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Showing posts with label wildlife. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wildlife. Show all posts
Monarch butterflies have been visiting the garden and finding the 'butterfly bush' to be an irresistible treat
If you'd like to see more of my photographs,
Spotted a Gulf Fritillary butterfly in my garden for the first time... completely by accident
I saw a couple of monarch butterflies fluttering around the buddleia (aka 'Butterfly Bush')* that's in full bloom in the garden, so I took my camera out to try and catch some shots. Imagine my surprise when I saw another butterfly I didn't recognize, got some shots of it sipping nectar and came inside to find it is a variety I've never seen before (let alone photographed). I'm pretty stoked!
*GARDENING DISCLAIMER: Although I do not condone cultivating invasive plants, bushes and shrubs, buddleia is not considered an invasive pest in our area of the world (San Francisco Bay Area of California) where summer's are rainless. It does not propagate here. That's the only reason I have one.
The best aphid protection my roses have ever had
Mr. Hooded Oriole (above) and his wife keep my roses aphid-free along with help from some other birds. I simply provided all the birds with a burbling water fountain set in the middle of the rose garden, and the birds reward me by gleaning all the bugs off by rosebushes.
Abalone shells and lavender blooms--two small things making a big impact in my garden
The makings of a backyard wildlife habitat are often unexpected, small and don't seem like they would be significant at first glance. The same is true for all the wildlife that benefits from the small additions. Most wildlife that will benefit from a backyard wildlife habitat is small and diminutive like birds and beneficial bugs. But these small creatures can provide very large benefits to your outdoor space.
Saving money and time
By working as a partner with these little guys I've stopped having to spend money on bug sprays and killers, I spend less money conditioning the soil to get things to grow well, and my garden maintenance chores have slowly decreased because nature does a lot of the work for me.
Abalone shells as "water features"
Decades-old abalone and clam shells left from a fishing trip on the Bay that happened long before we came here, now grace the raised garden beds I made from chunks of repurposed concrete. The shells catch water from rainclouds or the garden hose so lizards, bees and butterflies can get a sip of water when they need it.
Just about everyone loves seeing butterflies in the garden, but why do I want lizards and bees to have a place to drink?
Why I want lizards in my garden
Lizards are a key component of my garden because they eat a lot of bugs (A LOT). They eat all the bugs I don't want including big nasty flies, young cockroaches and other creepy crawly nasties. And that's not all when it comes to the most prevalent lizard in my garden, the Western Fence Lizard. According to the California Academy of Sciences, the Western Fence Lizard's blood contains a protein that kills the Lyme disease-causing bacterium (Borrelia) that is carried in the guts of ticks. But if an infected tick bites a Western Fence Lizard, the Borrelia is killed off completely, leaving the tick's future bites harmless to other creatures. So the occurrence of Lyme disease is lower in areas where these wonderful little lizards live and thrive. Of course I want them as permanent residents!
Why I want bees and paper wasps in my garden
Bees (honeybees, carpenter bees, paper wasps and others) are also a key component of my garden. They pollinate all the fruits and vegetables to make a good harvest possible. They are all extremely docile while on the hunt for nectar and water. I never worry about being stung. I provide them with year-round nectar with hardy bloomers like the lavender. Even though it's November right now, the lavender is in full bloom again, and the pollinators are happy. The lavender will continue to be a nectar source throughout the bloom-deficient winter months when bees in our climate still forage because daytime temperatures are often mild and above 40F/5C on the coldest days.
Benefits of potted lavender
Again, the lavender is growing in simple terra cotta pots set directly on the ground. They take up little space and are drought tolerant. The large pots also provide habitat for the lizards to hunt in and around. I often find them sunning themselves by one of the lavender pots waiting for a flying insect to come into range so they can pounce on it. Over time, each potted lavender has turned into a mini-hub-habitat. Strategically placed throughout the garden along paths, these pots help to balance each area by drawing the attention of beneficial bugs and critters to every place I need them. The added bonus of the simple system of potted lavender is that the scent of the lavender repels bugs I don't like (e.g., mosquitoes) away from places I like to sit. Another added bonus is I can go out and harvest lavender anytime I want to bring sprigs inside to repel unwanted bugs in the closets or pantry.
