Cloudier

Buggier, too.  The dragonflies feasted.  Some perched, some dangled, and some just kept flying.  I saw butterflies, including a red-spotted purple, I think, but got no pictures. 

A mockingbird ate cherries.  A fledgling blue jay begged for parental feeding.  Hummers warred over the feeder. 

I rescued a tiny skink from the skimmer.  It already had lost some tail.  Then K and I caught a little green frog between us. 

The sky went from blue with wisps to mackerel.  An osprey alerted us with its musical cry.  A big flock of crows wheeled over the creek, but I could not figure out their purpose.  After that, I saw high fliers I think were swifts. 

At dusk, I thought I saw bats - speedy dark blurs against a dark sky.  The moon was veiled and revealed by clouds pouring ENE.

Hazy with clouds

I left in the early morning.  When I got home, there were lots of dragonflies zooming around.  The only one that perched to be identified was a blue dasher.  A cabbage white butterfly continued to hunt for something, maybe a cabbage?  The rue attracted lots of wasps, mostly paper and thread-waisted and yellow jacket. 

A brown thrasher hunted around the camellia and went back frequently to the nest.  Wrens sang and occasionally one popped out of the house, but there were no chases like yesterday.  The hummer came back.  I saw a swift and heard more.  A nursery convoy of geese went downstream with three little ones between the first adults, three larger goslings in the middle of more parents, and adults with two goslings bringing up the rear.  Some kind of heron landed on the bank but all I caught was its back.

Beautiful

It was warmer and hazier but the breeze kept us comfortable.  I hung the clean refilled hummer feeder and a hummer showed up.  The chickadee fledglings were begging up in the pines.  Swallows or swifts or maybe both hunted far above me.  An egret soared downstream.  A yellow crowned night heron stalked across the dock. The wasps showed up to feast on the rue after it was in the shade.  I saw three dragonflies, a pink-orange one that zoomed over the house, a smaller dark one that cruised over the pool, and a big darner over by the blueberries.  A cabbage white flitted all over and a dark orange butterfly passed quickly through and I glimpsed a tiger swallowtail.

I was puzzled by the house wrens.  They chased around the yard sporadically all day.  Perhaps one was challenging the other?  According to Cornell, "Single males sometimes compete for females even after a pair has begun nesting. In about half of these contests the outsider succeeds in displacing his rival, at which point he usually discards any existing eggs or nestlings and begins a new family with the female."  At one point the bird house bounced suggestively.   I heard a wren grumbling and then saw it scuttling along the back of the house.  Then it shot between me and the cane over to the birdhouse. 

Another fine day

I swept out the dry birdbath and refilled it after I saw a squirrel drinking from the pool.  House wrens were busy all day.  A cabbage white butterfly seemed to be hunting the right plant.  Smaller lepidoptera flitted around.  Downstream the elderberry flowers bloomed.

The painted skimmer was back using a garden stake.  A small blue-tailed skink scuttled across the top step.  Clouds played peek-a-boo with the sun in the mid afternoon but then the sky cleared to an intense blue that bordered on ultraviolet.  A handful of adult geese escorted two goslings up the creek.   Lots of fluffy seeds blew around. Swifts were flying but hard to distinguish from the specks in my eyes. 

Construction zone

The brown thrashers were working on a nest in the camellia outside the kitchen window.  Their strategy is to enter the camellia bush at ground level and hop by stages up to the nest.  The house wrens were still nest building but the bluebird was back interfering.  A grackle prospected in the grass.  The hummer had breakfast and brunch.  An adult skink sauntered across the steps with much tail wagging.  Wasps enjoyed the heat and the swallowtail caterpillars munched rue. The sky had a white matte look but the sunlight was strong.

Work continued on the nests at lunchtime.  A Carolina wren came for what mealworms the squirrel had left.  A heron flew downstream and later an egret fished under the bulkhead.  A skink climbed the bricks.  Several species of polistes paper wasps continued to eat the bench.  The sun was hot.  Somehow I missed the blueberry flowers - little, hard, green berries have formed.  The pinxter flowers and the first rose have bloomed.

