Beth's Patch ~ Ruby-throated Hummingbirds

Beth's Patch ~ Butterflies

The butterflies are loving the blue and purple flowers in our garden.

Monarch on Black and Blue Salvia

Monarch on Black and Blue Salvia

Cloudless Sulphur On Black & Purple Salvia

First of Year Fiery Skipper

Broad-winged Skipper

Black & Blue Salvia

Black & Purple Salvia

Blue Rhea Salvia

Beth's Patch ~ Ruby-throated Hummingbirds

The trellis filled with native honeysuckle outside the kitchen window has been very active with our hummingbird friends the past few days. This was from about 7 AM.

Incoming RTH this afternoon. There were times when 3-4 hummingbirds were fighting even though there is plenty of nectar for all.

Beth's Patch ~ Parasailing on the Bay

Cox Hall Creek WMA

Traiil's Flycatcher

Osprey

Blue Dasher Dragonfly - female

I believe this is a common snapping turtle.

Beth's Patch

This Gray Hairstreak looks like it could have been laying eggs on the partridge pea.

Lots of hummingbirds around and enjoying the nectar in the yard.

Monarch on Rose Butterfly canna.

Beth's Patch ~ American Lady Caterpillar

Babies are everywhere in the yard. This American Lady caterpillar is eating away at it's host plant -- Pussytoes. It's just one of 9 butterfly caterpillars that I have seen munching away happily in my yard in the past few days. I need to check for some Common Buckeye caterpillars tomorrow. I have host plants for 28 different butterfly species in my 1/3 acre property.

Beth's Patch ~ Sliver-spotted Skipper Butterflies

Silver-spotted Skippers getting frisky. It has many host plants among them Wisteria. I had 5 Silver-spotted skippers in the yard on Thursday most ever at once. We have no wisteria here but there is some several blocks away.

Beth's Patch ~ Night Skies

Look, I found the young moon in the West tonight just after sunset. It's a whisper-thin waxing crescent. How lucky I am to live where I can see the sunset every night.

Beth's Patch ~ Red Admiral Butterfly

The Red Admiral butterfly is a butterfly that migrates back here from the South in early spring though some warm winter years you'll see it on sunny days sunning themselves on a branch or roadway. It's been a long 4 months but finally another Red Admiral is here in the yard nectaring on the fruit dish. That's a long time but hopefully, they'll be around for a while.

Beth's Patch ~ Spicebush Swallowtail Butterfly

Just born ~ This Spicebush Swallowtail caterpillar who is eating the egg from which it hatched.  See the other egg near by.  There should be another caterpillar shortly.

Donation Quilt #22 & #23

Worked on 2 more donation quilts these past week. One is dedicated to the memory of Bev Bennett who died 10 years ago in July.  Bev was a force in an online quilting group I belonged called Sunshine Quilters. We donated quilts many places around the world. One such place was Wrap-A-Smile started by a wonderful Rotarian, Terry Hodgkins. Sadly, she died in late May. In her 20 years at the helm of WAS there were over 27,000 quilts donated by hundreds of quilters. I am proud to have known both people & though I never got to meet them in person, I proudly called them friend.

Close up

Close up

Beth's Patch ~ Sunrise

Sky was really pretty this morning as the sun light up the clouds at sunrise.

Beth's Patch ~ Dragonflies

Every summer we have a great number of dragonflies in the yard.  Pictures here are just some of them.

Blue Dasher Female

Halloween Pennant

Blue Dasher Female

Seaside Dragonlet

Blue Dasher Female

Widow Skimmer 

Blue Dasher Male