Along for the Ride

Along for the Ride

Unlike some people's predictions I have not had swarms of people jump on their bikes and follow me in Forest Gump fashion. However, I have had lots of smaller creatures try to join my adventure. When I stopped for a rest break in Colorado the bee above took an interest in my handlebars. Did it like the salt left from my hands or was it attracted to the shiny surface?

How many grasshoppers can you find in the photo above? I can find four. Two of them are green with white and black stripes on their backs and two of them are brown. In the middle of the United States there are literally tons of grasshoppers. In Kansas and Missouri I had to do a lot of swerving on the road to avoid crushing these little guys.

Even such small insects can be devastating if the conditions are right. During the Depression of the 1930's grasshoppers did not make it any easier for the farmers of the midwest. They marched through the farms by the millions, devouring the crops.

These grasshoppers jumped onto my gear during a lunch break. I was amazed at how long the antenna was on this grasshopper to the left. Notice how long the rear legs are too. They allow the grasshopper to "hop" quite high and far.

This wild thing to the right is called a cicada, pronounced "sih-kay-duh." On my way into Pueblo, CO I heard a loud buzzing sound. I thought there was a problem with the telephone wires. Upon hearing the sound later on in the day, I realized that there couldn't be a problem with all the wires so there must be some kind of insect making all this racket.

The cicada make noise during the day and at night, I assume by beating their large wings together. They can be really loud but I got used to them after awhile.

I had to wait until Kentucky to actually see a cicada when one tried to hitch a ride. You can see my tire and brake pad on the righthand side of the photo.

I have been listening to cidadas from Colorado all the way to the East Coast. California seems so quite in comparison. I was told that they have unusual dormancy periods throughout their lives, but I will have to learn more about it before I can share with you.

I don't know the name of this creature but it seemed to enjoy checking out my solar panels on my way through Yosemite, CA. Maybe it was trying to show me that colors in nature can outshine my solar panels any day. :-)

Mike@Kahncious.Net

Environmental Volunteers
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