Critters and Greens

Summer is here and we've been getting a garden set up for the first time in a few years.  After we got the chickens we found it very difficult to have a garden because they would always come and eat everything.  Craig has set up some fencing and beds and barrels and dirt, so hopefully we'll have produce to enjoy after some time and work.  Meanwhile, critters all around us are working on their business.

Paco, enjoying his business of lounging in the grass:

This little lizard seems to have recently regrown its tail:

Craig discovered his little tractor was in fact strong enough to move the big boulders into position as campfire seating:

First seedlings planted!

One big strawberry:

I almost caught a picture of this rufous hummingbird checking out the strawberry:

We uncovered (and re-covered) a cicada larva while gardening:

My beautiful fuschia birthday present:

Cherries are almost ripe!

This beetle was big.  Very big.  I still need to identify it, but did I mention it was big?  Over an inch long.

This beetle was small.  And cute.  Very small:

Caterpillar with lovely colors moving along:

The pileated woodpecker rat-a-tat-tatting.  They have been very busy this year:

Cucumber beetle on a dandelion:

Well, hello to you too, Al:

Al showing his glamorous smile:

Busy on the waterline edge of a rock in the creek:

Butterfly visiting:

Peep!

Craig getting some of the barrels planted with the bigger starts:

We get bats in the house sometimes.  Generally we sort of wave our nets around and try to help them find the open door and leave.  Bats are very fast and when they get in, tend to fly in circles in one room, very quickly.  Ninja Craig remarkably caught this one in the net while it did laps in our bedroom.

Hello small bat:

Go outside now and enjoy the night.  It hung on for a while, then zipped away:

Spot the mantis:

Hummingbirds Hatched!

We had an incredible opportunity to watch the progress of a hummingbird nest this year.  It was made on a low limb of a tree in the forest and we only found it because the mama bird buzzed by Craig unexpectedly, so he knew something was up and searched around until he found it.  It was nothing you'd ever just notice without searching it out, but once discovered it was visible both from the trail and the hillside above.  That first day, it held one tiny, brand new baby, and one egg, about to hatch.  We visited it regularly watching them grow at an amazing rate, until one day as Craig was nearing the tree, they fledged.

Here is the first time we saw the nest, with me keeping some distance and aiming the camera down from not-too-close and without looking.  The photo isn't great, but you can see a little egg and a little new bird:

Here is the mama hummingbird sitting on her nest.  This was taken from around 12 feet away with 30x zoom:

The babies!  Mama was out feeding herself, and we got a peek at the newly hatched hummingbirds:

Another day or two later, growing baby bird feather spikes:

The opening of the nest where the babies are tucked in is barely the size of a quarter, maybe:

Starting to fill the nest a bit more and soon to be feathers becoming more evident:

They are almost big enough to peek over the side, although their beaks are still short and fat and mostly orange:

Beaks getting longer, and peaking upwards now:

They really start growing fast at this point:

And proper feathers start coming in:

Getting higher and higher in the nest:

The nest is really so well covered, very difficult to spot:

Both birds up high now and although they probably could have flown at this point, they didn't take flight until the next day:

And then they flew!  We think we saw them at our hummingbird feeders some days later and for some time thereafter as the slightly fatter but smaller, fluffier, shorter beaked birds who seemed to still be learning a bit about how to do the things they do. 

Life Everywhere

The farm sounds amazing this time of year.  The air hums with all the noise of life around us.  Birds and bugs and creepy-crawlies can be found everywhere (although, to be fair, the creepy-crawlies tend to be rather quiet).  Standing on our front porch is like being amid tiny aircraft with the hummingbirds buzzing all around.  There are signs of deer, evidence of coyote, and other animals too down in the woods.  The chickens have started brooding and one of our hens hatched out the first clutch of eggs.  This year we are keeping the nests smaller, allowing 2 - 3 peeps instead of 6 - 12.  The hens have an easier time of it and we don't need that many new chickens.  

Evening Grosbeak visiting the feeder on our cherry blossom:

First peeps of the year!

Craig's favorite snake due to its docile nature and lack of stink, the rubber boa:

Hummingbird about to take flight:

The Rufous Hummingbird is the most territorial of the bunch, always zooming around chasing away the rest, but especially any others like themselves:

And a Black Headed Grosbeak too:

looks like we're going to have lots of plums this year:

Cicada exoskeleton:

This little peep likes to ride its mama:

Tiny newt (I think) down at the creek:

Loveliness:

Hello!  We quite enjoyed watching this little leafwalker on the rose:

Definitely fluffy, almost haircut time:

Lovely Ruby Throated Hummingbird:

Did I mention there would be a big plum harvest?

Bring It, Spring

Well, it's officially spring now, although this year it feels like the calendar is lagging considerably behind the weather.  In general, I think the seasons should have been centered around the equinoxes and solstices, rather than changing on those dates, but that's just one of my random musings without anything specific to do with this year.  Our spring started warm and dry, without the lingering grey rain we have come to expect.  Even the mountains have been missing the snow and rain this year.  Although it's lovely to spend time outside and breathe in the warm, new green around us, it's also a bit unnerving that it's this warm and this green already.  But the air smells sweet with blooms, we can see the tiny tree fruits that will ripen through summer, and it's hard not to smile when the breeze touches your skin.  

Craig and the chickens patrolling the field:

We have come to know this very sociable grouse who lives is our woods and we were happy to see it return again this year.  It will land on the ATV that Craig drives down for trail maintenance, fly along if he's on his bike, and sometimes hike with us on foot for quite a distance:

Morning mist:

Getting fluffy:

New growth looking very healthy on this bamboo stand:

A sure sign that it's spring:  chickens doing dust baths.  They love this west facing wall of our house and we often find them sprawled out enjoying the afternoon sun as we go out the door:

An alpaca and dog moment:

Tux is starting to show signs of age, although he's still quite spry:

Lucky!  We have quite a few clover patches that make many 4 (and sometimes even more) leaf clovers:

The lilacs are in bloom and hummingbirds are starting to arrive:

Running in the early greens of the field, before they have eaten it all:

These will be delicious cherries in a few months:

Hello ladybug!

The chickens are very busy lately, including one very ambitious hen (noting the size of the light colored egg toward the bottom center of the photo):

Processing eggs for our customers:

Chickens under foot in the morning:

These tiny bunches of flowers smell so sweet:

Chirrup!

We found another really big, busy hill of Western Thatcher (I think) ants.  Craig says they taste pretty good, but I can't vouch for that: