Rain

Rain fell overnight and again after breakfast, thought that was light and short.  It seemed to annoy the Argiope.  A Carolina wren was the early bird.  Titmice hung around and a pine warbler visited briefly.  A buckeye nectared on the mountain mint and a variegated fritillary egged violet leaves    A dragonfly kept watch.  Bees and wasps stuffed themselves with mountain mint nectar. 

I waited too late and had to have a hurried swim under dark clouds.  Even so, that was fortunate for a large moth that was doing a vigorous backstroke and a woodlouse hunter spider that was sinking.  I was able to rescue both without damage to them, or me, despite a pestering mosquito. 

 About 5pm a thunderstorm came banging through and dumped a lot of water..  I saw the male widow skimmer as I hurried indoors but was too wet to stop for a photo.  The Argiope was rocking its web - I wondered if it was trying to shake off the raindrops.  Afterward, a brown headed nuthatch craved seeds.