Sun and sparows

The white throats are still here scratching at the mulch.  A grackle inspected the grass and found something. Breakfast was bright with sunshine but the clouds are getting thicker now - just the reverse of yesterday.  It is still windy.

Hmm, the clouds moved off again and just left haze.  A squirrel has just been frustrated by the feeder, again.  That was an excellent purchase about 20 years ago!  Finches returned when the squirrel gave up. 

Ducks skid-landed on the pool cover.  Geese escorted their five goslings down the hill.  Of course, one insisted on dawdling. The haze has thickened and the wind continues. 

Sun as predicted

It was overcast at breakfast.  Then just before 9am a fierce wind out of the NE swept the clouds before it.  The usual suspects have been to the feeder.  A catbird paused briefly on the bench.  Two small, brown birds have been zooming around too fast to identify - lust or territory? White throated sparrows are still here.

Tiger swallowtails are flitting in the wind. Grackles arrived at lunch.  I think I've seen five different skinks this afternoon,
different sizes, some adult some blue tailed.  This one has lost part of its tail.

The Carolina wrens came by in the afternoon.  High in the sky, I think I'm seeing swallows, maybe swifts or martins, I cannot be sure.  Definitely gulls and cormorants, and maybe osprey are up there.  A pelican lumbered through, perhaps avoiding the wind out on the open water.

A tiger swallowtail posed laying eggs on a wild cherry.  I never noticed before but the veins in the upper wings produce a sort of cats-eye look.  I wonder if it works as intimidation?

Wind and rain

Curtains of rain are blowing up the creek.  Cardinals, finches, and a white throated sparrow nevertheless came for breakfast.  I finally got the two color morphs of white throated sparrow in one photo. 

 The wind defeated the rain.  Lots of chickadees are hungry along with wrens.  I keep glimpsing mystery birds that I cannot identify.  A ragged osprey soared over the creek.  A female brown headed cowbird stopped by briefly.  I have to thank the Facebook Great Backyard Bird Count group for confirming the identification. 

Around 9pm, at least two raccoons came to raid the feeder.  I was alerted by the noise when one jumped off.  I couldn't get much of a photo through the window without scaring them off.   But here is one pawing through the mulch. 

Fog

I left the house early and there was a glimmer of sun through clouds in the East.  But by mid morning fog was thick and wet.  I saw a male towhee on a mailbox and heard a mockingbird.  The feeder was empty again. The lake above the dam that is across the creek and downstream is always a good spot for fog photos, but there were no birds this morning. 

Around lunchtime, there were some breaks in the clouds and a little sun, but it didn't last.  A misty gloom returned.  A chickadee visited the feeder and the squirrel with the white spot rummaged in the mulch.  A family of geese came through the yard down to the creek.  When I went to photograph them, something scolded me from the trees.  A cardinal flitted around.  The air is just full of water, and chilly.

Gentle rain

The rain is falling soft and straight, with no sign of wind.  Chickadees and a finch came to the feeder.  Sparrows were busy in the wet mulch.

Later a Carolina wren visited.  The rain has been steady but not heavy. More chickadees, finches, and sparrows foraged. 

Toward evening the rain had slackened and the clouds looked like they were thinking of breaking.  A hint of sunset color touched them.  

Bright till afternoon

The mallard pair were back this morning.  They snoozed and drank and preened and then left about 9am.  As long as the drake is around, she's not nesting.  A crow also came to the pool cover for a drink.  White throated sparrows are still feeding in the mulch.  A female finch was on the feeder.  I saw an egret flying very high into the sun.  Canada geese made a racket on the creek.  The newspaper says it is supposed to be overcast, but bits of fleece are all I see - the sky is very blue and the sun intense.

Still blue at 10am.  A Carolina wren is pecking at litter in the crevices of the patio.  And at 11:30 there are no clouds. A skink crisscrossed the patio.  Two tiger swallowtails danced together in the air. 

Finally, well after 1pm, clouds gathered and now it is overcast.  The breeze has freshened too.  Cardinals, finches, and chickadees are visiting the feeder.  A dove joined the sparrows in the mulch. A pair of blue jays flew across the yard. The male cardinal contrasts with cinquefoil, rue, and blue-eyed grass. 

More sun

A female mallard was using the wet center of the pool cover as her birdbath.  A white throated sparrow kicked the bark nugget mulch.  The wind is soft ant the creek smooth.  The sky is white with a cirrus glaze but the sun shines strongly.  No birds visited the feeder - I'd better check it. I refilled the feeder.  A drake joined Mrs. Mallard and they are dozing on the pool edge.

At lunch, two tiger and one black swallowtail appeared.  The black laid eggs while the tigers flitted just fast enough to beat my camera.   The dogwood petals continue to flutter down like butterfly wings. A rabbit hopped through a neighbor's yard reminding me that I have nt seen any sign of rabbits in our yard this Spring.