mayday!
four May Days so far.
day 1...
another first time sighting of a bird!
or maybe they were here in the past and i just never noticed them. but i doubt it.
a pair of Great Crested Flycatchers.
they were perched on high branches near a dead tree covered with woodpecker holes.
taking turns flying to...and hovering...outside one of the holes.
catching bugs i presume.
day 2...
lantana, gardenia, roses, honeysuckle, jasmine, milkweed, flowering weeds...
to name a few...are blooming!
BUTTERFLIES!!
| Gulf Fritillary |
| Zebra Swallowtail |
| Zebra Swallowtail |
| florida's state butterfly. the Zebra Longwing |
and the final butterfly...the little Phaon Crescent, where they can usually be spotted...
on the flowering 'weed'. i always knew this weed as 'beggar's tick'.
i don't pull them, even though they can be kind of annoying after the flowers turn to seed...
sticky things that cling all over your shoes, laces, clothes!
but bees & butterflies love them! so i keep 'em!
while out there in cyberspace i found this really cool website,
where the writer talks about these weeds in one of his posts.
'shepherd's needle' is a good green. lots of nutrients! can be boiled, sauteed, steamed.
cool. check out Florida Survival Gardening if you get a chance.
| Phaon Crescent |
| Phaon Crescent |
day 3...
yesterday...
while wandering in the field across the road, and the (almost dried up) Mud Pit.
OH, mud pit? you may wonder? well, when there's a big mushy muddy area...
you can surely find some mud bogging going on. especially down here. in the south.
but i think it happens all over now.
4x4 pick-up trucks (usually) that are modified with lifted suspension & HUMUNGOUS tires...
drive their trucks as far as they can through the MUD...before getting bogged down. i guess.
sound like fun? (nah. not to me it doesn't)
i've never been to watch. but we can hear them out there after dark.
anyway...sorry...i got sidetracked.
i spotted this bird...at the mud pit.
cool reflection.
i THINK it's a Solitary Sandpiper.
next sighting...
brace yourself...for the creeps.
can you tell what it is?
here...i'll zoom in...
yep! creeped out??!
a nest of baby spiders!!!!!
yikes!
OK.
lastly...i found some snake BONES in the field!! yeah!
lately, i've been making all sorts of things out of snake vertebrae.
here's a sampling of earrings & necklace i've made.
i know...this BoNE stuff isn't for everyone.
some might be just as creeped out by the bones, as with the spiders.
oh well. i am crazy for bones!
day 4...
this post was way longer than intended.
i'm trying to keep them shorter.
TRYING.
but a lot has happened so far in May.
have a good week.
be safe.
laura
*Publish*