Back to the benefits of the simple abalone shells strewn about the garden beds...
If I lift one of the shells, I often find other insects have made a home underneath in the cool damp space out of the sunlight. Skunks and opossums rearrange the shells periodically to get to the grubs living under there. I patiently right the shells that get turned over so they can hold water again and brighten the garden with their pearly interiors.
Why I want skunks and opossums in my garden
Skunks (despite their smelly reputation) are great omnivores that eat insects, small rodents, lizards, and frogs as well as roots, berries, leaves, grasses, fungi (like mushrooms) and nuts. Opossums eat insects too--beetles, cockroaches, snails and slugs. Both skunks and opossums eat fruit that's fallen from fruit trees that would otherwise lay around and stink up the garden as it rots. Thanks to these two great critter species, I no longer have a problem with snails and slugs eating my beloved garden plants. And I don't have to spend money on pricey snail and slug bait to get rid of them either. These two species also keep my home and garden free of small rodents, as well as successfully preventing my garden from being taken over by the non-native bullfrog that can be a nuisance resident.
Little things mean a lot to Mother Nature
Over and over since I embarked on this journey of being a steward over a backyard wildlife habitat, I have had one simple truth reaffirmed... little things mean a lot. This is especially true when it comes to the beautiful balance nature can provide if given the opportunity.
I got my very own "wild turkey surprise"
Does anyone else remember the old Bugs Bunny and Tasmanian Devil cartoon "Bedeviled Rabbit"? Bugs serves Taz a special "treat" called "wild turkey surprise".
Well, I got my very own "wild turkey surprise" when I went out to stroll around the garden just before sunset on Tuesday. I walked down the deck stairs and headed to the bird fountain to top it off with water from the garden hose. I heard a funny "cluck cluck" sound coming from the vicinity of the mandarin tree just past the lemon tree. I'm used to just about every sound that happens in my garden so when I hear something new, it's obvious. I peered in the direction of the sound through the branches as I walked.
Imagine my surprise when I saw a giant wild turkey meandering across the flagstones not far from me!
Taller than a goose with the top of it's head about 4 feet tall, this thing was quite striking considering that most of the wild birds I see in my garden are far smaller. I immediately walked backwards as stealthily as possible toward the house so I could dash in to get my camera--hoping the whole time that it wouldn't leave until I got back out. On my way in the back door I yelled to Hubby, "There's a wild turkey in the back garden!" and dashed into my studio to get my camera out of the camera bag.
I was fortunate that it hadn't left when I got back out. The turkey was moving slowly through the garden mostly because it had a severe limp. I noticed a large patch of feathers on it's front that were out of place and sticking out at a right angle from its body. It looked like it had been in a recent scuffle.
From what I could tell it was a male (possibly a juvenile called a "jake" but I'm not sure as I'm not well versed in wild turkeys).
The turkey made an entire circuit around the garden following the path that goes around the pond. I kept my distance allowing the pond to be a buffer between it and I. I let my zoom lens bridge the gap between us. I didn't want to scare it or cause it to become agressive (turkeys can be dangerous if provoked).
After getting a few shots, I put my camera down for a time while I filled up the bird fountain using the garden hose. It kept an eye on me from behind a palm tree.
When I had my back turned, I suddenly heard a great commotion. I turned to see that it had taken flight and was sitting on the roof of the neighbor's garage that is right on the property line between our garden and theirs. I went back inside to tell Hubby it was still there if he wanted to come see it. He did and we watched it from the safety of our deck chairs until it took flight again and flew to roost in the great stand of eucalyptus trees that grow just over our back fence on open land belonging to the nearby oil refinery.
The rest of the evening we could hear the turkey's gobbling vibrato in the distance as the sun set just past the eucalyptus it had chosen to roost in for the night. I can now add this exciting experience to my list of wildlife encounters in my little semi-rural backyard wildlife habitat.
Mourning dove in winter
High on a branch
In the mulberry tree
The mourning dove sits
Waiting for spring.
