Hibiscus blossom

The crow perched on the railing and thought about the food in the hanging dishes.  I think this was early for the hibiscus to bloom, and the plant was quite small so far this year - only two stalks instead of a half dozen and not very tall.  I didn't see the flower until I was in the water.  The usual beetles were swimming along with things I don't rescue.  Something eating cherries dropped some in the water.  The mockingbird I saw cherry picking was careful.  A Carolina wren was only interested in barkbutter and mealworms.  A brown headed nuthatch wanted seeds.  A hummer disdained the sugarwater so I discarded it.  I glimpsed butterflies and prince baskettail dragonflies.  The milkweed had more buds.  The noon sky was full of wispy patterns.  A shower in the afternoon kept me inside. 

Cherry pickers

A pair of Carolina wrens showed up at breakfast.  Because of the weather forecast and the evil fly I swam in the morning.  There were a good many May beetles needing rescue and one very small mama spider.  I glimpsed a butterfly but, surprisingly, no Odonata.  A skipper found the first flowers on the mountain mint.  An egret stalked along the bullkhead.  The crow came looking for treats.  

In the afternoon, birds feasted on the wild cherry.  I saw mockingbirds, chickadees, cardinals, and some I wasn't sure about, maybe an Eastern kingbird?  A bluebird looked around before joining the cherry pickers.  The recent rains plumped up the cherries which had been wizened and tough in the drought.  The blueberries seemed to be waiting for more encouragement.  Scientific American reported that there is a structure in plant cells that reacts to the sound of falling rain.  DEQ had not lifted the drought warning despite the recent rain. It still only accumulated to 2/3 of the average for the first half of the year.  Today's rain arrived around 3pm.  

!@#$% fly

For various reasons I didn't swim till late in the day.  There was still a lot of tree trash in the water but also some interesting critters.  I rescued a bumblebee, a mama spider, a robber fly, and numerous scarabs.  The twig I propped on the ladder gave escape to a beetle and a spider.  I found an odd-looking insect on a floating leaf.  It appeared to be a small yellow-green fly but the hind legs were splayed like a frog.  It didn't move and its wings may have been stuck to the leaf.  But as I was looking at it, a tabanid fly came at me.  It chased me dripping all the way to the house and I left puddles inside.  I have no trouble understanding why Beelzebub is demon.  And that is why I got no pictures.

Rodent robbery

The squirrel continued to raid the blue dish.  In fact, the last I saw, it had been overturned.  Meanwhile, a Carolina wren  stayed above on the glass dish.  I saw cardinals and finches on the seed feeder.  It was a nice day though cloudy but when I got home I wasn't feeling well enough to go outside.  

 

The tale of squirrel and crow

After the storm it was much cooler and very nice.  The crow came looking for a handout.  The squirrel helped itself to the birds' food in the hanging dishes.  The crow watched and thought about trying to do the same but didn't quite figure out how.  At one point they were nearly nose to beak and the squirrel was feeling feisty.   The pool was full of water and detritus.  I helped a bumblebee and a wasp and a few beetles.   A skink rushed across the steps faster than I could focus.  

Donner und Blitzen

A small sunflower bloomed yesterday.  Then it rained substantially overnight.  More was predicted so I swam in the morning.  Beetles, ants, wasps, and roaches were afloat but I only rescued beetles.  Afterward, I glimpsed a dragonfly and a cabbage white.  The New England aster was blooming.  So was the beautyberry.  At lunch, crows and squirrels ate mealworms.  Carolina wrens and bluebirds were unhappy that the dishes were covered against future rain.  A blown leaf fragment fooled me into thinking it was a mantis.  

A thunderstorm arrived around 2:30pm  and rain hammered the pavement.  By 3pm the thunder was loud and the lightning close, while the light was very low.  We lost Internet connectivity for about 22 hours.

Solstice

I swam in the morning while there was still some shade and rescued a handful of brown scarab Phyllophaga May beetles and one ladybug.  I think the ladybug was dead though.  A tiger swallowtail tried to wrestle nourishment out of a fancy daylily.   The beautyberry started to blom.  We went to a sunset vigil and a mockingbird circled overhead.  The first quarter moon had a faint halo.