Do you have a favorite insect? I realize that’s a strange question and, if pressed, most people would respond with the name of a beautiful butterfly or perhaps a ladybug, but my favorite is a very special katydid.
Last summer, though, I fell in love with a multi-colored grasshopper-like insect called the Handsome Meadow Katydid (Orchelimum pulchellum). I was absolutely thrilled yesterday to encounter and photograph a tiny insect that is almost certainly one a juvenile Handsome Meadow Katydid.
Although its colors are pretty distinctive, it’s the blue eyes that make it really stand out. The eyes really draw me in, even if they do look a little cartoonish.
Each time I visit the marsh, I will now be on the lookout for these insects, which actually grow more handsome as they age. If you want to see what they look like as adults check out my previous postings called Neon-colored grasshopper; More Handsome Meadow Katydids; and Ol’ Blue Eyes is Back.
Be forewarned, though, that you too may fall in love and end up with a new favorite insect.
Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Mike Powell 
Although my first instinct is to say “dragonfly”, I realize that my favourite insect is whichever insect is in front of my camera at the time. Looking at bugs up close is fascinating!
You’re right! They are indeed handsome.
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