Gloomy

The day started out bright.  The tide was up over the dock, not surprising on the last day of the old moon.  I missed most of the morning and, by lunch, clouds had moved in.  A muted sun was visible behind them.

Crows harassed a hawk.  Mallards had the creek to themselves.  I glimpsed a Carolina wren but it got away.  Squirrels and blue jays harvested acorns.  Later the crows gathered and headed South, maybe to the highway interchange where they congregate at dusk.  Field crickets were loud and several were in the water.  Bees and little moths hung around the rosemary.  it was almost the only thing in bloom after the morning glories closed.

The cloud cover turned an ugly yellow at sunset then broke apart. This dark of the moon is the second for September, pretty good for a 30 day month.  Apparently that happens about as frequently as a blue moon. 

Rainy

The windows were fogged with condensation that eventually vaporized in weak sunlight.  The creek was placid at breakfast, only disturbed by a convoy of geese.   A pair of squirrels cavorted in the cherry.  A snowy and a great egret were joined by a great blue heron at the dam outfall but high tide covered the rocks.  A grackle poked around the cedar.  A female red bellied woodpecker landed in the cherry but didn't stay. 

Rain fell in the mid morning but ceased around 11am, so I did some pool cleaning and caught a female green frog.  In identifying it, I learned a new word: ecotone.  I was aware of the vitality of boundaries between habitats, but didn't know there was a word for it. 

I saw blue jays and a brown thrasher.  A Carolina wren teased me and I think I glimpsed the vireo.  Titmice joined the feeder regulars.  Fledgling cardinals were everywhere.  An osprey swooped low over the creek but there were too many leaves in the way for a photo.  Bees were the only insects I saw outside of some beetles in the water.  A huge green June beetle was riding a twig.  It rained off and on all afternoon.

Some sunshine

The morning glories were indeed glorious.  Egrets fished.  A bird I didn't recognize showed up in the camellia but flew as I clicked.  It may have been a warbler.  Other than that, the regulars were at the seeds, along with titmice.  A dove sat beneath the feeder.  I glimpsed a Carolina wren. 

The sky clouded over at times but then the sun returned.  It was very humid and only moderately warm.  I rescued an adult two-lined spittlebug from the water.  The adults look so attractive that I ignore the larva.  A few butterflies were out.  A differential grasshopper flew right past me and landed in the lavender and nibbled.  A couple of fireflies appeared at dusk.

A great blue heron perched high in a pine across the creek.  A female downy woodpecker came to the feeder.  A couple of brown thrashers chased across the far end of the pool.  Blue jays hammered, and dropped, acorns. 

A lot of the rue turned brown like it had a disease. 

 

Rain

I was out registering voters for National Voter Registration Day in the morning.  The rain started about 2pm and lasted most of an hour.  Before that, there were butterflies - black swallowtail, cloudless sulphur, and a fluttery skipper.  Bees continued to work under dark clouds.  A small cobweb spider appeared to be building a web on the patio window.  But only cardinals and finches came for seeds.

Very birdy

The sky cycled from blue to gray and back to blue and then gray till dark.  We were gone much of the morning but the afternoon was full of old friends and new.  But breakfast was nothing but egrets.

Titmice came for lunch.  The a white breasted nuthatch showed up.  Blue jays were busy with acorns.  Later in the afternoon, a brown thrasher hammered something on the ground, probably an acorn.  A Carolina wren came for mealworms.  One male cardinal ate beautyberries while another was on the feeder.  A female goldfinch enjoyed the hummer water.  And something dangled from the cherry twigs again but I could not be sure that it was a red eyed vireo. 

A grasshopper was feeding a cobweb spider in the corner of a window.  I checked on the other spiders.  The argiope was doing well.  The barn spider was tucked into the masonry.  The spiny orbweaver's flocked white areas were much less evident.  In fact I almost walked into a second web with a smaller spider at the center - male?  I did get a good look at the top side of the spiny orbweaver and it was as advertised.

A patch of birds nest puffballs appeared in the mulch.

