Beep! Beep!

I am by no means a wildlife photographer—usually my photos of wild critters are blurry at best. But I had such a fun encounter with this roadrunner that I thought I'd share a couple photos that turned out okay. This gal (or guy) was very focused on trying to lure me away from her nest and babies. I knew I was invading her territory, and was being very respectful and careful while I took a few photos of flowers. The entire time she "clacked" and scooted about in a hilarious display, getting more and more brave.

Disappearialis quickius*

Finally, when she jumped up on this old cart I was standing next to, almost within arm's reach, I gave her the space she wanted. They are truly fascinating and beautiful birds.

* from "Zoom at the Top," a Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner cartoon

Tarantula Hawk

During our trip to the desert a couple weekends ago, we stopped to take some photos along a sandy wash. I stumbled upon this scene—a tarantula hawk very busily going from blossom to blossom on this desert milkweed. These are one of the few insects to which I have an absolute aversion (and after reading about their powerful stings, that seems wise), but since this one was so obviously engrossed in his feeding, I got up close and watched. I have to admit, they're beautiful. Those veined rust-orange wings. That irridescent blue! And check out the curled antennae.

To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom.
~ Bertrand Russell

Dance of the Bees

We spent a wonderful long weekend in the East Mojave desert. We enjoyed astonishingly perfect weather, wildlife sightings, and bountiful blooms. I'm still trying to get around to tinkering with photos, but I did steal a few moments to create this little "bee movie." Seems someone else is really enjoying the blooming cacti too.

Let us dance in the sun,

wearing wild flowers in our hair.

~ Susan Polis Shutz

That buzzing noise...

"That buzzing-noise means something. You don't get a buzzing-noise like that, just buzzing and buzzing, without its meaning something. If there's a buzzing-noise, somebody's making a buzzing-noise, and the only reason for making a buzzing-noise that I know of is because you are a bee."

~ Winnie-the-Pooh

Or, if you are a very tired bee at the end of the day,

you are perhaps just sitting quietly, thinking bee thoughts.

Feathered Friends

This morning I spent a few moments with our backyard birds, who fill every hour of daylight with song. At first they were rather nervous to have me standing there, even though I wasn't really all that close, but eventually they realized I was not out to cause any harm. Lately we've had a few less common visitors (black-headed grosbeak & American goldfinch), but they were apparently too busy elsewhere to make an appearance this morning. We get countless hours of amusement watching all the characters who swirl around our feeders—and their chatter nicely masks the less pleasing sounds of suburbia.

We're having babies!

Well, okay, we are not physically having babies. But the lizards in our yard certainly are! We had quite a gaggle of baby lizards running around last year and it appears this year will be similar. As I was leaving on my walk with the dogs yesterday afternoon, I spotted something on the slope in our front yard. Eggs! I had noticed the tell-tale dugout hollows lately, and this one got filled with seven eggs. We've never witnessed this before. This morning they had been carefully covered with the bark on the slope, so I'm glad I took a moment yesterday to run in and get my camera. Aren't they cute?! It may be hard to tell since I zoomed in, but they are about the size of a small piece of pea gravel. I can't wait to see the little guys running around again. Although we have to be careful, because they're not too bright about dogs, vehicle tires, and lawn mowers when they first appear.

Easter Bunny

In honor of the Easter Bunny's impending visit, I thought I would post this photo of his cousin, Jack Rabbit. He posed so very patiently for this portrait two years ago, about this time of year. Such a handsome creature he is. Good luck on your rounds, Easter Bunny — may you not break any of those precious eggs!

Argiope aurantia

The latest addition to our "family" is this beautiful spider. We ignored her presence from afar for a while, thinking she was one of the more "ordinary" spiders we get this time of year, but upon closer inspection she turned out to be quite a beauty. Her common names are Golden Orb-weaver (California), Yellow Garden Orbweaver, Writing Spider (due to the zig-zag part of her web), or Black & Yellow Argiope.
Wrapping up breakfast.

Spring has Sprung!

We're having unusually warm weather right now in California, and the birds seem to be loving it. We have lots of babies flitting about, screeching for mom & dad to feed them. This morning, a couple of Bewick's wrens were hopping from bush to bush with their young one. Later, I noticed one of them perched on one of the supports of my windmill doing some rather enthusiastic grooming. I didn't have a video camera handy, but snuck out and caught these still shots (click the slideshow button for the best viewing). The quality is not great since I tried to keep my distance, but I thought I'd share.