When in doubt...

Go with a hummer! Or, another way of putting it would be ... Blip it if you've got it.

I worked in the office this morning and then played outside all afternoon, enjoying some summer-like weather - finally! I saw 20 species of birds in the back yard today - a good day. For the third day in a row, a female Baltimore oriole flew up while I was on the deck, perched for a moment and headed back into the woods (same direction all 3 times so maybe she has a nest). She's shown zero interest in the oranges I put out yesterday, but I'm not giving up! And maybe I'll even be quick enough with my camera next time!

I watched the chickadee parents hauling bugs and grubs into the nest, and hauling out poop sacs. And to my utter delight, I watched one of the parents in my flower garden gleaning insects to take back to the nest. A strong argument in favor of going insecticide-free in the garden! The House Wrens are still farting around deliberating as to which nest box to use. They've now got nests built in two of them, and the male goes back and forth singing his little heart out.

I think the red-bellied woodpecker pair are feeding nestlings - they are both coming to the suet feeder regularly and hauling off beak-fulls of suet. Last year I didn't see one of their fledglings until mid-July, but I've read that they can raise more than one brood a year so maybe this is their first brood.

I also came across a bunch of teeny, tiny ants, paying homage to their much loftier Queen. I'm not a big fan of ants so that creeped me out a bit. I planted some really cool looking purple flowers in a pot on the deck. No idea what they are, but very interesting to look at and purple, which I love!

But even after all the neat things I saw today, the P-Hummie won my heart. He was perched on a limb where I have a feeder hung, guarding it. He would bob his tiny head up and down, looking particularly menacing ... or a bit like a rapper (hence the name). He did let several females visit the feeder, but chased Darth away when he came snooping around. He doesn't care that I am sitting less than 8 feet away - apparently he doesn't view me as a nectar threat. :)

Thanks for lovely comments on my rather homely little chickadee chicks yesterday. I will post at least one more picture of them while they are still in the nest - and perhaps when they look a little less like salamanders.

I'm off with my group tomorrow for a 5 hour nature hike. I won't bring the big camera, so whatever I see will have to be recorded with the Coolpix. Should be a good day for dragons and butterflies as the temps will be in the high 70's. And speaking of dragons, I saw my first 12-spotted skimmer today! The pictures were rubbish, but I'll have many more opportunities.

I'm off now to put the finishing touches on my Thai Shrimp and Mango salad for dinner - yum!

xxoo
Debbi