Wildlife Wednesday April 2018

It's the first Wednesday of April and that means Wildlife Wednesday hosted by Tina at "My Gardener Says....".  Wow, do I have some cool stuff from the past month of March!  Even though we've continued our cool, cloudy weather longer than usual things are picking up.

I looked out the window one morning last week and spotted this Gray Fox climbing our tree next to the deck.  I had heard they climbed trees but imagined them walking on horizontal low branches common to our native live oaks.  Not so.  This Fox flattened against the tree and then climbed straight up the trunk like a squirrel or cat.  Unfortunately I wasn't fast enough to get photos of the climbing action.  This is 20ft (6m) up!

Searching for bird eggs or squirrels.

Jumping down to the lower branch.  So much fun to watch!

Gray Foxes are native to North and Central America and the only canid whose range spans both.  They have hooked claws which allows them to climb trees.  Getting down is a little more challenging.

All of the above photos were taken through the window.  Now back down on the ground, it joined its mate.  Wouldn't it be fun to find their den and see the kits?

The woodpile is always popular with so many places for tasty meals to hide.

Just before turning to walk away one flashed us a grin.  Seems they enjoyed their visit as much as we did.

Hummingbirds are also back and I'm keeping the feeder filled since most of their favorite flowers are yet to bloom.  I staked out the feeder on a windy afternoon and caught this GIF.  It's easy to know when to start the camera since they literally hum their approach.  Sometimes they first appear sitting above to make sure all is clear.  Catching them on a real flower is much more challenging.  Didn't see any red so this must be a Black-Chinned hummingbird.

Green Anoles have returned to the garden as the weather warms up.  Anoles have the endearing habit of claiming a specific plant as their territory and climbing to the top to await moths and other insects.  I heard one snap at a moth one day and it was quite audible.  It's unclear how this muhly grass is working out since it's not as sturdy as their usual agave perches.  Perhaps the agaves were all taken.  Depending on their perch anoles turn a color range from bright green to brown.  The change occurs quickly and is fun to watch.  This one is just a few shades short of bright green.

Meet "Mr. Buttons" who has been hanging out by the brush pile waiting for cuttings of Ruellia and other tasty plants.  Deer shed antlers in winter after mating season and before fawns arrive.  Buttons show new antlers are emerging.  They're also kicked out of the herd about the same time so he's on his own waiting for food delivery.  I rattle the gate when tossing deer edibles and he will walk over to inspect.

Yummy!

That's the wildlife report for the past month.  You can find more wildlife posts in the comments section at "My Gardener Says...".

Wildlife Wednesday: February 2018

It's the first Wednesday of February and that means Wildlife Wednesday hosted by Tina at "My Gardener Says....".  It's still cold down here in South Texas on most days so wildlife sightings are not as easy. But I did observe a few interesting things this month.

One bright spot in winter are the Cardinals which visit our feeder almost daily.  The best squirrel-proof feeder we've found is this small basket suspended on flexible electrical cable.  The original top degraded in the sun and we replaced it with a plastic bowl from the thrift store.  The feeder is too slippery for squirrels and also keeps out larger birds like Pigeons and Jays.

They often appear in pairs taking turns at the feeder and are quite thoughtful of each other.

Speaking of squirrels.  What we have here is a stand off....

...with the cat.  She arrived as a feral cat and has tamed down quite well though she is still an outdoor cat.  We have also made sure she cannot reach the feeder so it all works.

We have both foxes and coyotes in the neighborhood.  Last month I showed you a coyote walking through the yard in daylight.  Below is a fox on the deck.  She's not happy there's no food in the cat bowl and leaves a mark in disgust.  I originally labeled this as a coyote but Anna pointed out it is a fox.  They are similar but the fox is smaller with shorter snout and more fur.

We now place a gate across the steps to help keep coyotes away from the house.