The hummingbird calls from the winter wisteria
I hear him before I see him.
His tiny chirp
Easily missed by unaware ears.
He sits atop a leaf-bare vine
Singing to the mid-day sun.
A photo-walk through the garden looking at the New Year's roses at Rosehaven Cottage
The roses got a late summer haircut this year and spent the autumn sending out new green growth that resulted in a particularly spectacular late December bloom. When the skies are grey and overcast, the roses are just the splash of color needed to brighten my day. I hope these photos brighten your winter day too.
If you keep scrolling down you'll see the special surprise that I encountered at the end of my photo-walk through the rose garden.
While I was out photographing the roses, a cheeky male Anna's hummingbird decided that my presence was not going to deter him from taking his "regularly scheduled" afternoon bath in the chilly water of the fountain. He was very leisurely and also got a few drinks. If you look closely you can see his little tongue sticking out. I didn't have to use my zoom lens to photograph this little guy. He was only about 4 feet away when I shot this photo. Like I said... cheeky.
I finally got a photograph of a woodpecker in our garden thanks to a cantankerous squirrel
Maybe for other people getting a photograph of a woodpecker isn't such a major feat but for me it's HUGE! Over the past 11 years, I've heard woodpeckers in our neighbors' trees. I've tried to follow the sound to catch a glimpse of them. But the woodpeckers around here are very elusive, and the glimpses I've gotten are fleeting. Photographing them seemed impossible.
Today, I went out to catch some sun on our deck and brought my camera with me (something I usually don't do when catching rays). The usual birds were flitting about and eating the seed I put out yesterday. Several squirrels were helping themselves to the sunflower seeds I put out for them.
Then in my peripheral vision I saw a red flash on the trunk of the neighbor's pine tree. I turned and focused my attention and saw a male Nuttall's woodpecker casually pulling bugs from the cracks in the bark and eating them. I couldn't believe it! I focused my zoom lens and started shooting.
But it wasn't long before Mr. Woodpecker, was joined by one of the squirrels that had been dining in my garden. The squirrel stood on the tree, suspended head down, for quite some time just calmly observing Mr. Woodpecker. The woodpecker didn't seem bothered and continued to eat as if the squirrel wasn't there. All seemed right with the world...
...until another rotten-tempered squirrel came down from the upper branches of the pine tree having made up its mind that the tree belonged to him!
Mr. Woodpecker gave the two squirrels a glance as the cantakerous squirrel chased the other benevolent squirrel down the tree trunk. The two squirrels quickly looped back up the trunk and Mr. Woodpecker was forced to hop out of the way as the chase blasted over his dining spot.
The squirrels seemed to have continued the chase onto the ground, so Mr. Woodpecker started to settled into a new spot to eat...
... but the crabby squirrel, having evicted all other squirrels from the tree, came back up the ready to evict all other species as well.
Mr. Woodpecker had had enough and flew away.
I was disappointed. I thought my opportunity to get a decent shot had passed until I realized that the squirrels had done me a favor. Mr. Woodpecker flew into our garden and landed in the Santa Rosa plum tree next to the pond. In full view of my zoom lens, he commenced finding bugs again. I couldn't have asked for a better vantage point to watch and shoot. The squirrels and their shenanigans had created a moment of photographic serendipity in more ways than one.
Meeting Mr. Gray Fox
This handsome fellow was found by humans in their barn when he was a young orphaned kit (or pup) and tried to raise him on their own. But the well-meaning humans found that raising a wild animal is something better left to professionals when the fox got sick after a few months. That's how the fox came to the Lindsay Wildlife Museum where he was rehabilitated. But because he had been orphaned so young he hadn't learned the ability to hunt in the wild from his parents, so he couldn't be released back into the wild. When injury or circumstances preclude the optimal release back into the wild that is the goal of most rehabilitated animals, Lindsay Wildlife Museum makes a permanent residence for the animal in their educational facility where the animal can become an ambassador for teaching people of all ages.
Mr. Gray Fox is one of the museum's most popular ambassador right now. He's only a couple of years old so he has a long career ahead of him (he'll most likely live to be 12-14 years old in captivity).