Cool

At times it looked like rain and then the sky would clear completely.  Ever since the flooding rains, the creek has been a milky brown.  Egrets continued to haunt the dam outfall but today they had to compete with a great blue heron.  A dove foraged below the feeder. 

When we got home, a buzzard buzzed the house.  It or another harassed a great blue heron at the dam outfall.  Mallards paddled around.  The yellow crowned night heron came back in the late afternoon. 

A couple of monarch butterflies dueled over the milkweed.  Three big spiderwebs protect the yard.  The argiope built in front over the dry stream.  On the West, a barn spider used the bathroom window.  And further along toward the bench, a very strange web appeared to be hyphenated with thick and thin areas and center rays.  It was the work of a spinybacked orbweaver Gasteracantha cancriformis.  White mushrooms popped up in a couple of clusters near the webs.  I found a couple of potter wasp pots on the wall - much more elegant than mud dauber wasp nests. 

Sun

Fog burned off quickly but it was beautiful waking up.  The creek was smooth as glass.  Lace handkerchief webs in the grass were dewy.  Chickadees tried to slip in between cardinals to get seeds.  I went out front to see if the dew would make the argiope's web more visible.  The front door was hosting a convention of long bodied cellar spiders. 

At lunch I saw a blue tailed skink.  I glimpsed a goldfinch, just a streak of yellow and black.  A mockingbird was a flash of white on gray.  I also glimpsed a dragonfly that quickly disappeared.  A cloudless sulphur and a few other butterflies were out. 

In the afternoon I surprised a large jumping spider with iridescent green fangs on the pool coping.  One of the mature black swallowtail caterpillars was humping along the coping in a different spot.  I moved it across the pool for no good reason and it headed under the azalea.  It didn't leave much parsley for the younger caterpillar that was still growing.   The coral honeysuckle made coral berries.

A great blue heron stood on a downstream dock while egrets fished in the dam outfall.  A flock of blue jays complained about something.  A yellow crowned night heron prowled the marsh edge.  The afternoon sky slowly clouded over with thick, fuzzy-edged cotton cumulus. The barn spider's web was back in the bathroom window. 

Sunshine!

The egrets were back at the dam.  Ne squirrel definitely had a warble.  A fine new bird I'm pretty sure was a red eyed vireo appeared in the cherry.  It kept flying at a branch and swinging under neath.  I wonder if it was after a caterpillar?  The light was bad and the bird active so the photo is fuzzy. 

A female downy woodpecker visited the feeder along with the regulars and titmice.  Blue jays stayed up in the trees.  Birds began to show interest in the beautyberries.  In the late afternoon I spotted a yellow crowned night heron on the dock, but it spotted me too.  A flock of gulls circled overhead.  I heard a wren scold. 

The perplexing bumblebee was still visiting flowers, including zinnias.  Two of the black swallowtail caterpillars looked ready to pupate.  Lots of snails of all sizes clung to the pool coping.  I found a very dead cicada and thought I could still hear live one.  An argiope spider appeared in the front yard over the stone stream bed.  Yet another mushroom popped up in the vine flowerpot.  No wonder the vines have been looking sad. There were still fireflies in the evening.

Autumnal equinox

Thankfully, the rain mostly stopped though there was a brief shower around 10am.  Clouds hung low with an occasional break.  A few times, the sun got through.  It was comfortably warm though. Egrets again gathered at the whitewater rapids below the dam.  But the creek upstream was placid at breakfast.

A common yellowthroat warbler (I think) played peek-a-boo with me in the azalea and rosemary.  A flock of doves visited briefly.  Jays continued to work on acorns.  A Carolina wren snatched a fresh mealworm, (I had dumped the waterlogged ones) but didn't stay for a photo. We took the seed feeder in to clean. A squirrel that came for a drink had a sore on its neck so it is probably warble season. 

The black swallowtail caterpillars continued to grow but I couldn't find the monarch caterpillars.  They'd eaten plenty of milkweed before disappearing.  Several butterflies came out - monarch, tiger swallowtail, red spotted purple, and skippers.  A Southern purple mint moth posed on a rosemary flower.  Bumble and carpenter bees visited the herbs.  When I got back in the mid afternoon there was life-and-death drama in the corner of the door between a tiger moth and a small spider.  A leaf-footed bug rested on the glass at suppertime. 

