Early sun

Clouds with soft, blurry edges blend into the blue.  Finches are up and about.  A black swallowtail is flitting around the rue, as it or others have done every day.  The sunshine is bright and the sky less cloudy than it was.

Butterflies are enjoying the sun.  An elusive orange butterfly continues to evade my camera.  A palamedes swallowtail paused in a hibiscus blossom.  Lots of bees and skippers are feeding on the rosemary.    At lunch time a mating pair of saddlebags flew by.

I discovered a small cicada and a full-grown swallowtail caterpillar embracing, floating in the pool. I assume each was using the other for flotation and not prey or anything even more bizarre.  I chose to rescue them rather than running for the camera.  Also, in the skimmer there was a live frog.  Here's the caterpillar.  The cicada was gone by this time.

Up in the dogwood perched a Halloween pennant and another dragonfly with unmarked but faintly blushing wings.  An Eastern amberwing was obelisking in the rosemary but the other dragonflies were not.  The perch was occupied by a salty skimmer.  The sky got very stormy looking for a while but it cleared without any actual precipitation. 

A huge bumble-type bee with orange fur on its thorax worked on the rosemary along with many small bees.  The tiger swallowtail made several passes and a red admiral flitted around my head.  An orange butterfly with black veins - monarch or viceroy - went by while I was weeding.  I was worried that the wrens would abandon their nest but this evening I saw some activity in the azalea where I stuck the house, so I am hopeful.