Convergent Evolution

I thought I was looking at a tiny hummingbird with his long proboscis in our red geranium. (Look where yellow and orange meet about a third of the way down the photo.) I've seen hummingbirds as small as this in Trinidad's Rain Forest. The smallest of the hummingbirds, the Bee Hummingbird, lives there and measures just 5cm. But my neighbor's daughter told me that Italy has no hummingbirds and that instead it was a hummingbird hawk-moth. Who knew there was such a thing?

(image from Wikipedia)

Wikipedia said that the Hummingbird Hawk-moths that are loving my plants are a good example of convergent evolution. Right on my balcony! Ever a sucker for new facts, I skipped to the info about convergent evolution and found that it "describes the acquisition of the same biological trait in unrelated lineages." They cited the example of an owl and a cat which are "distantly related predators that share keen, night-time binocular vision and targetable ears to help their night time hunting."

(both images from Wikipedia)

But back to the Hummingbird Hawk-moths and the hummingbirds. My tiny visitor  is distinguished among moths for his rapid, sustained flying ability. In fact he is one of the fastest flying insects clocking in at 50km/h or 30m/h. He and his species hover in midair while they feed on nectar from flowers. Like hummingbirds, they are specialized nectarivores. Imagine! 

Anyway, their hovering capability has evolved only three times in nectar feeders: in hummingbirds, certain bats and hawk moths (family: sphingidae). The hummingbird hawk-moth's hovering is similar to, but distinct from, that of hummingbirds. Both have long and mostly straight bills for their specialized nectar feeding and drink it with their trough-like tongues.

It seems the plants that are pollinated by hummingbirds or hummingbird hawk-moths produce flowers in shades of red, orange and bright pink. My geranium is an almost neon orangey-red so that's evidently why I'm seeing so many of these hawk-moths. It's okay with me, nature is an awesome teacher!

Hummingbirds

These amazing photos are courtesy of my freind, Jennifer. The rainforest of Trinidad has 16 different species of hummingbirds alone and this is merely one of them. Its body is an irradescent green blue color. Beautiful!

 

This is a rare shot of the hummingbird with its wings forward. She caught it at just the right moment of time for all of us to enjoy. Nature in all its glory.

What's amazing you these days?

Views From Home

Gathering fog creeps across the valley seen from our balcony.

Fog, rolling clouds, and snow on the mountains.

And a sunset so bright that it shone right through the clouds lighting them up from within.

Ahhh, I think I know how those clouds feel.

(Photos care of my husband, still in Italy, sending me a taste of home.)

Sharing the Caribbean Life

A funny thing happened to me on the way to the gym last evening:

And from this morning before my run under the not so funny but kind of cute category, otherwise known as the reason you shake out shoes in the Caribbean before putting them on:

Friday Photo

This plant grows outside my office window. It had rain drops on it yesterday glistening in the sun. I think she's very beautiful.

Caves, Canyons and Gorges

On the many walks we took in the mountains near us, my grandchildren took particular pleasure in the small spaces discovered in the midst of the great natural wonders. Caves caused the most excitement when we found them; climbing in them, exploring them and looking for more wherever we went.

The entrance to the canyon we discovered was narrow enough to bring squeals of delight as we touched walls on either side and couldn't wait to see what came next.

One of the lovely gorges also had high walls lining it and both kids yelled "echo" to their hearts content as we hiked along.

Maybe it's taking a bite sized, manageable, comfortable dose of what can be so expansive even if beautiful. Maybe it's a good reminder to focus on the vista right in front of us and savor it. Either way, enjoying the small things made the whole experience richer and more fun.