Wednesday, January 6, 2016

Wildlife Wednesday January 2016: The Prequel

To kick off a new year of Wildlife Wednesday posts I'm heading to the archives for interesting wildlife photos from back before I began linking with My Gardener Says to make Wildlife Wednesday a regular feature on my blog.

First, a look at a wildlife photo from my garden last month.  Bees on the Rosemary Gorizia flowers.  Or is that all there is to see in the photo?  A closer looks shows what appears to be a bright green ladybug on the stem behind the bees, but is most likely a Cucumber Beetle.  I didn't even see it there until I looked at the photo.  We don't grow cucumbers or squash, just a few herbs.



Let's move on to the archives for a look previous wildlife visitors.  A juvenile Katydid on a canna leaf.  The undeveloped wings were a puzzle that took a while to figure out.  When I discovered it was a Katydid I was concerned we might have an infestation which can cause major plant damage.  It turns out that only a few ever show up at a time so I don't bother them.


A leaf-footed bug on the (old) fence headed for a gap in the boards.


Wait for it....


Interesting acrobatics, the bug made it across the gap and we've replaced that fence.


Birds have always been big players in my wooded garden and I've amassed quite a collection of their antics.  This one I call "The Standoff".   A couple of House Finches enjoying a bath are joined by a new arrival who seems content at first to wait his turn.


Or not.  "Okay, I'm tired of this....."


"Hey!  We were here first!"


"Who you lookin' at?"


This last bird photo was too cute to pass up, it's a nest of Barn Swallows from the golf clubhouse where Neal plays.  They look like cartoon drawings and exactly like many of the images I found in a search.

"Hi there!"


It's my tradition to end Wildlife Wednesday posts with a deer photo.  These photos are from December, Deer on the outside looking in is exactly where I prefer to see them.  We've had one or two find their way inside the fence but it's so much better now and I've had some plants bloom for the first time ever.

Not sure what the fascination is with the post.  It's been raining which means there's plenty of water and food out there so we're all getting along just fine.


Uh-oh!  Not quite enough camouflage.


I found so many fun wildlife photos while combing the archives so I'll continue to share a few on Wildlife Wednesday posts throughout the year.  You can find a lot more wildlife in the garden over at "My Gardener Says..."

15 comments:

  1. Don't know which was my favorite: the stretch....ed katydid, or the stare-off between the birds, or the barn swallows--they all had me chuckling. Thanks for that, it's a good way to end the day. Fun post, Shirley--a great start to 2016!

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    1. Thank you so much for hosting Tina.

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  2. Shirley, I was excited to see the brown bird with the speckled belly on the water dish and was hoping to see it's name, but there wasn't one. I've seen them on my property and looked for the name in my bird book with no luck. Do you or any of your readers know what the bird is?

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    1. I researched and found a few possibilities but not a match. Hopefully another reader will know.

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  3. How serene...
    I was in your area...your garden looked AMAZING, as usual!:)

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    1. Aha, I thought I might have seen some of your colleagues.

      The garden pretty much the same year round which is by design and really stands out in the winter. You can always ring the bell.

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  5. Omg...you'll love this...the solid wing...could it be a FOX Sparrow???!!!

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    1. Oh wow! I did ID it as a possible sparrow but did not come across the Fox Sparrow. It does look a lot like it so quite likely, I'll go look a little closer.

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  6. Loved the fence acrobatics ... and the birdbath ... and the swallows. Katydids are a favorite for me. We only have them in the late spring through the summer, so they remind me of pleasant times with the windows open and garden sounds serenading me to sleep. :)

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  7. So much wildlife! I wonder what is up with the deer and your fence post?

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  8. Great idea to revisit your prequel wildlife photos and share over the coming months and for January too. The Barn Swallow photo is really lovely they do look just like cartoon characters.

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  9. The swallows are so cute, I love seeing the light-colored gapes of the baby birds, they remind me of flowers when they are begging for food.

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  10. Birds can be quite funny and those swallow babies are the cutest. Glad that deer was outside the fence!

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  11. Now that is a great grouping of critters....especially the acrobatic bug...wow. I love the birds in the bird bath but have never seen these birds before.

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