A wonderful cloudy drizzle encircles my porch where I sit, looking out onto my garden.  Drizzle usually makes me want to walk but a sore knee says otherwise so I will relax and think about what I might have seen.

If I had walked through my garden to get to the woods, this Asiatic dayflower (Commelina communis) certainly would have been seen.  Even now, I see its silently inching its way.  onto the garden path.  Asiatic dayflowers grow by steps.  The plant has a joint every few inches. When these joints touch dirt - "Voila!" new roots and it is one step further along its way.  Yes, I know it is a weed. It can quickly take over a bed choking out many beloved plants in its way but I always leave a few. I leave them to make me smile, first at its cheery little face and then, more deeply as I remember when they grew wild along the lane at the bottom of our hill.  They welcomed to my new home and new life as they sat comfortably with their feet in the water - their arms outstretched toward the lane.

If I traveled on through the Trinity Gate to mosey down one of the mowed paths, I would probably find myself on the gas line right-of-way. It is the most active place this time of summer. It is such an August spot. I have written about it before.  Most recently in MEADOW REVISITED but also a couple weeks before that in INTO THE MEADOW where things are starting to wind down for the summer.  Just about every leaf shows signs of munching as caterpillars of all kinds chomp their way through their metamorphous.   

If I held still, I probably would have seen a butterfly like this Spicebush swallowtail (Papilio troilus) resting on these tangled vines.  

. . . or a caterpillar such as this unidentified (by me) who is enjoying a major meal.

Instead, I believe that I will sit here at my table beside the fountain on the library porch and enjoy the drizzle. I might even take a short road trip out  Carpenter Run to see what is happening this week along the road. I'm sure that this scene from two weeks ago has changed into something interesting.

Chicory and Queen anne's lace combine in perfect beauty.

 

----------------------

Describes a hundred-year history of  a meadow and the people and wildlife it possesses on the Colorado/Wyoming border.

Butterflies and Bees

This time of year photographers cannot resist photos of butterflies.  I am like the rest so here are my offerings.

This spicebush swallowtail looks like it was dusted with plue powder to match its eyes. 

(Click on the image to see more detail.)

This tiger swallowtail shares close quarters with a fritillary.

Though this one prefers a solitary flower.

It pumps nector from the florescent cone flower head.

Even seemingly dry brown dirt attracts this swallowtail sharing a secret with the road

A bee wants in on the action, coating itself with sunflower pollen.

And I cannot ignore this beautiful moth.

Here is one last entry for the day.  This one I saw at Lowe's trying to get food from the price tag signs. About a dozen of its family members were similarly attached to other price signs. I haven't identified it and the photo was taken with my cell phone.

Earth Day Flutter

I celebrated Earth Day with a group of strangers who treated me as a friend.  My friend, Pat, invited me to accompany the Mountwood Bird Club on their yearly trip up Newell's Run in Ohio, near the Ohio River. I wanted to go because this particular trip would focus on wildflowers more than birds.  It was a good choice. The scent of spring touched our noses as we scanned hillsides and ditches along the rural winding road.  We found over twenty species of wildflowers over a ten-mile area, all within view of our cars.

One of the most interesting finds, though, was a small rabble of butterflies. 

As we drove in our short caravan, one of our drivers spotted the rabble.  Something had piqued the interest of swallowtails gathering on a dirt side road, just past  where it forded a small stream. The group, also called a flutter, were intent on what they had found, the spot invisible to our mere human senses.

Among the group were tiger swallowtails. Each black abdomen and thorax was adorned by a pair of creamy yellow wings, striped black then accented by light blue shadow and an orange spot at the base of its abdomen.

The Tigers were joined by Spicebush Swallowtails deep, soft black with white spots along its wing edges and burnt orange spots dotting its hindwing.

A third butterfly in the rabble was a Zebra Swallowtail with its definitive black and white stripes and those two intriguing ret dots.  There weren't as many Zebras as there were Tigers and Spicebush but they held their own in the group. 

While some of the group vied for the best spot, others seemed content to stretch out in the dust and enjoy the sun.

We watched the convergence for about twenty minutes before moving on to search out new wildflowers and bird songs, all of our senses alert to sounds, sights and smells as our Earth celebrated her day in her own way.