nature

Dragonflies Arrive

Rae Spencer4 Comments

Two days ago, the first dragonflies arrived in the yard. I had seen a few cruising through, in previous weeks, but none stopping to stay. This one was a female Blue Dasher, hunting in the pear tree. As I tried to get her picture, I got distracted by another Blue Dasher a few branches over. Beside it, yet another, this one male. I circled the tree, trying to count, but soon gave up counting and concentrated on pictures.

Early this afternoon, they moved into the wax myrtle, which gets the most direct midday sunshine. I suspect they will migrate back to the pear tree by sunset.

So far, the overwhelming majority are Blue Dashers, but Halloween Pennants and Golden Skimmers should show up before too long. Maybe even a few new species. This will be our twelfth summer here, and I had never seen damselflies in the yard before this spring. Now they make regular stops in the irises.

I love how the yard changes from season to season and year to year. It’s an ordinary yard on an ordinary street in an ordinary city, proving over and over again the extraordinary nature of “ordinary”.

Stromatolites

Rae Spencer4 Comments

Algal layers of rock
Pillars of change
Rising from acid reduction
And nitrogenous seep

Busy bellows of corruption
Poisoning earth
With what rusts

From saline retreats
Tilted engines of life
For the record, the riddle

Marching on a muddled shore
Squat and stony muses
Of marvel and breath
In this weathered, easy air

Storm Front

Rae Spencer3 Comments

A brief storm tested the dove nest today. Lots of lightning and thunder, but very little wind and only a modest amount of rain. No damage to report, despite the ominous looking clouds. (Photos taken on iPhone and adjusted with the Photoshop Express application.)

More Doves

Rae Spencer5 Comments

There’s nothing newsworthy about doves on the roof. And, as much as I hate to admit it, a gutter full of twigs is not unusual, either.

However, in this instance the two are related.

It wouldn’t be my first choice, were I seeking a place to nest, but she seems content.

Fortunately, this part of the roof doesn’t drain much. As long as we don’t get any tropical storms, the nest should be safe.

Rainy Day Repost

Rae Spencer9 Comments

Another rainy day and another video from the summer archives. (I blame the rain, but it’s not the rain’s fault. Even if it does make me so sleepy I can hardly think.)

This video has a little history. In the process of identifying the caterpillar, I contacted our local wildlife columnist. She included one of my pictures in her column and published a follow-up column after another reader reported being stung.