When I left downtown this evening the West was flaming and the rest of the sky was streaked with pink.  Swallows or swifts were dancing in the air making high-pitched calls. 

Beautiful morning

A white throat was already foraging.  The hummer and a male cardinal came soon after.  Then nothing.  The creek mirrored the varied greens of grass and leaves, but soon enough its surface wrinkled.

When I returned, the sun warmed me enough to sit outside, though wind gusts were chilly.  A tiger swallowtail and a black swallowtail, bees and a bee fly all enjoyed the sun with me.  I found a caterpillar no bigger than this: !  on the rue.  Swifts danced in the blue sky.  All sorts of birds were singing, but I couldn't locate them now that the leaves were out.  A pair of goldfinches courted on the feeder.  Skinks were out on the patio as well.

Clouds thickened in the afternoon.  Toward evening, the Western horizon was golden with shafts of sunlight piercing the clouds.

Goodbye, July

The sky is a hazy blue and warmer today.  Early birds included a hummer, titmice, a towhee, a male goldfinch, and the regulars.  The goldfinch has found the other sunflower that successfully made seed, but is hidden behind the morning glory vines.  I discovered another click beetle, this time on the stove.  The link said the larva are "wireworms" and I realized I've seen them and thought they were millipedes. 

While I was shucking corn for lunch, a male towhee landed on the feeder but I apparently made it too anxious to stay.  Then a dragonfly tried to land on the railing and slid off.  Hummers and goldfinches came during lunch.

Later in the afternoon, I saw the male goldfinch singing up in the oak.  Swifts swooped and chattered against a background of cumulus.  By 5pm, the sky was white and the sun glowed rather than shone.  The creek was busy with herons, both little green and yellow crowned.  One green buzzed another and later one perched in the top of the gum.  Kayakers startled an egret.  There were dragonflies zooming but none perched.  It was on the cool side and humid with only a light breeze to keep the bugs off. 

More sun, less cloud

A male goldfinch was preening on the feeder hanger during breakfast. I went outside with my second cup of coffee  and promptly dropped the cup which broke.  My favorite!

After lunch, a skink wandered around the patio, waving its tail in a sinuous flowing motion.  A mockingbird flew into the cherry tree.  Both male and female goldfinch were hard at work on the sunflowers. 

Later, a variety of dragonflies appeared: a blue dasher, a four-spotted pennant, a slaty skimmer in the photo, and two widow skimmers.  I rescued a cream-colored spider from the pool.  It scuttled off too fast for me to get a good mental image. Piled-high cumulus are streaming out of the Southeast. 

Sunset dyed cloud bars pink and brought out swifts, in Norfolk. 

Cool, clear and bright

The cold front has passed.  It's breezy and, while plenty of wasps were out, I didn't see any dragonflies.  I shooed off a goose that was checking on the pool.  The wrens continue to bustle and sing.  A hummer visited and gave me a good looking over.  It seemed displeased with the juice, so we took the feeder down to clean.  A white breasted nuthatch kept trying to have a turn at the seed feeder, despite the regular birds. 

I identified this spider as a Venusta Orchard Spider. A skink crossed the patio in the late morning.  And I finally saw adregonfly and a cabbage butterfly.  At noon, the fox passed by, ignoring me although I was sitting outside.  Tufted titmice came to the feeder.  And osprey caught fish. 

My only pool rescue today was a honeybee.  K saved a spider,  In the evening, a female towhee foraged under the feeder.  It looked like it was losing tail feathers.  A hummer stopped in around 8pm  and looked all over for the feeder which was inside, drying.  At least it's clear that the hummer is a returning customer. 

Smoky cumulus drifted East above the pines while swifts scoured the sky for bugs.  The setting sun tinted the clouds peach. 

