More Critter Action and Commotion

I have seen lots of critters this week.  I missed getting photos of the cardinals, swallowtail and painted lady butterflies.  I did get one of the couple kinds of bees I saw.   I ended up with lots to show for Camera Critters, hosted by Misty Dawn.  I've been working on this post off and on since Friday evening.  I better get it posted now!  Click on the Camera Critters button in the sidebar to see more critters or how to post yours.

 Sunday, I was tickled to see a dragonfly.  I think that's asters it's on.  I took a few pics, then tried lifting the leaf to see if I could get a photo of the whole creature.  It darted away as soon as I did that, but it was cool for me to see those black eyes.

I saw this ladybug, too.  I have been seeing some around, and also some of the pupae. 

Heidi enjoyed lounging around while I was taking photos.

On Tuesday, I saw some more critters.

I'm most excited about the monarchs coming back. It looks like we'll have some caterpillars on the milkweed in the curb bed that I did not plant.  The seeds must have come on the wind.  This is the second year for these, so they will probably bloom.  The monarch was not happy with me trying to take photos.  It kept flitting around, so I quit trying so it could lay its eggs in peace.

On Wednesday, I found some kind of insect on a daisy close up.  Do you know what it is?

Heidi enjoyed lounging that day, too.

Thursday,  I saw the bee before taking photos, and was glad to be able to capture it with the camera.  I'm glad the foxgloves I love so much are enjoyed by bees, too.

Heidi wasn't so relaxed during this photo taking adventure.  She spied something with her little eyes.

I had time to take a number of photos as Heidi stalked closer and closer to the squirrel.  She is now even with my garden gloves.  She kept looking at the squirrel, and then at me.  The squirrel was making eye contact with her, too, the tease.

Finally, I said, "OK Heidi, get the squirrel, but don't go into my flower bed."

The squirrel and I both knew she wouldn't be fast enough to get it, and I wasn't fast enough with my camera to take its photo dashing off.  Poor Heidi, with her tail down, wonders where it went.

The squirrel, with its tail up, safely across the street, is grazing in the grass.  It knows she's not allowed to go into the street.

I moved on to the veggie garden, where the large kale was providing a meal for a monarch.  I had been thinking of digging it up, since I have another clump of it in the garden, and another across the street.

I kept my distance, and used my zoom.  I think I'll let the kale stay.

The dove was high up in its perch, observing all.

Today, I took photos of the spiderworts' first blooms, and didn't notice the slug until I looked at the photos.  That's a critter I usually put on a bird bath for the birds to find.

I always throw the water I put in the bowl of lettuce for a prewash and other water or coffee we don't drink next to the house where the hellebores are growing.  You can't see the critter that got splashed in this photo, but I thought I'd include it because I didn't show this part of the planter in the previous post where I featured this area.  I'm ready for the daffodil foliage to die back, but it will be awhile.  The bergenia leaves are being eaten, probably by slugs.  I better check that out.

You might be able to see the critter now, and where the water splashed against the house.  I like the foliage of the hellebores.  That's a honeysuckle an elderly neighbor gave me when we moved in.  I should have trimmed it back this spring, because it is getting woody.  I worked on it a little today, but it's probably too late to do much more.

I've noticed that the garter snakes will stay very still while they know you are there, and then, when you leave, they do, too, so you can't see where they went.  I forgot about it for a few minutes, then, when I asked Larry if he wanted to see it, it was gone.

I'm going to vent/rant a little. I wish people didn't hate snakes so much.  When I was at the hardware store today, a young couple were looking at a package of moth balls that were being sold to repel snakes.  I told them I'd heard that didn't work, and it would make their yard smell really bad.  I also told them the garter snakes around here want to stay away from people as much or more as we want to stay away from them.  The lady said she was afraid of stepping on one.  They live around a mile from me.  Our neighborhood does have garter snakes.  I'd rather have them than the rabbits that are now killing some of my plants by eating them down to nubs.  By the way, I thought they were no longer allowed to market moth balls to repel snakes because they are bad for the environment.  (I didn't get to see whether they bought the moth balls, but they did buy something.)

Here's a view taken while leaning over the area from the porch.  It shows the peonies and such in front of the raised planter.  The tubs are ours.