Steve`s Country
For a smile as wide as a country sunrise
Solitude On My Deck. #8
Good morning everyone! It is a nice, warm morning here, but cloudy today. The sun does peek out once and a while though which makes everything glow so nicely. That heavy rain and little bit of hail we got the other day certainly knocked my flowers down and they are struggling to bloom again. It might take a while I guess. Summer is short here and we are at about the half way point now.
Often there is a major change in the weather about mid August bringing in more fall like weather. I hope that does not happen this year. The chipmunks are busy this morning, at least 8 of them. Chester and Crunchy are gone from the group, I have not seen them for a long time now. But there is a new one, I called him GPS after a former chipmunk friend from 6 years ago.
He always knows when I put fresh peanuts out and he will be there first most of the time. He is very small though compared to the other chipmunks, so he gets chased by everyone. But he keeps coming back. Two of the squirrels were here as well, fighting as usual. Those 2 always come at the same time. And always fight. Amazing really. Skamper was out here first thing this morning, waiting for me to come out with the peanuts.
I nearly stepped on him going out the door. He is the most friendly of the chipmunks. Choco, Coffee, Skitter and Pocket are next. Scooter is the least friendly, but she is getting better. GPS is getting friendly fast. He learned quickly that I provide the peanuts so he comes running over when he sees me. But he won’t take a peanut from my hand yet, though he gets close.
I am sure he will be on my lap soon. I need to get some new pics of the chipmunks and squirrels to share with you. So strange, it was supposed to be sunny today and instead it is cloudy. I prefer sunny day pics, colors show up so much better and the pics just look so much more cheerful. But perhaps I will sit out there with the chipmunks for a while anyway.
Having chipmunks on my lap is a true country pleasure, and, that is solitude. Sitting and relaxing on the deck with a cup of coffee is also a true country pleasure and also, solitude. Except, there is always the possibility of the bear showing up suddenly. That makes it a bit hard to relax. Oh well, time to sit with the chipmunks. Pictures are from my recent walk to the river. Have a most wonderful weekend everyone and God bless!
Steve and Muffin.
©2022 Steve McLeod.
Looking At Insects. #7 Robber Fly 2
Hi again everyone!
On my walk Wednesday I took a pic of another insect that I was sure was a different species of robber fly, and I was correct. So, here it is, our second “Robber Fly, Laphria Canis”. Apparently there are several different species of the Laphria Canis but they are next to impossible to distinguish in the field like this, they need to be studied close at hand with a magnifying glass to tell them apart. But it is different than the one shown earlier today which was from my walk last week. This one was found along a different part of the path. For me it is quite exciting to find two species of these robber flies. Before this year I probably would have thought they were bees and stayed away from them. This one is likely waiting for some insect to fly past. Have a great weekend everyone and God bless!
Steve and Muffin.
©2022 Steve McLeod.