We sat and watched Mr. Gray Fox for about an hour as he excitedly anticipated feeding and "training" time (which we were also able to watch). We were fascinated by his beauty and memorized everything about him. It was the first time we had seen a gray fox, so Mr. Gray Fox was definitely doing his educational ambassador job with us.
A week after our educational visit, Hubby and I came home late in the evening from being out. We pulled into our driveway, and Hubby got out of the truck to retrieve our recycling, green waste and garbage cans from the curb. As he did so, he saw an animal that he mistook for a neighborhood cat at first. It crossed from our neighbor's yard across the street less than 10 yards from where Hubby stood. Because of our educational experience with Mr. Gray Fox at the Lindsay Wildlife Museum, Hubby realized that the animal wasn't a cat. It was a gray fox!
Hubby slowly walked to where the fox had headed into our next door neighbor's driveway and had disappeared from view behind our jasmine hedge. As Hubby rounded the corner of the hedge, the fox trotted back out toward him across our narrow country-lane-of-a-street, then zig-zagged back across to our side of the street again to our other next door neighbor's yard. All the while Hubby was standing in the middle of the fox's zig-zagging getting a perfect view of this incredible creature that humans rarely see the in wild because of their shy nocturnal habits.
When the sighting finally ended with the fox disappearing into the neighbor's yard, Hubby called out to me (I was still up by the house) in a loud whisper, "I just saw a gray fox!" He was so excited. And so was I when he recounted the sighting to me. I wish I hadn't missed it.
We are thrilled that after 11 years here at Rosehaven Cottage, we finally witnessed a gray fox living here. We hope it has frequented our own backyard wildlife habitat and not just our neighbors' yards. The gray fox is the only member of the canine family that climbs trees, and we have some of those for it to climb during the night-time hours when it hunts. Hopefully, it hunts in our garden and helps itself to some rodents. Our garden wildlife habitat is small by most standards but the "welcome mat" is always out.
A helpful tip from the Lindsay Wildlife Museum's "Living With Wildlife" information:
Prune trees and shrubs between October and December
In Northern California and other temperate areas of the United States, some birds and mammals begin nesting in January. The nesting season lasts into August. When you prune trees and shrubs during those months, check carefully for nests and be sure any babies are gone before you prune. The safest time to prune is between October and December.
(Insider info: My garden and produce are healthier and happier
since I started gardening for wildlife)
Sunflower Sunday
Today, just outside the little red door of Rosehaven Cottage blooms the first sunflower of this summer. The pale lemon-yellow sunflower is a "volunteer" from last year's sunflowers.
We keep our sunflowers up on their dried stalks long after they've wilted so the birds can use them as natural birdfeeders and pick every last seed out of them. But no matter how ravenous those birds are, there's always a few seeds that fall to the ground and reseed for the next year.
This is the first of those to bloom in the Rosehaven Cottage gardens this year--yet another happy delight of summer.
The True Beauty of a Sunflower
Am I alone in finding beauty in a sunflower whose bloom has long since gone? Even as a small child I found the center of a sunflower completely fascinating with all the seeds so perfectly formed and lined up in neat concentric circles. The dry outer edges with their white "whiskers" always intrigued my childhood imagination as well.Now that I'm older and maintain my own backyard wildlife habitat, there is an added beauty to the dried and spent sunflowers. In planning the Rosehaven Cottage gardens so they could be a certified habitat, I read a lot, and one of the things I remember reading was that if you're a neatnik and a control freak, a wildlife habitat is probably not going to be your cup of tea. Why? Because finely manicured gardens don't necessarily provide the food and shelter that little creatures need to be happy.
I discovered in the first couple of growing seasons, that spent sunflowers remaining in the garden long after the sunflower is "sunny" are a staple of the Rosehaven Cottage habitat. The tall dried stalks get stronger the drier they become, and eventually transform into natural birdfeeders during the lean winter months when the birds can't find insects to munch on because it's too cold for insects to be out and about in the garden.
