Miscellaneous  Wings!

Birds tend to be harder to find in the summer when they can hide behind tree leaves. Although I spend a lot of my time searching for insects, I do find the occasional bird. 😉 The local Coopers Hawk nest successfully hatched 4 young hawks this year. They are all out on the prowl. They sometimes call back and forth to one another, which makes it easier to locate them!

American Goldfinch use thistle fluff in the construction of their nests.

An Eastern Kingbird hovered over the water as he waited to find "just the right bug" for his next snack!

Ruby-throated Hummingbird babies! The little cuties are getting bigger and I can now see more than just their beaks. The beaks are short but will lengthen as the babies grow. (It would be rather dangerous for Mom, and her young, to be in that nest if her babies had adult length beaks!) (Note: They fledged on or before July 25th.)

Indigo Bunting, male, soaking up the sunshine as he looks for food.

Female Common Yellowthroat warbler.

I was being watched as this Red-winged Blackbird cleaned his feathers!

Pied-billed Grebe: The mottled colouring on the throat indicates the bird hatched this year.

Blinded Sphinx caterpillar, almost 3 inches long! It crawled across the path in front of me! Once it reaches the adult stage, its wingspan will reach up to 50mm.

Four-spotted Forester Moth! I have seen this species several times but have never seen it in the sunshine before. Usually it is in the shade, hiding on the underside of a leaf.

Mottled Tortoise Beetle: They are about the size of a Lady Beetle and it shone like gold in the morning sun!

Nessus Sphinx Moth - a day flying moth.

Peck's Skipper, sitting in its food dish!