Instrument of Grace

It WAS a Hoverfly!

A few posts ago, I had a post that mentioned some pollinators new to me, and I posted some photos. I thought the last photo might be a hoverfly, and I think I was right. I thought I'd followed the same fly and caught it in all the pictures I took, but after doing some research, I think I was wrong. I don't know what species my fly happens to be, but I do know I captured more than one. How do I know that if they all have the same markings?

Because one is female and one is male. And how do I know that? Well, see if you can tell the difference.  Here's the female.

And here's the male.

Notice anything different? OK, I know I didn't make it easy, because the aspects are different. But, believe me, you have enough to quickly tell the difference.

Give up? OK, I'll give you a hint. Look at the eyes.

The female has two distinct, separate eyes, and the male's eyes meet in the middle. So now you know how to tell male and female hoverflies apart. And I want to see all of you running around with magnifying glasses, because you'll need them to see these little flies. Either that, or you'll have to do your observing through your camera's lens. Whichever way you choose, I'll have fun watching YOU.

House Wren

Hey! What's all that racket going on out there? Will you please hold it down? I have a whole nest full of sleeping babies.

What's that? US? All that racket is US? Oh. Nevermind.

We usually have both Carolina Wrens and House Wrens nesting here in the spring. Although I've seen a Carolina Wren this year, none nested under our screened porch as they often do. I've also not heard their tea-kettle tea-kettle tea-kettle calls. But I've seen and heard a lot from our House Wrens. They are noisy, scoldy birds, and it always amazes me so much sound can come out of such a tiny body. Ours aren't the least bit afraid of us, either. I can be working in the garden, and they will be just a few feet away gathering nesting material or perching and giving me what for. They may be noisy, but they are so cute and I love them.

Meet The King of the Feeder

While Blue Jay may think he's boss, meet the real king of the feeder, the Red Bellied Woodpecker. Although he's not much for nicknames, we call him Red Belly.

He's a real hunk of a bird, approaching 10 1/2 inches in size. His girlfriend has just a red collar in back, and the red doesn't extend over the top of her head. While he has quite a voice, he's not nearly as vocal as Blue Jay. His cousins, the Flickers are real loundmouths, but Red Belly speaks up much less often. Still, when he wants the feeder, he gets the feeder. I've never seen him do an aggressive fly by, like Blue Jay. He just arrives and everyone leaves. Only the Grackles will stand up to him, and they usually lose.

He's quite the acrobat, too. Notice him holding on with only one foot? Don't you think he's handsome? I do.

Who's Who of the IoG Flock - The Cool Dude

Meet Jay, Blue Jay, that is. He's the cool dude of the IoG flock. He's the bad boy, the one who reportedly has a pack of cigarettes rolled up in his t-shirt sleeve. He might even have a tattoo. He rules the feeder, most of the time, although he brags it's HIS turf. He always seems to be looking for a fight, and he doesn't give a fig for the rule about picking on someone his own size.

He's all brag and swagger, and you might say he has a big mouth. He's also a bit of a glutton, but you have to admire his fashion sense and that "do" he sports. Even if you don't admire it, HE certainly seems to.

While he's swaggering about and being a bully, we'll all pretend not to notice he sometimes is still that awkward guy he pretends so hard not to be. An awkward guy with a big mouth and big style. I've always been partial to blue.

Shenanigans

It was a busy weekend at Instrument of Grace.  Garden Man and I worked hard in the gardens, and the critters were busy, too.  The Maison D Fly-In had customers non-stop, and there were even some shenanigans in the waiting area. 

Mrs. Cardinal is minding her own business waiting for the pager to let her know her table is ready. Mrs. Finch is also waiting for a table.

Now, Mrs. Finch knows better. But sometimes the devil gets into the best of us. Or maybe Mrs. Cardinal was having a wardrobe malfunction, and Mrs. Finch just wanted to let her know. Either way, she was looking where she shouldn't be.

And Mrs. Cardinal caught her at it. Oh, my! Well, I never! Can you believe the nerve?

And Mrs. Finch is so embarrassed she averts her gaze. She won't do THAT again!

Welcome Garden Visitor

The Kitchen Garden is a work in progress, and hopefully I'll keep my enthusiasm level up all summer and continue to add new things. We've been enjoying lettuce and arugula on our sandwiches, and I'm looking forward to more bounty as the summer progresses.

Because my beans and delicata squash didn't come up, I tried sprouting some on wet paper towels and then planting them. I've planted the bean seeds, which did sprout. The squash didn't, but I'm hopeful. We'll see how that goes. As I was watering after planting, I saw some movement behind the tomatoes. We do have a resident chipmunk who has never damaged any of our plants. But this wasn't a chipmunk.

Do you see him there, just behind the tomato cage?  He's very welcome here, and I hope he stays a while.

Coming Soon to a Salad Bar (for Rabbits) Near You

Be vewwy, vewwy quiet.  I'm hunting wabbits . . . . . . . . . . or at least I WANT to.

