Blue moon

It rained overnight and water was still blowing off the trees at breakfast.  But the sky was blue.  This morning was the second full moon of July.  Robins and mockingbirds ate cherries.  A male goldfinch wrestled with the sunflowers.  Titmice joined the feeder crowd.  And a wary hummer dodged them to get at the juice.

Not much stirred at lunch.  An egret haunted the dam outfall.  A tiny skinklet scurried on the hot pavement.  Dragonflies and butterflies flitted around.

When I emptied the pool skimmer I found an huge eyed elater click beetle, nearly 2 inches long.  I thought it was dead but it revived a bit.  I'm glad because it is considered beneficial.  A tiger swallowtail flitted somewhat more slowly, pausing perhaps to lay eggs?  Today I could only find one caterpillar on the rue. 

Wrens scolded, I think, because they have a nest in one of the artifacts hanging from the neighbors' gazebo.  A grackle used the top step of the pool ladder to get a drink.  A blue jay joined the acorn eaters.  First a night heron preened, then an egret hunted by the brush under the bulkhead. 

Around 6pm clouds flowed down from the NW after a day of clear blue sky. Around 8pm, a male hummer spent time with the rosemary flowers but the area was in shade, so no ruby throat.  And he was gone before the camera was ready.  The clouds dwindled, but there were enough to make sunset colorful.