Warm summer days have brought out lots of wildflowers and wildlife around the house. The path up to my front door is overgrown with daisies and musk mallow. It’s a feast for the eyes and for the bees! Here I am on the path trying to find a five-lined skink that scurried into the rocks. I managed to get some photos of the skink posted here.
The photos continue below with a couple pictures of large pink musk mallow flowers, Malva moschata. The bumblebees and honey bees are enjoying those flowers very much.
A little grey tree frog hangs out at my front door. I usually find him on a wall but this time I found him enjoying a swim in the watering can. The frog looks distinctly green but it is still classified as a grey tree frog, Hyla versicolor. They can be found in a wide range of colors: grey, brown, or bright green like this one. They can even change color, somewhat like a chameleon, although I’ve never seen our grey tree frog demonstrate that ability. This little guy likes to talk and when he gets going he can be very loud!
It is nice to see lots, thousands, of dragonflies around. They are doing a great job controlling the population of biting insects.
Large numbers of maiden pink flowers, Dianthus deltoides, have naturalized in the lawn and between the paving stones around the house. Most perennials don’t have a very long flowering period but these ones seem to last a good length of time. They have no trouble surviving our very harsh winters, the very wet springs or the dry and hot seasons. After flowering I always try to collect seeds to spread them around to new places in the garden. Even without my help they are finding ways to spread and thrive on their own.
I caught sight of an American Copper Butterfly, Lycaena phlaeas, on some daisies. I also saw the unusual looking clearwing moth hovering over maiden pinks. I am guessing it’s a hummingbird clearwing moth but it might be a snowberry clearwing. He didn’t stay still long enough for me to get a clear ID on him. Clearwing moths are unusual for their hovering flight and the clear sections on their wings make them look more like large flies or bees rather than moths.
And finally, a picture of my cat, Furballicus cuteness, getting cuddled. He sure looks cozy doesn’t he?
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