August 14, 2008
The black-eyed susans are in bloom on the mountain this week. Scattered throughout the garden and the meadow, black-eyed susans present themselves seemingly with glee, to be enjoyed by all who find them. Evening primrose is blooming as well, thanks to my friend Susan, who donated some wildflower seeds to the backyard cause during the spring. There's even a bit of morning glory out at the mailbox, thanks to the seeds given by my friend Carla last year. And the frogs have returned to the pond! They had disappeared soon after being spotted in the spring, probably the result of becoming lunch for their many potential backyard predators. A frog was found in the garage last weekend as well, and had to be encouraged to leave so as not to be locked in when the door was closed.Backyard tip of the week: Take a few moments this weekend to walk around your backyard or nature area to see what's happening this time of year. The remaining days of summer may pass by quickly now that August is upon us. Once the cool fall weather returns, having a few nice memories of summer is something that you're sure to love.
Backyard sightings for last week: Including northern cardinals, American robins, northern flickers, rose-breasted grosbeaks, bluebirds and catbirds. Chipping sparrows, white-crowned sparrows, Carolina wrens, house wrens, eastern goldfinches, house finches. Red-bellied and downy woodpeckers, white-breasted nuthatches, a ruby-throated hummingbird, the tufted titmice, black-capped chickadees, blue-jays, American crows, a few grey squirrels, a mostly white skunk, and some bunnies. Also, European starlings, common grackles, red-winged blackbirds, mourning doves, chipmunks, many different kinds of butterflies, still a few of fireflies, a hummingbird moth, some frogs, and a white-lined sphinx!
Cool sighting of the week: A couple... A sharp-shinned hawk was seen recently with his blue jay prey. I'd prefer it if the hawks would thin out the population of common grackles instead. Also recently, a stick bug was spotted last Friday. About four inches long and very thin, it was perched on the wood trim surrounding the garage door and easily identified. Also called walking sticks, stick bugs look just like a stick with legs, and they're very rare. I snapped a few photos of the odd and elusive bug. And, while I really couldn't tell which end was his front or backside, catching a glimpse of a walking stick last Friday night was very cool!
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