Let’s see a show of hands: how many of you grown-up adult kinds of folks 1) know what this conical depression is and 2) have been entertained thereby in your oh so distant childhood past? Get’em up there and let me see.
Now: how many of your children would know? Your grand children? Is the number diminishing with each generation? My guess is YES. Shame on us.
So this is a doodlebug trap. An antlion lives at the bottom. And the ferocious creature can sometimes be fished out of its lair by “doodling” with a pine straw. You’ve done this. Right? No? It’s not too late!
In the way of a refresher course, here’s the cone-trap in cut-away view, and the Lion at the bottom (fearsome ain’t he?)
And everything you always wanted to know about Doodlebugs–including videos–is here.
Now, go ye into the world with straw of pine and doodle your way to enlightenment. Friday it is, grasshopper, and pleased I am.
Stumble it!
8 responses so far ↓
1 rio semione // Aug 22, 2008 at 6:25 am
i’ve never in my nature-loving life seen one of those. I know what a doodle bug is…but not an antlion. Maybe cause I was a girl….I didn’t explore the bug world as much as boys….or maybe I just wasn’t in the right place at the right time….very facsinating and thank for all the great nature clues and observations!
2 dog_geek // Aug 22, 2008 at 6:39 am
Ah yes, I remember those! And I suppose I count as a grown-up adult type person, even though I seem to be getting less mature as I age.
3 Murph // Aug 22, 2008 at 7:16 am
I spent many hours as a kid on hands and knees in the car shed trying to catch doodlebugs. With our world of concrete and asphalt, it’s getting harder to find them, but I have managed to introduce our six year old to the ’sport’.
4 Rob Paterson // Aug 22, 2008 at 9:08 am
It’s an ant lion - I used to love feeding it ants - is there some thing wrong with me?
5 Bruce // Aug 22, 2008 at 6:53 pm
We used to catch ‘em with the a piece of straw off of a broom. Of course all we ever did when we got one was look at it and say “Eeuuuww!”
6 Rose Bowen // Aug 23, 2008 at 3:04 pm
I learn something new every time I visit your site, Fred. This was fascinating! Thanks for sharing!
7 Kathy // Aug 24, 2008 at 12:37 am
I looked at most of the videos. They were lots of fun. Thanks!
8 Cate (kerrdelune) // Aug 25, 2008 at 5:26 am
I like it - “doodling my way to enlightenment” that is.
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