Some captures from my hike yesterday for #InverteFest, a periodic community science event where we share & appreciate the bugs around us. No matter the time of day or year, even after a harsh summer like this one, I can always find interesting inverts in the New Mexico desert.

A few hours later

I was surprised to see this Coachwhip high up in a sumac bush, catching the very first of the sun's rays

On my desert hikes, I just don't expect to look *up* and see these creatures. Can you spot it?

Mesquite sap!!

This is a natural object I found in the Chihuahuan Desert. Any guesses? I'll share the answer tomorrow...

Its new exoskeleton will soon lose its iridescent green tinge and it will look like this the next day. We've been seeing many of these in the Chihuahuan Desert in southern New Mexico lately. They can make a very loud 'buzz' when startled, or when calling for a mate.

Its wings are crumpled, however, and so must be 'inflated' with circulatory fluid and allowed to harden. When we checked on this bug 30 minutes later, they were coming along nicely.