Wildlife Wednesday - May 2015

The wildlife that frequented the garden over the past month was pretty spectacular.  The birds and butterflies have definitely been the most impressive.

Butterflies

My neighbors that share a fenceline with me have a hedge full of flowers right now that are attracting an abundance of butterflies that I get to appreciate daily.  While these plants aren't directly in my garden, I'm going to count it anyways, because, while I don't find these butterflies collecting nectar from my garden right now, I do find them basking in the sun in between their sugary meals.

The most popular of the butterflies on this hedge are the red admirals (black, orange and white).  I've seen as many as 100 or so butterflies on this hedge at one time!  The shrubs just pulse with the multitude of wildlife that is enjoying their nectar.  Besides the red admirals, I've spotted some common buckeyes...

...and painted ladies...

...and grey hairstreaks.

Birds

The main attraction in the garden right now is by far my hummingbirds.  I've already dedicated an entire post to them, but I thought they needed to be highlighted here again.  Here are some of my favorite pictures of my hummers...

I've had quite a few black-chinned hummingbirds as well as Anna hummingbirds.

They love frequenting the feeders in the morning and evenings.

I've seen other gardeners with many hummers feasting at a feeder at one time, but my birds tend to be extremely territorial and like to scare each other off so that they get the feeder all to themselves (the male black-chins are the worst culprits).

I've also spotted either a male ruby-throated hummingbird or Anna's hummingbird, but he doesn't appear to be a bit fan of the paparazzi.

Springtime has brought about a bunch of baby birds, and now that we are getting later into spring, the fledglings have been pushed from their nests and have started working on their adult life skills.  

This fledgling mockingbird has already learned to seek shelter in the oleanders out front to keep away from predators and paparazzi, but I still got a picture of him as he fled the safety of the oleander in search of his momma.

I also saw the last of the American robins before they took off for some cooler summer weather up north.

Bees

The hummingbirds aren't the only ones that have been enjoying the hummingbird feeders.  I'm not quite sure who I've been feeding more... the hummers or the bees.  At this rate, I should start keeping bees.  I'm already feeding them, I might as well reap the rewards in liquid gold (aka honey).  Yeah... if only I had time for that.

When the bees aren't bee-ing lazy by feasting at the feeder, they can be readily found on the poppies.  I'm certainly happy about that... it means I have a good chance of having some nice poppy seed pods for replanting later in the year.

Bugs and Other Critters

I found these little green guys on the poppies and gaillardia.  Not sure what they are though.

I also found the largest snail that I've ever had in the garden.  Anyone know what kind it is?  Friend or foe?

Then there are the ladybugs on the fennel...

And more lady bugs without spots.  From what I can tell, both of these varieties are Asian ladybugs.

I've had a number of Black-Eastern Swallowtail caterpillars.  They seem to be a constant fixture in my garden, as long as I have fennel, parsley, and/or dill growing (which I always do).

Then there are other caterpillars I'm not as familiar with.  I found several that were munching down my sunflowers like nobody's business.  If you have any idea what they may be, please let me know!

And to close out this month's Wildlife Wednesday, one of my resident Texas spiny lizards, basking in the afternoon sun.

Thanks to Tina over at My Gardener Says for hosting this fun meme on the first Wednesday of every month!

Wildlife Wednesday - April 2015

It has been a very active month for the wildlife in the yard.  The weather has warmed up and the wildlife knows it is time to get out, start attracting mates and creating the next generation of critters. 

The first critter in the yard was Ms. Carolina Anole.  These friendly little lizards have become much more active now that the weather has warmed up.  As I was doing some garden work over the weekend, I noticed this anole hanging out in the garden shed.  I didn't want to leave her in there to bake, so I quickly caught her, took advantage of the photo-op, and released her back into the "wild."

Another fun critter spotting was this giant leopard moth caterpillar.  I spotted a similar one back in January, but no sightings of it in its moth-like form...yet.  I do hope I spot one this year, as they look to be pretty amazing creatures.

The most peculiar bug I spotted in March was this little guy below.  At first I thought he was just a twig nub on my pomegranate tree.  While I was inspecting the tree for buds, I notice the "twig nub" move!  

After a couple of pictures, I tried to get him to walk onto a stick so I could investigate closer.  Turns out the animal was a worm-looking thing and the "twig" was it's shell of sorts.  Anyone have an idea on what it could be?

I was happy to spot this ladybug on one of my roses, one of nature's pest controllers.  Then I realized I must have pests - aphids on the rosebush.  I sprayed the plant with a high-stream jet of water to knock them off.  Hopefully Mr. Ladybug will get the leftovers.

I wasn't quite as happy to spot this snail.  There are many more where it came from, but (knock on wood), I haven't seen them destruct anything in the garden...yet.

Enough about the creepy-critters.  Let's move onto my feathered friends.  I'm most excited to see that the bluebird house has a new resident, though not a bluebird.  A titmouse couple is nesting in here, but I have not yet spotted any baby birds or eggs.  They will certainly be quite cozy when they do arrive, as the nesting materials are made of soft furs, fuzz and moss.

