Birds, Bees, Flowers, Wildlife, and Mules

We saw this doe walk out of the woods and pretty soon two fawns came racing from the tall grasses. I don't often get to see a doe nursing her fawn, let alone nursing twins.

Fighting Tiny Titans

not a fantastic shot but you can see the hummers chest thumping each other in a dispute over the Bee Balm and the other flowers in our east garden.
 

It's July. It is hot, humid, muggy, and there is a smokey haze. The yard was still too wet from our rain the night before of 1 inch. So I took a chair out next to the garden used my long lens to observe the goings on in my garden.

A Fritillary Butterfly and a Bumble Bee were both enjoying my Blazing Stars.

A Silver Spotted Skipper [?] seemed to be fascinated with my Forget me nots.

The bees were crazy busy. Even extremely tiny ones. 

I caught sight of some house finches enjoying the feeder also.

I can enjoy photographing the flowers and all of the activity and still be near enough to the house to check on my 'patient'. 

Morning light on a pumpkin flower with a busy Bee Butt full of pollen.

I have several pumpkin plants that did free seeding in the mules lot. I'll have to fence them off later if I want pumpkins for this fall. I also have 3 or 4 plants growing in my flower beds. Why not? Less yard I have to mow!

The sun flowers are beginning to get ready to show off their blossoms and with that, the bees will pollinate and the Goldfinches will get busy at eating the seeds. I let them have plenty before I take and save the seeds for next year's planting.

I'm looking forward to having the mule gals' pasture brush hogged. Hopefully it will help keep down the noxious weeds and the burdock. If I can get a regular schedule for next year I will be a happy person and so will my gals.

Sundance looks over Siera's back.

Sunshine enjoys a weedy pasture, she can swipe irritating flies off her body.

They may look like the same red mules, but they aren't. They are half sisters with the same mom, different donkey dads. Sunshine is 28 and Sundance is 16. I can easily tell them apart by their body shape and their tails which are different shades.

I finally did get out into the woods on Sunday morning. I found some very interesting mushrooms.

More...later!

Buggin' is Distracting

Well, searching for grasses leads to searching for wildflowers

leads to finding cool insects...

leads to being more curious about everything...

and then I forget to do other important things like...

leaving the cleaning for later...laundry maybe can wait....

But then I get back at it. 
You know, mowing, cleaning, making supper stuff, hanging out laundry...

and then I stop and see... 

the bumble bees...

working on the sage plant flowers on the porch...

a little bit later, I drop my basket of clothes and sit to watch a Red Admiral..

he/she is fluttering about on a Forget Me Not flower...

another flutter-by...attracts my

eye...

a Silver Spotted Skipper...

A cardinal swoops into my view and now I have to sit on the porch bench and watch him...

I go back to grab the sheets off the line and checked on my shady wildflower garden. I have to stop again...

more time watching and wondering...

I find the Ultimately Coolest Bug ever...

on a Coreopsis flower...waiting...waiting for a victim...

The Assassin Bug or
Ambush Bug

I watch this insect and wonder why no one has modeled a science fiction creature after this amazing looking insect.

close up...cropped....

I spy...

another type of fly...

on a Hosta Leaf...

time to get back at it...

beds to make, laundry to fold..

but dang, buggin' is a lot more fun...

If it were not for my dad, I may have never picked up this hobby...