The deer herd has migrated back to our end of the creek and we should be seeing new fawns soon.  Not much to eat with such dry plants out there.  They don't eat the prickly ash juniper which is the only green in the background.  While several of our neighbors feed the deer, we have chosen not to with the exception of water in the heat of summer.

She's still not happy about being fenced out of the garden.

Check out the comments section at "My Gardener Says..." for more blogger backyard wildlife.

Wildlife Wednesday September 2017

It is a busy time for wildlife in the garden: harvesting berries, raising babies, and trying to eat my plants.  It all makes for quite a Wildlife Wednesday show.  Wildlife Wednesday is hosted by Tina at "My gardener says...." on the first Wednesday of each month.

Male House Finch feasting on American Beautyberry (Calicarpa Americana).

Its bright magenta berries ripen in stages from the trunk.  Mockingbirds and Cardinals are the usual visitors and often wait patiently in nearby trees during the day to snatch each individual berry as it ripens.

Beautyberries are edible and apparently make a nice jelly but that will have to wait since all berries are now gone.  Fortunately this graceful native shrub roots easily where branches touch the ground, otherwise it wouldn't be easy to make new ones from seeds alone.

Black Carpenter Bees at work on Texas Sage (Leucophyllum frutescens) after recent rains.

If you've been noticing brown branch tips like this on trees in San Antonio....



.....those noisy Cicadas are the likely culprit.



While we don't get the crazy 17-year Cicada emergence cycles common on the East Coast and in the Mid-West, there was a large population of Cicadas this summer in my neighborhood.   Female Cicadas lay eggs in the branch tips by sawing an opening which leads to this effect.  Here's an explanation from State of the Planet by Columbia University's Earth Institute:

"Each brown branch tip you see is a spot where a female cicada sawed through a small twig with an appendage on her abdomen and laid a group of eggs.   When those eggs hatch – six to ten weeks after being laid – the newborn nymphs will drop to the ground, burrow down into the soil, and begin feeding on tree roots."

The effect is quite recognizable once you know what to look for.

Browned tips are noticeable all over my neighborhood this year.

Not the prettiest spot in the garden, but the toad likes it just fine.

Time to check in on the resident deer.

A fawn quickly losing its spots.  This one is probably about three or four months old and likely not the same newborn I featured in last month's post.

Mom is still watchful and will continue to nurse for another month or so.

An eight-point buck has taken up residence by the gate where we put garden trimmings out to compost.  He's probably eyeing that Evergreen Sumac (Rhus virens) in the foreground which wouldn't stand a chance without the fence.  I am that close to him.  No way would I be able to get that close a few months from now.  He'll soon be looking for plants to polish those antlers ahead of mating season.  The "antlering" of plants is the most destructive thing they do in the garden.

If they would just stay in the woods and away from the garden.

Visit "My gardener says..." for more garden wildlife posts.   This month Tina has excellent information on how you can help hummingbirds with their migration since their favorite stop in Rockport, Texas is out of commission as result as Hurricane Harvey damage.

Wildlife Wednesday September 2016

Even though it seems we are well into September, it's the first Wednesday which means it's time to visit the garden for a wildlife survey.  Wildlife Wednesday is hosted by Tina at "My gardener says..." each month.

A couple of new captures for my blog from August and early September include White flies flitting in late summer sunlight providing a fun GIF photo op.  For a positive ID I would need to smack some down to inspect under a magnifier.  We'll just enjoy the animation.

A skink finally makes it into my Wildlife Wednesday post. 

I've been trying to get one of these squiggly legless lizards to hold still for months.  We have a lot of skinks in the garden but their quick snake-like movements are hard to catch on camera.  Somehow this one sensed my presence and froze in place instead of taking off.

With over 1,500 types of skinks to search, I think this is a Ground Skink (Sincellis lateralis) (Does that imply there are flying skinks?).  It spends much of its time in leaf litter hunting insects and the leaves make great camouflage.  Skinks are highly beneficial in the garden and cockroaches are among its favorite food sources.  Go skink go!

