I have to work this afternoon (sigh) but this morning has been full of wildlife adventures. My husband had cut a limb off of a big tree in the backyard about three days ago. The tree was leaning pretty bad. In addition, this huge limb was shading (and killing) our garden.
Early this morning (before breakfast) my three boys were out in the yard and I noticed them darting to and from the tree. Not only had the sap at the place of the cutting drawn in a host of butterflies, there were some hornets visiting. We let the diving frenzy die down – it was only about three hornets in all – and later went back out to take pictures of whatever was there.
There were about a dozen American lady butterflies all over the tree.
I got in close. This one looks to be asking for a little privacy! LOL!
It did not take long until a hornet came back. There are varied insects feeding here, but the hornet ended up ruling the roost. I outlined it so you can see it.
The hornet did seem very aggressive. I watched (in shock) as this hornet would fly up and dive down on the other insects. He incessantly drove away a large butterfly and finally actually dove down on and picked up a honey bee and carried it away. The honey bee did not return. I suspect it was eaten. I had climbed up on a ladder to get pictures. I did not want to get stung in the face (or anywhere) so I left to visit the mint patch, where I was rewarded with a common buckeye (Junonia coenia).
I finally went back out to the tree, climbed up and got a close picture.
There’s a June bug, the hornet, and several American lady butterflies.
On my way back into the house, I stopped one more time at the mint patch. I got a good shot of some type of butterfly or moth and this funky moth at the top called scientifically the Attera punctella. This stem of mint is some hot property.
More later,
for you to leave a comment, but you can also e-mail me at lynn AT thehealthyhomeschool.com
Dear Lynn,
I came across your blog while looking for information about the kind of caterpillars that would eat delphiniums and since delphinium and caterpillar were both key words, found you.
I’m retired and live in Northern California but certainly enjoyed your photographs and your comments. The picture of you leaning forward intently, wholly engaged in your garden, your reluctance to come inside (except for work), and your acknowledging that the best photo opportunities are the ones that happen when you don’t have your camera by your side–I understand all that.
My husband’s family on his maternal side traces back to the Birds of Cullowhee, North Carolina…and I have a cousin living in Gastonia. A childhood friend of mine from Dayton, Ohio lives in Newton, NC, where she makes her own soaps (O My Soap!) and sells them at farmer’s markets and on-line– and I have an old college friend who lives in Highland Hills, NC. We had a wonderful visit to North and South Carolina about nine years ago and visited them all. What a beautiful state, especially along the Blue Ridge Parkway.
I have a garden here in Davis, California, that is challenged by the heat, dry air, and alkaline water specific to our part of Yolo County. We have a Mediterranean climate; for years I’ve been experimenting with, learning about and using drought-resistant plants, although am always drawn to the lush gardens such as I saw in North Carolina. I was enraptured when I saw a garden of colorful and rampant cockscomb in Newton. I know we can grow it here but my one effort was not very successful.
Fortunately, being a university town (Univ. of California, Davis) we have a lovely arboretum with gorgeous “xeriscape” gardens to inspire us (arboretum.ucdavis.edu)
Anyway–not to go on, but just had to send a note to you. Like you, I love to scrutinize every bug, bird, leaf, bud, and sprout in my garden and I love knowing how many of us there are in the world.
All best to you and your family,
Rhonda O’Brien.
Rhonda, thank you so much for your very kind comment! Your climate sounds like the perfect place to experiment, but I can see where there’d be disappointment in things not working out with the challenging conditions! Our problem is normally drought and very, very hot summer months. Humid and hot! I know many of the places in NC you mentioned. I love the NC mountains and always want to stay there when we visit my husband’s family there. I love our beaches too! I will check the site online for the arboretum there at Univ of California, Davis. Thank you so much for the link. I don’t have any cockscomb growing — that I’m aware of anyway. In fact, I cannot picture it! I will be looking that up directly as well!
All the best,
Lynn