Many birds winter-over in the Bay Area of Northern California where Rosehaven Cottage is located. These birds thrive on the yummy sunflower seeds that wait and ripen from summer's bloom until winter's birdy harvest. House finches, oak titmouses, scrub jays, woodpeckers, and many seasonal birds find the drooping dried heads and hang from them surgically extracting seeds with their beaks as the winter rains come down around them.
The giant varieties like the Kong sunflower are particularly fun. Their giant heads sit atop thick trunk-like stalks that are up to 14 feet tall. Each giant dish head can hold hundreds of seeds. The birds don't finally deplete the giant heads of their bounty until very late into the winter around February. And because our last frost is usually around the middle to the end of March, the insect population comes back early enough in the year that the seeds last through the lean months until another food source comes along. It is a fascinating and miraculous cycle that I have witnessed year after year, and yet it never ceases to bring me joy and wonder.
Pacific Tree Frogs at Rosehaven Cottage
Shortly after the first rainy winter we lived at Rosehaven Cottage, it became clear that we had drainage problems in areas of our back garden. So, I got out there with shovel in hand and decided to just take advantage of the situation. I dug a pond... a 1,200 gallon pond (Hubby still thinks I'm a little too happy about playing in the mud and dirt).Anyway, after digging the pond, lining it, and filling it we hoped that it would eventually attract amphibians to our little wildlife habitat that we were just trying to establish.
We didn't have to wait long. One night the next February, a lone little frog began ribbeting in our back garden next to the pond shortly after sunset. We were so happy! All night the little frog ribbeted. All night! That frog croaked from sunset to sunrise, literally!
The next night at sunset that little frog was joined by two others little froggy voices making a trio that serenaded us all night long. "Wow!" we thought, "The little guy actually got some friends to join him."
The next night we had a whole chorus "singing" out in our back garden. "What have we done?!?!" we thought with panic in our eyes as sleep became harder to harder to achieve.
The nightly froggy serenades continued throughout the months of February, March, and April. We eventually got used to the sound (or at least I did). One night we heard the neighbor come out his back door and scream, "Shut up!!!!" at the frogs. They didn't listen.
Then suddenly around the end of April, the frogs stopped this nightly ritual. We'd hear a little ribbet now and then on a drizzly day, but the nightly cacophony stopped. We had grown so used to it that the silence seemed eerie.
The tadpoles eventually started to appear as the eggs matured. They eventually grew legs and then set up residence around the pond. I was amazed at how tiny they were. These itsy bitsy perfect little frogs so small that they could fit on the tip of my index finger. They stayed in the cracks and crevices of the rocks around the pond until they were big enough to leap away and find froggy homes someplace else (until breeding season came around again).
The same cacophony happens every year around January and lasts until April or so. It is amazing how noisy a frog can be when it's only less than an inch long. The females "purr" while the males make the quintessential froggy noise that one hears in the background of many movies (Pacific Tree Frog recordings are what are often used in films by sound editors).Right now the frogs are very quiet. I don't even know they're there unless I happen upon one as it's sitting waiting to catch a nice juicy bug. That's what happened this evening as the sun was setting and the heat in the garden began to dissipate. I found one just sitting on a canna lily leaf waiting for its next meal, most likely ousted from its cool subterranean home by the watering system that had just been on (these frogs really don't like getting wet unless its mating season). I went and retrieved my camera and shot these photographs of the little cutey. I probably won't think it's so cute come January though.
Lizards at Rosehaven Cottage
Daisy the Curly Cat asked if we have any lizards at Rosehaven Cottage. Well, I am pleased to inform Daisy that we do! Daisy loves lizards but does not like alligators. Fortunately, we don't have alligators here in No. California. Whew!The lizards at Rosehaven Cottage are very stealthy creatures. Although, our wild garden kitty Oreo has caught one or two. Tom Tom caught one a month or so ago. My husband saw Tom Tom on the porch while I was gardening (Tom Tom only goes out when I'm out). Hubby found me in the garden and said, "Tom Tom has some big insect in his mouth." Well, I went to investigate and found that Tom Tom was finishing off the last of a lizard that he'd been eating. We called Tom Tom "Lizard Breath" for the next couple of days after that.