More rain

The National Weather Service claimed 2" yesterday and over 7" of rain in September thus far, but I believe we've had more.  For the year thus far, they recorded just under 50" and more continues to fall.  The average year would have had 35" by now. I heard jays calling and later saw them in the oak.  The hummer feeders flooded so I refilled one.  There was actual whitewater pouring down the dam outfall and the egrets were reveling in it. 

The rain slacked off at lunchtime.  That kept the hummer happy.  A brown thrasher appeared in the cherry but my camera battery died just as I for the bird in focus.  Feathers drifting down from a tree made us wonder who was having whom for lunch.  In the afternoon an oriole ate re-hydrated mealworms floating in the glass feeder.  The big yellow bumblebee returned to the rosemary.  Tiny moths flitted but little else of an insect nature stirred.  Then the rain started up again

By rush hour much of Hampton Roads was flooded and I decided to stay home even though the tide was receding.  Whitewater returned to the dam outfall and a dozen egrets, both great and snowy, took advantage.  There were squabbles and jockeying for positions at the best fishing spots.  They were still at it as darkness fell.

Rain

There was steady rain punctuated by downpours.  It did not deter hungry hummers, titmice, or blue jays.  Yesterday's mushrooms expanded into parasols. They looked like aminitas.

At lunch time the rain slacked off but never quite quit.  A very yellow bumblebee (possibly bombus perplexus) worked on the rosemary.  A slug climbed the glass.  A great and a snowy egret haunted the dam outfall. 

As I drove down 264 a little after 6pm, the crows converged despite the rain.  They were between the Military Highway overpass and Broad Creek.  

Sticky and stormy

K squegeed the windows at breakfast.  Hummers were out but not much else.  An egret stood statue-like on a dock across the creek.  Bugs flew around, including a black swallowtail and a cloudless sulphur.  A yellow kneed wasp worked over the rosemary.  In the late morning rain passed through in waves with sun between.

A titmouse joined the lunch feeder crowd. A blue jay sailed across the yard to the oak.  The air was horribly humid.  Mushrooms popped up in the planter where we put the vines that were supposed to give us privacy. 

The waves of rain continued in the afternoon, evening, and night.  A heavy downpour struck a little before 4pm and flooded everywhere. I saw a great blue heron in the lake just off Witchduck Road.

Come-and-go clouds

It was very humid when I got up and all the windows were fogged.  The morning glories attracted bees, but birds were scarce at breakfast.  The creek was glassy with sunlit reflections.

Around noon an enthusiastic blue jay pounced on acorns to hammer.  They kept at it all day, and frequently dropped acorns into the water, and then cursed. 

While cooking lunch, K swapped out hummer feeders.  It was funny to see the hummer keep looking for the feeder and even guard the hanger waiting for it to reappear.

Tiny monarch caterpillars were visible on the new milkweed leaves.  The swallowtail caterpillars on the parsley had molted into yellow, green, and black - their final appearance but they still had some growing to do.  I rescued a wasp (carefully) and a couple of beetles from the water.  The basilica spider continued to fuss with her eggs.  A very small wasp with yellow bands on black was busy with the rosemary.

I saw a titmouse while I was swimming.  A brown wading bird hopped up onto the dock.  I think it was a juvenile night heron.  Thick cumulus clouds roared out of the Southeast against a background of slow-moving cirrus wisps.

And home

It started out overcast in Charlottesville but the clouds broke apart before I left.  The glimpses I had of the mountains looked foggy.

On the way back down to sea level, I saw goldenrod, Queen Anne's lace, wild sunflowers, and other white and yellow vegetation that was a blur.  Oh, and a bit of blue chickory.  The trees were still green, albeit dusty and past prime.  The verge looked red from pine needles and iron in the soil, with gone-white grass in spots.  Buzzards rode the thermals above the asphalt.

I made it back before dark and by the time I passed Williamsburg the sky was clear.  The round moon was bright when I went to bed. 