Warm, still morning

So I sat outside with the second cup of coffee.  A hummer came, as did chickadees.  A squirrel got to the steps before its nerve failed.  Both towhees were around but not too close.  A blue jay looked me over from the roof.  I could hear the juvie crow and saw an adult ferrying a mouthfull of something white.  The wrens bustled and sang.  A swift chattered as it flew overhead.  An osprey was silent on its way upstream.  I think I glimpsed a red bellied woodpecker crossing the creek, something with a red head anyway, and there had been hammering.  The creek was smooth and reflective and light airs barely moved leaves.  The sky was hatched with contrails that crept East.

At lunch time, a swamp darner dragonfly clung to the wall till I got close.  Then I saw a skink on the wall, but it stayed behind the furniture. A skipper landed on a sunflower leaf.  A tiger and then a black swallowtail passed through the yard.  At the top of the redwood, a brown thrasher serenaded with its back to me.  I whistled to get it to turn around, and it left.  Then the towhee pair danced around the patio.  It appeared he was courting her, unless that was a juvenile?   

The wind picked up in the afternoon and it cooled off.  Another hummer came by but didn't stay.  The sunset under streaky pink clouds with the sickle moon following it down.

Clouds out of the South

The windows were fogged when we got up.  As they cleared, a damsel fly tried to come through the glass.  When the sun caught it, it was like a blazing emerald with wings.  But the camera would not focus on it.  Fat cumulus have been streaming North, and when they block the sun, the wind springs up.  So it flicks from bright, hot, and still to breezy shade - not bad.

A goldfinch checked out the birdhouse.  I thought I'd glimpsed some of them around.  A female towhee and a female cardinal each came and poked through the mulch just a few feet from me.  The towhee didn't look well.  Other birds were more wary.  The chickadees visit the feeder without a qualm, the finches visit but startle easily, and the cardinals refuse to come when I'm outside.  Birdsong this morning had to compete with geese and crows.  A few swifts flew high.

A hummer visited - I heard her fussing - but she didn't stay long.  A blue tailed skink ran across the patio after lunch.  Meanwhile it got very windy while the clouds grew thinner and less puffy.  They still rushed North.  The wrens sang under cover. 

The sky became overcast and the wind continued strong.  At supper a cardinal could barely stay on the feeder. 

Early birds

I got up at 6 and went outside to listen to the birds.  I could match up the swifts and the wrens with their songs, but a lot of others were mysteries.  A woodpecker knocked in the distance.  Leaves were backlighted by the rising sun. 

Later, a male towhee appeared, only to be chased by the wretched tuxedo cat. 

At lunch, I saw a juvenile skink swim across the birdbath. The wrens were having a fuss in the rosemary.  There is something strange going on in that birdhouse.  Butterflies and dragonflies moved too fast for identification - it is hot!

Another beautiful day

Sunny, but neither sticky nor scorching. But not much to photograph.  The creek looked placid despite the light breeze.   I had my coffee outside and finches came anyway.  So did squirrels, but they were very twitchy.  A Carolina wren and a hummer also ignored me.  Bees and wasps and the hummer sipped rosemary flowers.  Other birds chirped and insects buzzed.  The cicadas are quite distinct form the crickets. 

A nuthatch showed up after lunch.  The same butterflies - hairstreak, purple, tiger - and some dragonflies zipped around.  In the late afternoon, swifts circled overhead so high I thought they were just the spots in my eyes.  But I could hear their calls very clearly despite the distance.  The hummer feeds right on into twilight. It is mosquito-ee this evening, maybe because there's less wind? A great blue heron landed on the dock and I heard a kingfisher call.

Drippy again

It rained overnight.  I woke up around 4:30 and the moon was bright in the SW while there was lightning in the North.  Hummers are happy with the fresh juice, but not with each other.  Bees seem interested as well - did I spill some?   A bee chased off a hummer that will stand up to a cardinal.  Go figure.  A cardinal slammed into a side window but staggered off after a minute.  I don't know why it couldn't see the window as they were all fogged over this morning.  Birds have been slow to visit the feeder and only the usuals have shown up.

