcome our new micro-robot overlords...

You lookin' at me? No, those are not pupils in the eyes of this praying mantis who was watching me walk by, but they sure made me fee creepy when I looked up at it. This carnivore is pretty much a killing machine that I, for one, am grateful does not exist in a size much larger than seen here. This one was too high for me to get a real good look at but I'd say it was about five inches in length. I could almost imagine servo motors whirring as it moved its head from side to side.

These guys can do a lot of damage once they decide they'd like to eat you. Just ask this mouse. < http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNcIUIULafw >

This grasshopper looks like he is made of wood!

This little guy was an iridescent blue color that was not of this world. Probably an escapee from an alien scout ship.

In the jungle (actually, it's a local state park) death comes quickly at the end of my camera lens. You want flies with that?