Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Visitors and Varmints

It is always amazing that you can walk on this earth for sixty years and still see bugs and blooms you've never seen before. And then there are the birds that come every once in a while that are a surprise. Enjoy the second installment of this week's pics.

Our wild turkeys at the pond for an early morning drink! They don't look undernourished to me.

 The furry-tailed tree rat abusing the bird feeder.

 OK friends and neighbors! I thought this was a prehistoric man-eating roach. Actually, it is the Giant Water Bug. Seriously. Also called the 'Toe-Biter'! For my grands, this becomes the Giant West Texas Water Bug in the next Pecos Bill story, and I'll always show them the pic for effect.

 A sunny afternoon stalking the hummers at the zinnias.



 Hold that pose!

The Ruby-throated hummer was hanging out at the Victoria Blue Salvia.

 We have lots of 'giants' in Texas. The Giant Swallowtail butterfly.


 A ring of flowers in the flower.

 One of those accidental shots in mid flight, wings moving.

The garlic chives are the only surviving plant from our original garden, and are blooming heartily this year. Caught a Swallowtail in the mix.

 It takes a little effort, but if you look close, the butterfly is in the far right on the yellow bloom, the hummer is on the far left over the red zinnia.

In this one, butterfly in upper right on the wing, hummer in lower left. One of these days I'll get them closer together.

 Look who came to church! The male Ladderback woodpecker.

 This female Cardinal was enjoying the spray of water from the soaker hose.

I didn't know this was a 'Painted Lady', did you?

 I'll close with this Sunday morning surprise. I had been watching a bud erupt from the leaf, and hoping to see it open at some point. Now I know that this is the Epiphylum Strictum, the 'night queen', and blooms only at night.

God's glory is truly revealed in His amazing creation!

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