One of the first things we planted in our yard area almost two and a half years ago were some aloe vera plants. They grow quite freely here and we were happy with the way they filled in empty spaces quickly. We have watched them go through their growth cycles now for two complete years and were happy to see the plants in our yard beginning their flowering stage recently.
Since these plants get regular watering they produce flowers each year. The flower stem starts out as a small stick in the middle of the plant.
Every few days the small stalk grows about a foot taller.
Until the stalk gets to about four or five feet tall and the green flower buds open up to a yellow flower.
Even those these flowers are not yet fully open, we are excited to see them because the flowers attract hummingbirds. Aloe vera flowers must have particularly sweet nectar, because hummingbirds will hover around these flowers for hours for a week or two after they open up.
The reason this is exciting to us is that we purchased a hummingbird feeder when we were in the United States. We hung it from a bamboo stake near the aloe vera plants.
We can see the hummingbird feeder from our front room and from the table where we have the computer, so our hope is that the aloe vera plants will attract lots of hummingbirds who will then discover the hummingbird feeder and make it a habit to visit our yard all year long.
We will keep you posted if and when that develops.
Meanwhile, while I was out watering and checking on our plants I dislodged a walking stick from where it was hiding on a branch in our garden. Two and a half years ago, I discovered the largest walking stick I have ever seen on a plant in our back yard. This walking stick was perhaps ten to eleven inches long. I took some pictures of the walking stick then, but that was before I discovered how to use the macro-focus setting on my camera. This is a picture of the long walking stick walking away.
It was a pretty interesting insect, but without the macro setting it is hard to see much detail beyond the fact that it looks like a stick with six jointed legs.
Since the walking stick I discovered the other day fell down onto a green leaf and was out in the open, I decided to grab the camera and see if I could get close-up shots to see more detail in this unique insect.
This insect was only about four inches long. Walking sticks have the ability to change colors to their surrounding and as long as they stay still on a small twig, they look exactly like what their name implies – a stick. This one had fallen from a brown twig onto a green plant and had not yet changed colors.
I got in close as he walked farther out on the leaf. His jointed legs and clawed feet make it easy for him to walk along many different plant surfaces.
I read that some walking sticks have wings, but this guy had a sorry excuse for wings that appeared more like a dorsal fin.
His multifaceted eyes are located half-way out his long nose and he had a little narrow tongue extending from the bottom of his front section.
I found out later that walking sticks can spit an acidic mixture into a person’s face from two to three feet away, so I was lucky that only my camera was within range! Another thing I discovered is that this type of walking stick can leap rapidly several feet to flee from danger.
Luckily this guy posed still long enough for us to share these pictures with you before he leapt to the safety of the bushes where his excellent camouflage protects him from most would be predators here where…
Life is good in Ecuador!
Nice macros!
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Thanks – you can see a lot of details even on these plain type insects.
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Beautiful captured
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Thank you, Jake. Luckily I did not get a squirt of acid in my face!
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Good to hear that, Take care my friend 🙂
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Will do!
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As always very informative
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Thank you, Eileen. We are looking forward to your coming visit!
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I never knew that aloe vera plants flowered! This is a first for me. I have them potted and setting near my kitchen for burns. But, I never tried planting them in the ground. I don’t water them much, because I thought they don’t like too much water. This is really cool!
On the subject of hummingbird feeders, we brought several feeders back from the states with us, too. I hung hibiscus flowers all around the feeder and it didn’t take the hummingbirds long to find it. BUT, the bees also found the feeder. I’m allergic to bee stings! The feeders hang over our porch and there were swarms of honeybees on my porch. So, I had to take the feeders down. I’m not sure what to do to solve this problem. The hummers still feed from the hibiscus flowers near our porch, but I miss watching them dart around the feeders.
I also wonder if the bees are seasonal only? It seems like they only come to the feeders once a year. And what about hummingbirds? Do they still migrate in a tropical climate? I’m going to have to do some research.
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An aloe vera in the wild will flower only after a good rainy season. Some types that we had in California were said to flower only once every seven years. But aloe vera plants here that are in a watered garden bed produce one to several long stems and flower each year.
As for the hummingbirds – Ecuador has scores of varieties of hummingbirds (colibri) but we have only seen two. We are hoping that those who come to visit the aloe will discover the feeder. I have a yellow hibiscus near a back window, but we want to see the hummingbirds off our patio. We are hoping that there are some species that stick around all year and will like our food source!
Sorry to hear about the bees. We have quite a few bees around here, but neither Mary nor I are allergic and these bees are very peaceful. I often pick them up out of the bird bath and have never been stung.
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Oh my gosh, I haven’t seen a walking stick in ages. Very interesting post.
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Thank you. It is fun to look at these insects close up to see the details. Glad you liked it.
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You are lucky to get away unscathed! But those critters are interesting and are so good at blending.
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You can not believe they are insects when you first find them on a branch. I have picked them up while trying to clear dead branches off my plants without noticing they are insects until I touch them! They do eat plants, but I always let them walk off as they are so interesting. We have seen little babies less than one inch long and that one that was almost a foot long!
Another odd thing I learned is that bats eat them and because of the bat’s sonar way of hunting, the unique camouflage does not help the walking stick.
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I guess sonar trumps camouflage every time. 😀
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🙂
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Every time I see a picture of a walking stick, I’m fascinated. I’ve never seen one in real life. They are so different looking, like an artist’s imagination run wild. Great photos!
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We have quite a few around here, but (as you may have guessed from our posts) many things are different here. It is fun to observe the differences!
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I’ve never seen such detail on a walking stick, thank you for getting these shots. I love hummingbirds and have 3-4 feeders every year. They are so much fun to watch.
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I know! It is incredible to see the detail in even one of the plainest of insects. I just love the macro setting on my camera. It has opened up new frontiers for us seeing the smallest of God’s creations. Glad you liked the photos.
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