Monday, August 19, 2024

Summer thunderstorm

After overnight rain, morning was peaceful, except for hummer territorial disputes.   A duskywing and many sawflies landed on the hibiscus.  I soaked it and the rosemary in neem oil.  A lot of detritus had fallen into the pool but all I rescued was one brown May beetle.  

Caterpillars stripped the butterfly milkweed.  A camouflage looper needed fresh accessories.  I discovered a cobweb on the back of my chair, complete with spider.  As I sent that spider scuttling and cleaned off the web, the closer Argiope fussed at me, pumping its web.  At lunch, a tiger swallowtail knocked on the window. 

A brown headed nuthatch wanted seeds whether I was there or not.  A blue jay was not pleased that so few barkbutter balls were left.  A mockingbird was disappointed too.  Goldfinches got some seeds.  A red bellied woodpecker lurked in the trees before daring to visit the feeder. 

I had errands in the afternoon and saw thunderheads piling up in the South while the sky over the patio was still blue.  A hummer monitored her feeder and fussed at larger birds.  One hummer had a dark throat mark and a chestnut flank but I didn't see the color of its back.  The brown headed nuthatch was back and a white breasted nuthatch came too.  I'm not sure it got any food thanks to the house finches.  Two of them got into a real fight.  Waterbirds headed for roosts.  I glimpsed a dragonfly but had expected to see more.  A little after 6pm thunder and lightning heralded heavy rain.  


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