Honey bees enjoy Cenizo blossoms in early August.  All the sage plants were buzzing with bees during the week or so the blooms were around.

A solitary bee approaching bright yellow Mexican Bird of Paradise flowers.



I'm going with carpenter bee since it's large, shiny and dark.

A honeybee joins in the nectaring party.  Usually there's one type of bee per plant.

Yummy nectar.  Okay, that was a lot of photos for this one bee.  It just looks so cool against the bright yellow flowers

A solitary bee on Augusta Duelberg salvia (Salvia farinacea).



White sulphur butterfly on Aniscanthus wrightii.  This might be Pieris rapae or cabbage white but I didn't get a good look at the inner wings.

Walking sticks continue to enjoy the porch screens.

As usual we had deer visitors like this spotted fawn on the outside looking in.  They have plenty to eat and drink with all the rain this summer.

Though it looks like a family of three fawns, another doe is nearby.  While one fawn per doe is most common, there are a few sets of twins each year.

That's the wildlife report from my garden for August and early September.  Find more interesting garden wildlife in the comments section at Tina's blog Wildlife Wednesday blog post.

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.

Wildlife Wednesday December 2015

When I first began posting for Wildlife Wednesday I figured it would be easy to come up with a few bird photos each month along with butterflies during the summer months so I dove right in when Tina at "My gardener says..." started up this meme.  Now each month I'm amazed to see the range of wildlife attracted to my increasingly urban garden setting.

Let's see what's been visiting my garden the last few weeks.

Foxes have been sighted more often as we get deeper into fall.  I walked past the kitchen door and saw her looking in at me, grabbed the camera and ran outside.  By then she was under the deck.  When she heard me she jumped out and ran away after a moment or two of curiosity.  Foxes run with all four legs in unison so they appear to skim across the ground and can run about 30 mph.

Wildlife Wednesday September 2015: Barred Owl update and other antics

It's the first Wednesday of September and I'm joining Tina at My Gardener Says... for a look at the wildlife in my yard.  Last month for Wildlife Wednesday I featured our frequent guest the Barred Owl which was surprisingly active in the daytime.

We've seen him a few more times.

Wildlife Wednesday August 2015

One of the first things I do upon arriving in the kitchen each morning is look through the back windows to see what's going on in the yard.

That habit paid off beautifully yesterday morning when I spotted this Barred Owl looking back at me from about 30 feet.

Good morning!

Wildlife Wednesday March 2015: The Movie

What can make a deer back off from the water dish?  Watch the video all the way to the end, it's only a minute and 19 seconds.

Oh, yeah.  I'd back off too!  Wonder how he knew?

I'm joining Tina at My Gardener Says..... for Wildlife Wednesday where you can share your wildlife posts and see more wildlife fun in the comments section.

Wildlife Wednesday February 2015: Hawk on a Wire!

Almost every day we hear hawks screeching as they hunt the field out back.  We see them soaring gracefully along the woods, searching for their prey.  Occasionally they dive into the tree tops in pursuit, creating a commotion and cries of protests from their intended targets.  Rarely will a hawk come close enough to the house where we can get a good look.  That's why it was such a surprise to see one sitting on the wire out front.  I'm joining Tina at "My gardener says..." for Wildlife Wednesday this first Wednesday in February.

Surprises

It's not easy for us to surprise each other with gifts.  I'm not good at waiting for a special occasion to buy something and neither is he.  This year was an exception.

"This will instantly make your blog better."  He handed over the box and I paused wondering what it could possibly be.  He was so certain.  I couldn't think of what it would be.

It's a new camera lens.  An 18-135mm which will provide more versatility over a broader range of distances, including doubling my zoom while out and about.

Wildlife Wednesday November 2014

It's time for Wildlife Wednesday hosted by Tina at My Gardener Says..... on the first Wednesday of each month.  November is for the birds.

Oh when the red, red Robin comes bob-bob-bobbin' along....