But, on the dock, I got lucky!  A little green heron perched on the back of the bench was joined by a yellow crowned night heron on a piling.  I rescued a dark flower scarab beetle that was floating on a stick in the pool.  The palamedes flitted through again and a spotted dragonfly was out flying in the evening, as were the swifts. 

Tired of rain

Sunlight leaked in at dawn, but not for long.  Doves, two nuthatches, titmice, Carolina wrens, and a hummer joined the regular trio this morning before a light rain started.  At least four squirrels galloped around and messed with both feeders. White spot has figured out how to tip the hummer feeder away in order to get at the juice. Smart! 

More rain sprinkles and intermittent sun at lunch.  A skinklet ventured out.  Sulphur butterflies and a palemedes swallowtail flitted through.  A slaty skimmer took up watch on one of my dragonfly perches.  Swifts soared against the dark clouds.  And the hummers continued to challenge each other.

When I looked at the photo, I was surprised by a fierce face on the palamedes swallowtail.  I think it may only be apparent when the butterfly is in motion.  It makes me think owl which would scare many birds off.  Now is it my imagination or is it a genuine evolved protection?

I'm cleaning the hummer feeder even though the hummer wasn't rejecting it. 

Humid

I squeegeed the windows twice before the temperature rose past the dew point.  House finches were busy on the feeder, as was a Carolina wren.  The sun is shining but the sky is white. A rumpled brown thrasher preened on the fence as I went to pick blueberries,

Dragonflies were all around the berry bushes.  Over the course of the day, I saw skimmers, pondhawks, saddlebags, twelve spots, and an amberwing.  A palamedes swallowtail flitted leisurely between trees and bushes. 

Titmice came to the feeder whenever they thought I was otherwise occupied.  Egrets and two little green herons and two osprey flew over.  Goldfinches found something in the top of the oak tree. Sunset was quite colorful and the moon is approaching first quarter.

More sun

Cumulus puffs are rolling East.  Titmice joined chickadees and finches at the feeder.  The squirrel with the white spot foraged along with a youngster who tested the feeder latch.  Dragonflies are out early. I saw what I think were blue dashers of both sexes.  They are guarding the blueberries, along with spiders.  That's probably how we got bit the other day. 

The house wren is singing and another answers from the next yard.  The Carolina wren visited the feeder.  A hummingbird came twice but I didn't see it actually feed.  A female widow skimmers has made black and gold flashes while a golden winged skimmer was a streak of orange.  A black swallowtail hung around briefly. 

Despite the heat it has been pleasant with a breeze and lower humidity.  A woodpecker flitted between our oak and the neighbor's pine.  It was robin-size and I saw no red so I think it was a hairy.   The swifts were flying high and calling higher.  A twelve-spotted skimmer darted around making me waste pictures of blue sky. 

There are little black bees on the lavender smaller than honeybees.  A little green heron rested on a piling.  And the geese tried to visit again. 

Hot blue sky

Four squirrels behaving badly, lots of chasing and tussling.  One is clearly hoping to mount someone, anyone.  White spot held her rear flat to the concrete so he couldn't do anything.  During one chase, the two knocked over a third one.  On the feeder, finches and chickadees.

A hoot of an article on what state birds ought to be.  Meanwhile I continue to have no luck photographing either swallows or dragonflies.  An osprey hovered over the lake but didn't come to the creek. Later another osprey passed overhead.  Finally I caught a couple of swallows in silhouette! And I think they may be chimney swifts.  The sound and the tail shape fit. 

A tiger swallowtail flew from treetop to treetop.  A female towhee was all over the yard while a pileated woodpecker went to work on the roof of the neighbor's gazebo. The woodpecker went screeching past just as my camera battery flashed empty.  I wasn't going to waste time changing batteries so most of the woodpecker photos came out fuzzy.

A click beetle landed on me.  I saw another beetle I fear was a borer. The wasps are still mad for rue nectar.