My pup is certainly intrigued by the new inhabitants.  I frequently here Mr. Titmouse making a big fuss - apparently he doesn't like Jeb sniffing around his property (quite the Texan he is).

I'm also happy to report that one of the wren houses has wren residents - though no pictures to show.

The screech-owl nesting box, however, does not have screech owls.  It seems to have everything but.  First, it was European starlings that we kept chasing off.

Then, it was the fox squirrels.  After several attempts to discourage them from nesting, we finally gave up and let the squirrel nest this year.  I just hope that she has some cute baby squirrels as a result.

This seems to be her favorite position - just hanging out of the entrance.  

Other birds making their homes in man-made boxes are the purple martins.  This house is actually in my neighbor's yard, but I get to enjoy the view of the purple martins from my house and love seeing them soar overhead.

Other birds of note during the course of March include the last museum of cedar waxwings.

As well as my first sighting of a male red-winged blackbird.  I've noticed the females hanging around the last few months, but this was my first sighting of the male.  He was accompanied by a female.

One other new avian creature was this mourning dove.   I have, what seems to be, nearly a hundred doves flying around our neighborhood, but they are primarily of the white-winged dove variety.  I spot Inca doves from time to time, but this is my first time spotting the mourning dove kind.

The Northern mockingbirds (our state bird) are being extra showy right now, serenading their sweethearts in hopes of finding true love, or at least their next baby-momma.

And then there are the regulars, like Mr. and Mrs. Northern cardinal (I only have one pair, as far as I am aware), and the sparrows.

As well as the lesser goldfinches.

It has been an extremely busy month for wildlife with the arrival of spring.  Check out more Texas garden wildlife and other wildlife in gardens around the world over at My Gardener Says, where Tina hosts this fun meme every first Wednesday of the month.

Wildlife Wednesday - February 2015

I'm excited to showcase the wildlife that has visited the garden over the past month because of my new toy - a Nikon D7000.  It was a late Christmas present from the hubby.  He originally wanted to buy me some jewelry, but after being indecisive about picking out the jewelry that I wanted, I decided I would get more use and enjoyment out of a quality camera. This is my first DSLR, so I'm still getting use to all the bells and whistles.

Feathered Friends

Being the middle of winter and natural food sources running low, the birds have really been flocking to the yard and feeders to supplement their diet.  And with more birds in the yard, there are also more predators hanging around.

I believe this is a Cooper's Hawk (please correct me if I'm wrong).  He has been seen in the yard frequently over the last month, usually making his daily visits at sunrise.  

I love watching this magnificent creature.  I'm still waiting for my "National Geographic moment" where I get to actually witness him make a kill.

The most distinctive bird sound that can be heard out in the garden right now is the pecking of the ladderback woodpecker.

This female ladderback is the more frequent woodpecker visitor right now.  Every once in awhile I'll catch a glimpse of her red-headed mate.

She especially loves grabbing a delicious snack of suet on the chillier winter days.

The visitors that warm my heart the most right now are the yellow-rumped warblers.

The warblers can be seen daily flitting through the trees and nibbling on the suet cakes that I've put out for them.  There have probably been at least 12 of these warblers hanging out in the yard.

And then there are the frequent patrons...

...like the cardinals and sparrows...

...the wrens (not sure what kind - looks kind of like a Carolina wren, but different from what I at least thought was a Carolina wren)...

...the lesser goldfinches...

...the house finches...

...the pesky white-winged doves and brown-headed cowbirds...

...and then there is this mystery bird.  At first glace, it looks like it may be a finch or sparrow.  However, if you knew the relative size of the tree that it is sitting in, it is closer to the size of a crow.  Anyone have any idea what it may be?

Other Critters

While the winged creatures have been the highlight of the garden this month, I cannot skip out on showcasing some of the other critters that have visited the garden.

This Easter fox squirrel is munching on his winter stash of pecans.  The squirrels are generally pretty good about leaving the bird feeders alone, thanks to the several pecan trees in the area, plus the acorns that were finally present this year after the oaks received enough water this summer.

The scariest critter was this hairy guy.  I saw him creeping along the back deck at night (after almost stepping on him)!  After some help with identification, I believe he is a giant leopard moth caterpillar.  If so, I certainly hope I get to see him when he is transformed into his adult stage.  What interesting looking creatures!

While I'm disappointed some of my broccoli bolted before ever producing decent harvestable heads, I'm glad these bees are enjoying their blooms!  There are probably at least 20-25 bees constantly buzzing around the broccoli flowers at all times on warm, sunny days.

 Finally, there are the Eastern black swallowtail caterpillars that have been chilling on the parsley for the past several months.  I was shocked that they made it through some pretty chilly nights and days over the past couple of months.  However, I believe they finally met their fate about a week or two ago with some of the freezing rain conditions that they just couldn't make it through.

That's all the wildlife for this month.  Be sure to stop by My Gardener Says... where this meme is hosted by Tina every month and where many other gardeners showcase the wildlife in their gardens!