Wildlife Wednesday: All in a day for November

I rarely plan my Wildlife Wednesday posts in advance so this one is an exception.  It just happened that one day in late October the garden was busy with so many different and interesting forms of wildlife I decided to show you just one day, "a day in the wildlife" you could say.  Wildlife Wednesday is hosted on the first Wednesday of each month by Tina at "My gardener says...."

My day started with observing what appears to be a female black chinned hummingbird on a small branch.  It is fascinating how their head, and entire body for that matter, never stops moving.  This one might be waiting to dive bomb and chase other hummingbirds away from the feeder.  Oddly, the chasers rarely visit the feeders.

A few minutes later I spent about an hour (off and on) convincing two Carolina Wrens to leave the screened porch and that's when it occurred to me I could make "a day in the Wildlife Wednesday".  The two birds had somehow found their way in and were clearly enjoying exploring their own private aviary.  It was time for them to go out before they made a mess of the furniture and plants.

When I tried to get them out they kept flying up to a cubby near the roof.  It's apparently easier to get in than out.  Here's a bit of the excitement:

When they tired of trying to fly up to the roof they dropped to the floor and began exploring so I just shooed them out the open door.

Meanwhile out the garden, fall-blooming White heath asters were fairly buzzing with activity.

Carpenter Bee

Bug eyes!



I think this is a paper wasp.

No idea.  It looks like a giant fly but I couldn't find a single redheaded fly in the images I searched.

While all the stingers and buzzers were busy in one part of the garden, over in the Gregg's mistflower patch butterflies were everywhere because it's a magnet.

Monarchs are migrating through.

Their cousins the Queen butterfly are here much of the year.

They get along well it seems....sometimes.  

And a Gray Hairstreak posed just right on the Augusta Deulberg Salvia.

Bright on bright with a Gulf Fritillary on Gomphrena 'Fireworks'.



A female Whitetail deer dropped by for lunch

and a nap

All in a wildlife day in my garden.

Tina's garden is all aflutter at "My gardener says..." and you'll find more posts from gardeners to follow in the comments sections.

Wildlife Wednesday: June 2018

It's the first Wednesday of June and Wildlife Wednesday hosted by Tina at "My Gardener Says...." as an opportunity to share wildlife in the garden for the past month.

We have an indecisive Hummingbird.  Should she go with the tall bloom stalk or the one with bigger, newer flowers?  

A first for the garden is spectacular Fiery Searcher Caterpillar Hunter Beetle (Calosoma scrutator)  unearthed while installing some new plants.  So gorgeous and listed as an ally in the garden because it only eats caterpillars which damage food crops like tomatoes and squash.

Apparently ancient Egyptians used the Dung Beetle as scarab jewelry though I might be more inclined to go with this beauty.  There were two of them and they were carefully returned to the planting bed.

Queen Butterflies stick it out in our hot summers while their cousins the Monarchs have flown north to cooler climates.

There were plenty of wildflowers in May to keep the bees busy.

Buzzzzz, hurry up before the deer lop off that Hesperaloe bloom.

 

Juvenile Caracara or Mexican Eagle has fledged.  It walked around for a few minutes then flew away to safety.  I did keep watch after seeing reports on the neighborhood website that some Caracara needed rescuing because they weren't yet flying.  We have excellent resources here with wildlife volunteers and rescue groups available to answer questions or even pick up animals needing assistance.

Gray Foxes have been frequent visitors during recent hot dry days.   It's been especially dry and we place small buckets of water around the garden for all manner of creatures.  Foxes have displayed little wariness of us as they wander through during daylight hours and curiously pause to watch me work.  Gray Foxes are native to North America and a delight to host in the garden.

A delicate spider web on Agave Cornelius.

Fawns are arriving in the neighborhood this week though we have not seen any yet.

Visit Tina at "My Gardener Says...." for a bird parade and check the comments for more blogger's posts on wildlife in the garden.

Wildlife Wednesday November 2017

It's November 1st and a Wednesday which means it's time for Wildlife Wednesday.   This wonderful meme provides a look at wildlife in blogger's gardens on the first Wednesday of each month and is hosted by Tina at "My gardener says...."

Here's a look at wildlife visitors in my garden during October.

Monarch butterflies continue to migrate through my garden on their way to wintering in Mexico.  Their journey of over a thousand miles one way is an amazing story.  This year I've been encouraged to see a few more Monarchs in the garden indicating their numbers are increasing.

Gregg's Mistflower continues to be the best butterfly magnet.  Queen Butterflies are all over it.

Queen up close.

A whitetail buck scavenging the compost pile just outside our back gate.

Deer often arrive as soon as I put the clippings out.  A little uneasy to have been caught out in the open.

He's a symmetrical eight-point with antlers all polished and ready for mating season.

Moving for cover nearer the trees.  As hunting season approaches antlered bucks instinctively understand their best camouflage is among tree branches.

Hunting is obviously not allowed within our city limits but he's still not safe since poaching from wooded undeveloped areas nearby is a problem.

For more Wildlife Wednesday photos check out the links in the comment section of "My gardener says".  Each month she finds an amazing array of wildlife to share from her garden.

Wildlife Wednesday November 2016: A month of butterflies

Our butterfly season is in full swing.  At the beginning of October I posted a recommended list of native butterfly nectar plants from the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center which I also grow in my garden.  As it turns out the butterflies voted with their wings and declared the Crucita or Blue Mistflower (Chromolaena odorata) the undisputed champion of native butterfly plants.  In fact, of all the plants on the vaunted list, only my Gregg's Mistflower attracted a significant number of butterflies.  Meanwhile, our Central Texas gardening community on Facebook has been brimming with stunning butterfly videos that are the envy of our friends in other parts of the country.  Some of you have already seen most of these photos and videos on my Facebook page, but I'm posting again for Wildlife Wednesday to share with readers who might not have seen them.  Wildlife Wednesday is hosted on the first Wednesday of each month by Tina at "My Gardener says...".  Tina features Blue Mistflower and many of the same butterflies this month too but I don't think she'll mind.  We live in the same region, about 70 miles apart so it's to be expected from time to time.

Of course I have them in motion.  A Fall bloomer just in time for butterfly season, it's been hopping like this for 10 days and still going even as the flowers fade.

Like Gregg's Mistflower on steroids, Chromolaena odorata is at least 11' tall, six feet wide and covered head-to-toe with butterflies.

Blue Mistflower is just so amazing as a butterfly nectar plant, especially attractive to Monarchs and Queens.  I counted 10 or more Monarch butterflies at a time on this one plant and I have two in the garden.

Let's take a closer look at some of my other butterfly visitors in October.

Bordered Patch

Common mestra was a new one for me this year.   Usually found farther south along the border, it seems they made their way as far north as Austin according to my blogger friends.



Unmistakable Gulf Fritillary so bright in the sunlight I can see it from the house 40 feet away.

 Locally prolific Queens moved over from Gregg's mistflower for a few days too.

Giant Swallowtail is a favorite of mine.

 

Mating Queen Butterflies on the Blue Mistflower

Meanwhile, Black Swallowtails prefer Gomphrena 'Fireworks'.

Be sure to check out "My Gardener Says..." for more Wildlife Wednesday.