I had an opportunity to visit the "#sagebrushsea" in western #wyoming last week. It was a quick stop near the mid-point of difficult trip (which was due to an unfortunate circumstance). But this Swainson's Hawk helped provide a welcome distraction. Swainson's Hawks are a conservation success story. They migrate to South America, and suffered material population losses due to pesticide use on their wintering grounds, especially in Argentina. Yes, these hawks eat insects on their wintering grounds. But, education and changes in pesticide use curtailed the losses, and their populations are now stable.
What do you get if you cross an elephant with an armadillo and shrink it down by 1000x? Maybe it would look a bit like this billbug weevil. I think that this is a Sphenophorus phoeniciensis, aka Phoenix Billbug, which is often seen in turfgrass and is actually noted to walk on pavement for some reason. Billbug larvae can be damaging to turfgrass, but honestly, I'm happy to be feeding something that birds can eat in what is otherwise a food desert (turfgrass), and happy to experience this wonderfully unique creature in my yard.
