Our hike at the edge of Skopje took a while not just because of the distance, but also because we spent a lot of time taking close up shots of beautiful flowers and animals along the trail. This guy is probably an Erhard’s Wall Lizard.
A lovely Crimson Scabious. They were everywhere at the start of the hike.
This looks like it might be the same as the Crimson, but dry and ready to send out seeds.
What would have been a delicious Chicken-of-the-Woods, but had been already eaten. We found and cooked one of these once, they really do taste and feel just like chicken. (Do not eat wild mushrooms unless you are absolutely confident you can properly identify them)
This is a type of Cyclamen. They are beautiful and absolutely everywhere wherever there is shade. We found an entire tree tunnel lined with them near the end of the hike – a carpet of pink and purple.
This is the leaf of the Cyclamen. Interestingly, they’re usually a good distance from the flower clusters.
Unknown, possibly Armeria vulgaris?
After this start the insects!
This reminds me very much of the weta. It’s actually a type of saddleback bush cricket.
Possibly a type of locust? Nope. It’s a Predatory Bush Cricket. It’s also known as the spiked magician and it eats other crickets, among many other things.
It was huge. This is a 6.5 inch phone for reference. This bug is a fairly uncommon sighting.
A lovely brown grasshopper of some sort.
And a very similar looking one in bright green. Maybe female and male of the same species?
And the latest in our unending search for jumping spiders. This little guy has a meal in his mouth.
The natural beauty of Macedonia!
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