Rain off and on

It was coming down hard when we got up but it has tapered off and now (9am) the sun just blazed out.  The sky is still heavy to the North   A female towhee didn't wait for the rain to stop, nor did the squirrels.  I am trying to deduce hierarchy amongst the squirrels - who chases who.  White spot seems in the middle.  A Carolina wren showed up, then the other three usual species: cardinal, house finch & chickadee.  I must go see if there is a rainbow.

No such luck.  The sun has been come-and-go and the clouds are still thick. And by 11 the rain returned. It didn't last too long and the wind dried surfaces, but now (2:30pm) it looks and feels like it may begin again.  A female cardinal has been carrying nesting material past the corner of the garage.  I'd like to see the nest if I can avoid disturbing her.  There are two male cardinals around and one is losing feathers. They chase each other, which makes me wonder if the one is molting or if the other has actually pulled feathers out.  A tiger swallowtail and an orange butterfly appeared briefly. 

Then rain again, off-and-on into the evening.  The birds kept feeding.  A mallard drake walked around, swam, tried to shake off the rain, and left.