Blackburnian Warbler at Magee Marsh, OH

My Yard ~ Migrating Birds

 Excited to have an Indigo Bunting in my yard & returning House Wrens

Nest building

My Yard ~ Spring Planting

 It's earlier than I usually plant but it's been getting earlier each year. My area had been rezoned to 7 when I checked last week. Lots more flowers to be planted over the next month. Good growth from most perennials except lantana which will need about another month before it really gets started. Pansies & snapdragons are cool weather starters.

My Yard ~ First Butterflies of 2025

 My yard this week - I had Monarch, Variegated Fritillary & Tiger Swallowtail on Monday. Tuesday, I added Meadow Fritillary with Cabbage Whites every day. These butterflies are earlier than prior years. I love living near the Amish farmlands & their great greenhouses. So far this year I have planted pansies & violas' (host plant for variegated fritillary), snapdragons (host plant for common buckeye), Lantana, and Zinnia. My swamp milkweed & butterfly weed are just growing enough to support a few eggs.

Dubina, TX ~ St Cyril & Methodius Catholic Church

   I  took myself on a tour of some of the Painted Churches in TX.  They were all so gorgeous and very well maintained 

   Czech settlers in 1856 arrived here in this area.  After the Civil War they built the original church with an iron cross made by Tom Lee, who was a freed slave and blacksmith.  This church was destroyed by a hurricane in 1909.  A new church was built and again topped by the same iron cross.  It was painted inside but no records exist of who did the painting.  The interior was whitewashed over in the 1950's.  Then, in the 1980's the interior was restored to look like what it was thought to look like originally.

Ammannsville, TX ~ The Painted Churches ~ St John the Baptist Church

 Last year at this time I was spending a few days around Schulenburg, TX visiting The Painted Churches. They were all different and all are beautiful. Here's St John the Baptist in Ammannsville, TX. Originally built 1877 and rebuilt in 1909 after a hurricane destroyed it.

Out & about Intercourse on a Snowy Day

Woodland Animal Postcard Swap

 Postcards made for Woodland Animals swap.

My Yard ~ Cooper's Hawk

 This Cooper's hawk had breakfast on his mind this morning.

My Yard ~ Woodpeckers

 Sometimes, the woodpeckers find their way into the feeder but then aren't quite sure how to get out. My feeders are ready for tomorrow's snow.

Downy

Hairy

My Yard ~ Eastern Towhee

 This shy Eastern Towhee came by Monday during the snow and again yesterday, feeding off some sunflower chips on my back deck.

Birds in the Snow

 Today's snow allows me to enjoy photographing the birds in my yard as I don't often see much snow. Tomorrow, I'll be able to snow dye some fabric for my quilts.

Dark-eyed Junco & Northern Cardinal ~ Male

Carolina Chickadee

Downy Woodpecker

White-throated Sparrow

Carolina Wren

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Northern Cardinal ~ Female 

White-breasted Nuthatch

Dark-eyed Junco

Song Sparrow

Northern Cardinal ~ male

Butterfly Wrap Up 2024

   41 species since 2022 I moved to my new home.  36 species for 2024, 4 new species of butterflies were Pipevine Swallowtail, Long-tailed Skipper, Ocola & Common Sootywing.  8 butterflies had full lifecycles with eggs laid on their host plants to eclosing from their chrysalises. Most common butterflies here are Eastern Tiger swallowtail with up to 10-12 daily, Variegated Fritillaries, and Silver-spotted Skipper. And, while I will never have the number of species or the high numbers of within some of the species, it's a good start especially as I am in a HOA community with a pretty limited area to garden.  Another wonderful addition to my garden is having good numbers (up to 6 per day) of Snowberry & Hummingbird Clearwings for about 6 -8 weeks.

Long-tailed Skipper

Ocola Skipper

Woodpeckers in my Yard

First bird of 2025 ~ Hairy

 

Downy

Red-bellied 

First bird of the year for me was the Hairy Woodpecker though I also see Red-bellied and Downy on a daily basis in my yard