Bugging Out

I thought the recent snowfall would surely signal an end to our entomological endeavors for the year, but we have made a couple of recent finds:

First, this mantis egg case appeared on one of our rose bushes:



And then, we found a shield bug (aka a stink bug) which tried to escape the oncoming winter by coming inside the house. This is the first time we've ever seen one of these guys! He's a bit lighter in color and more green than you can tell from the flash photos, and is missing one rear leg, but he's now safely ensconced in a bug jar.