Windy

A strong, cold wind out of the Northeast shoved clouds across the sky.  It blew the feathers backwards on birds.  The sun was bright but the temperature was only in the 70s.  Morning glories bloomed and there was another hibiscus flower, and two buds..  The wind filled the spiderweb with redwood needles and suchlike tree trash.  It batted at the spider but the Argiope still managed to catch a meal.  I noticed the spider had switched to the outside of the web where it was less likely to get banged into the window.

The hummer was hungry and protective of her feeder.  A brown headed nuthatch slipped between finches and cardinals more successfully than a chickadee. After I put out barkbutter balls, I saw a mockingbird and a blue jay and glimpsed a sparrow that might have been one of the chipping sparrows.  The wind kept me out of the water.  I could see a frog in the pool, maybe wondering why I wasn't chasing it.  Unfortunately, the wind blew down more leaves and pine needles to clog the skimmer.  

A monarch butterfly fought the wind but didn't alight on the butterfly milkweed.  Maybe that means it was a male?  A couple of snouts dueled in the air but perched where I couldn't see.  A female Horace's duskywing perched on a morning glory leaf.  Sunset turned clouds orange.