Still cloudy

There was sunshine at lunch but it didn't last.  I saw a tiger and a black swallowtail, a cloudless sulphur, and some little butterflies.  The hummer was stocking up.  I think I glimpsed a titmouse.

As the traffic was crawling toward the HRBT, I photographed a large bird on a cell tower.

Blustery

A cold North wind under a mostly gray sky kept a lot of fliers grounded.  I found swallowtail caterpillars on the rue as well as the parsley.  The basilica spider continued to fuss with her eggs.

A lovely blue dancer damselfly lit on a rock.  A moth that looked something like a dusky skipper made the rounds of the lavender and rosemary.  It tended to hover and blur its wings.  I saw one yesterday on the lantana. 

 I saw hummers visit the Mexican sage, the lavender, and even check out a rosebud, plus watch from the dogwood to guard the feeder.  Bees braved the wind gusts. 

 At lunch we were entertained by a hummer, a female goldfinch, and a frustrating palamedes swallowtail.  The butterfly struggled against the wind but would not light and pose for a photo.

I was gone all afternoon and evening.  A sprinkle of fine rain misted the windshield. 

Signs of Autumn

Maybe it is because the sun gets up later, but I'm beginning to see the early morning reflections I associate with Fall.  Berries have begun to color up and a few colored leaves have dropped in the water along with the incessant plop of acorns.  Buds appeared on the camellia and the dogwoods.

On the other hand, a yellow-bodied dragonfly and a couple of snout butterflies were darting around over the water.  Skippers congregated on the lantana.  A titmouse came to lunch, along with a lot of fledgling cardinals.

The barn spider and its web were gone today.  They recycle the web material.  The basilica spider was working on its chain-of-pearls egg cases.  The The black swallowtail caterpillars on the parsley seemed to be doing well.  Bees were foraging.  I found a pigeon horntail in the water.  I thought it had drowned but it may have revived.

A blue tailed skink defecated in front of me while I was looking at the horntail.

Beautiful weather

And I spent far too much of it inside.  Tiger swallowtails showed up whenever I didn't have a camera.  At least the hummer posed!

The spider outside the bathroom window was in view in the afternoon because it had caught something.  It was a barn spider not an argiope.  The black swallowtail caterpillars doubled in size from yesterday.  Honeybees and bumblebees worked late on the rosemary.  A long skinny spider dropped right in front of me when I came out of the front door.

When I got home after my evening meeting, the moon was nearly full and too bright for the camera to show details.

Perfect September day

Mostly blue sky with wispy clouds, hot sun and a cooling breeze - that's perfect. 

Butterflies were out: a cabbage white, a palamedes swallowtail, a gray hairstreak, and others that got away.  The eggs on the parsley hatched into caterpillars just big enough to see.  I saw a blue dasher before it dashed away.  Lots of small webs festooned the shrubs, both orbs and domes.  Bees and wasps were working on the herbs. I saw a small black thread-waisted wasp and a blue winged digger wasp.  Jays and squirrels were busy with acorns.  Hummers were hungry, of course.

I tried to identify the flower in the photo with the gray hairstreak and learned it is a DYC.  When the afternoon sun, about 4pm, came through the bathroom widow, I discovered there was a huge orb web outside.

Hazy

Morning was quite pleasant with a breeze to balance the temperature and humidity.  Titmice and hummers joined the regulars.  Great egrets and great blue herons fished.  A cloudless sulphur, a monarch, and a palamedes swallowtail flitted around.  I sometimes wonder if butterfly ought to be flutterby.  The palamedes had a run-in with a hummer.

A couple of doves showed up for lunch.  I heard but never saw a wren and glimpsed a robin.  A ratty-looking male house finch fed a fledgling.  Hummers continued to feed and fight.  Snowy egrets appeared below the dam.  Blue jays hammered acorns.

A startlingly green bee paused on the feeder post.  More butterflies enjoyed the sun.  I saw a snout, a black swallowtail, and a painted lady.  A young skink ambled along the pool edge and peered but did not fall in.

A few beautyberries were beginning to change color.  And red dogwood berries suddenly popped into sight amongst the green leaves.  The birds are welcome to those fruits.

About 4pm, clouds moved up from the Southwest and the sky began to think about rain.