Little Mister Fancy Pants Green Dude

I had another plan altogether for today's blip...and then I found this.  I was deadheading and trimming some salvia and when I picked up the pail of cuttings, I noticed this.  Quick as a flash, I got it onto my hand and then, since I was in front of the house, I came in through the front door as it was the quickest route to the back door. And, of course, the little Green Dude jumped or fell off my hand onto the rug by the front door.  Charlie and Jax wanted to be right in the middle of things as I tried to get this tiny thing onto my hand again - honestly, it was a bit of a sh**show, but I prevailed.  Once Green Dude was back on my hand, I hurried through the house, grabbing my D850 with macro lens on the way to the back door.  This shot is, obviously, on my hand and shows him to his best advantage.  I released him into another herbaceous plant in the back where I'm sure he will be just fine.  

Then, as is always the case when I find something new, I set about trying to find out what it is.  I suspected it was a nymph, and I was right - first tip was that it wasn't capable of flight as an adult tree hopper would be.  Ion  finally landed Buffalo Treehopper (Tribe Ceresini) as the closest I could get on an ID.  Like many insects, getting this down to species would be impossible outside of a laboratory with a microscope.  Anyway, I think he's one of the cutest 'hoppers I've seen.

While I was trimming out front, I also got to spend time with the swallows who are feeding their babies non-stop.  Food goes in, poop sacks go out, babies chirp non-stop.  Surprisingly, another male tree swallow showed up and tried to enter the nest, which didn't go down well with the parents.  He was escorted out of our airspace.  

I braved the wrath of the bluebirds to check their box in the lower land - the nest is nearly complete but no eggs.  I got severely scolded from directly overhead so they are definitely guarding the box.  A short while later, I saw the male feeding a fledgling from their first brood, so that probably explains why they haven't started the next clutch yet.  Soon...

It is blazingly hot again today with not a single cloud in the sky.  The patio and deck are so hot that I am drastically limiting Jax's time outside.  Dogs aren't always smart enough to know when their feet pads are getting burned so they need us to make good decisions for them.  Once the sun moves lower in the afternoon, the patio will be shaded and much cooler and then we can go outside for a while.  It looks like this heat is going to continue right through the weekend.  

I am planning to stay in the rest of the afternoon - maybe do a short yoga practice to stretch things out a bit.  

See Extra for a shot of the male swallow circling the nest box before flying straight in.  They are such graceful creatures - a joy to watch.

I tried something new today - dark chocolate with lime.  It sounded iffy, but turned out to be delicious. 

xo
Debbi