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Ruby tiger  (Phragmatobia fuliginosa) caterpillar sunning itself

 

The below-zero air temperature at night and the thick snow cover have halted the arrival of spring for a long time. But the sun gets stronger by each day. Now one of the surest spring signs is in place too. On Saturday I met the first ruby tiger moth caterpillar in the Kärevere forests. It crawled peacefully along the bright snow carpet and visibly enjoyed the springtime sun bath.

Besides the caterpillars the horse or red wood ants (Formica rufa) were warming their nest at the forest verge. Most of the ants were busy on the nest surface with catching the sun but a few tumbled around on the snow near the nest. This means that spring has begun in nature.

 

Horse ants’ sunbath