Just as I'm coming out of my winter-induced funk and delighting in all the little things coming up in my garden, the last thing I need is for some of those little things to be made littler.  In my latest walk around, that's just what I found.  Three heuchera in a group, and one eaten to nubs, one nibbled and one left entirely alone. I suppose I should be thankful for the two that weren't decimated, but I'm not. I'm MAD. The evidence:

And that wasn't all.  How DARE they eat my little tiarella in full bloom?  I'd just planted it last year and was so looking forward to seeing it flower.  I'll get those pesky wabbits!  More evidence:

Today I'm bringing out the heavy artillery:  Liquid Fence.  That stuff stinks to high heaven, but it works.  Unfortunately, it seems I've already let some of the horses out of the barn, but I'm going to close the barn door before the rest get away.

And because I couldn't bear to end this post on a sad note, here's a photo of where the Kitchen Garden stands today.  The stepping stone path will be removed this weekend and a mulch path installed. And then, let the planting begin!

You'll Just Have To Take My Word For It

For the last several days, we've been receiving cool temperatures and constant rain from that tropical-like storm that moved up the East coast. I was happy about the rain, we so badly needed it, but I wasn't so happy about being inside all weekend. I mean, who wants an opportunity to stay in their jammies much of the day and be forced to watch football?  OK, Saturday was good, and there were some good games on, but Sunday, too?

I kept walking to the glass doors in our breakfast area and looking out over the back yard/garden. I don't know what I was looking for, but what I was seeing was rain.  On one trip to the doors early yesterday afternoon, I looked to see if there was any interest at the bird feeders.  The niger sock was deserted, but there were several chickadees at the tube feeder.  I looked a little more closely, and noticed they looked agitated.  An even closer look revealed a chickadee INSIDE the feeder trying frantically to get out.  How did he get IN there in the first place?

Since I was in my jammies (and slippers not suitable for outside), I put in a frantic call for help to Garden Man, ensconced in front of the TV.  At first, he didn't believe there was a bird in the feeder, but after I insisted, he got up to look. Yep, still there and trying madly to get out. So Garden Man heads out into the rain for the rescue. I should have grabbed my camera, shed my slippers and headed out too, but all I could do was watch the rescue unfold.

As Garden Man approached the feeder, the chickadees scattered to the trees. As he lifted the feeder off the pole, one chickadee dive-bombed his head. Then, he lifted the cap off the feeder and the trapped bird flew out and away with the entire crew right behind him.

It was hours before any chickadees ventured back to the dangerous feeder that eats chickadees. I just wonder if that poor bird trapped inside will ever come back. And how did it get in there in the first place?

That, My Friend, Is An Ichneumon

In my Bloom Day post for this month, I posted a photo of an unknown Solidago with a friend. 

I just hate not knowing what something is, so I hunted around on the 'net for a site to help me ID that bug.  I found a great site, called What's That Bug that can help ID insects of North America.  Unfortunately, they are transferring to a new format this week, and when I just checked, they hadn't worked all the (ahem) bugs out, yet.  I couldn't get the photos to show up, so the site isn't useful quite yet.  I was also somewhat dismayed to find it takes a lot longer to load than it did just a few days ago. Because it's photo intensive (or will be), you might not be able to use it if you use dial up.  If you want to try it, and maybe save it for further reference, go here. 

I got the ID by e-mailing Daniel, the Bug Man who runs the site, with a photo of our friend.  His one-word reply was "ichneumon," and it's pronounced ik new mon with the accent on the "new."  I did a little online research and discovered these things about ichneumons.

Ichneumons are related to wasps and they are parasitic on many varieties of other insects, many of which are harmful.  The long ovipositor on the abdomen of the female (the one in my photo is a female) can penetrate insect infested tree trunks to insert eggs into the bodies of larvae infesting the tree.  I find that amazing, because the ichneumon I photographed looks so very delicate. I guess she's not that delicate after all.  Not all ichneumons parasitize tree-burrowing insects. Some parasitize caddisflies or certain butterflies. Still, ichneumons are considered beneficials.

This sighting was the first time I'd ever seen one of these insects in my garden, and I hope it won't be the last. I wonder what new friends I can add to my list next year?

A New Visitor

I've been feeling a bit poorly the last few days, so I haven't been out in the garden. Yesterday, when Garden Man got home from work, I stepped out front to check on my recent purchases which will be part of our fall perennial border re-work.  One of the plants I purchased was Asclepias incarnata in hopes of drawing Monarchs.

Much to my surprise, I found this fellow happily munching away.

Needless to say, I'm a bit excited. I'd never seen a Monarch caterpillar before, and now I have one in my garden. Never mind the plant is still in a pot, it's already hosting. I've read the caterpillars are mature at 2 inches, and this one is just a hair shy of that length. I checked him this morning, and he's still munching, although more slowly than yesterday. It won't be long before he pupates, something I hope I get to witness, too. If not, just having had him here will have been enough.