Because the lizards are very stealthy, I rarely get an opportunity to photograph them. That said, I have been fortunate to get the two photographs featured here just so Daisy can enjoy them.Lizards are fairly easy to attract to one's garden if one takes the steps to do so. I wanted that at Rosehaven Cottage so I researched what I needed to do in my backyard wildlife habitat. Lizards love rock piles and stones with niches between them. So that's why we've provided lots of those around the garden. The lizards in the Rosehaven Cottage gardens love the planters that I've constructed out of chunks of recycled concrete [see photo below].
In the evening right before sunset, I have been privileged to watch a lizard come out on the flat rocks around the edge of the pond and hunt for insects. It was fascinating to watch! In fact, just yesterday as I sat by the pond feeding the fish, a lizard came out on the same rock on the pond's edge. It must be the "hunting rock" [see photo below]. They are great friends to have in the garden because they eat a lot of the bugs I don't want around my produce.
Lizards also need a source of water that is easy to get to so I provided little drippers as part of the irrigation system that are low to the ground which both water the garden produce and provide water for the lizards. The waterfall in the pond is also very gentle as it pours over long flat rocks so the lizards can get a sip there [see photo below]. The little birds like it too.
I Wished for Hummingbirds and I Got Them
I'm starting off this post the same way I did the last one...
"After reading the blog over at It's All Good and then following his link to Stolen Moments and seeing the beautiful photographs there...."
I found myself wishing I had more clear and close-up photos of hummingbirds in my own portfolio. But in the gardens here at Rosehaven Cottage I need a more powerful telephoto lens if I want good shots of the hummingbirds around here.
Then we went to visit my husband's parents that lives 3 1/2 hours away. Dad (my father-in-law) loves birds as much, if not more than I do. He has a hummingbird feeder just outside his family room window so he can see them come to feed as he sits on the couch. When we first got there, we were visiting and I kept getting distracted by the adorable winged creatures that frequently came down for sips from the their perch in his camphor tree a few feet away from the feeder. So I went over to the window with my camera and shot through the spaces between the blinds to capture the sweet things only inches from my lens on the other side of the glass.
Then I went out on the back patio and was able to get some other really intriguing silhouette shots that I'm very pleased with as well.
So I got my wish! I now have photos of hummingbirds in my portfolio. They aren't from Rosehaven Cottage, but that will suffice for now until I save up my pennies for the telephoto lens I want.
Pussycat in the Posies and Other Garden Serendipity
Pussycat in the Posies
(this photo is now available in a greeting card)
I was strolling around outside today just puttering in the garden with my camera in tow. I was enjoying the mild summer weather we're having and the wonderful coastal breezes. I had my camera with me because I'd just gotten done trying to photograph some items for the online store I'll be opening soon on Etsy (didn't like the effect I was getting with the light) so I decided to meander around and just enjoy the outside instead of focusing on my frustrating failed photography attempt.
I was enjoying looking at all the flowers in bloom, taking shots of them. I came around the corner of the pink rosebush and there was our little wild garden kitty Oreo who had been sleeping in a bed of posies and was sitting up all groggy from her nap. She was just so cute amidst the blooms that I had to take her photo (although I had to do so gingerly or I'd frighten her).
(The photo below is now available in a greeting card)
When I encountered Oreo, I had originally been headed to look at a sunflower that I saw blooming from the other side of the garden. I wanted a better look at it to see if it was worth photographing. It was! The background of the burgeoning green fennel fronds was perfect.
The sunflowers that I got from K. only a couple of weeks ago are so happy where I've planted them throughout the front garden. I'm enjoying their little sunshiney-faces as they begin to bloom around the garden adding a splash of brightness here and there.
Later when I went into the back garden to feed the goldfish, I again had my camera around my neck just in case there was a shot I wanted to get. Good thing too, because as I neared the pond I saw a tiny movement out of the corner of my eye. I slowly bent down to see if it was what I thought it was. I was right! It was one of the cute little lizards that lives out among the stones around the pond. I always see them but never have my camera with me when I do. And they're so darn fast it's really hard to photograph them anyway. Well, this one decided to lay really still and play "camo lizard" and let me get close enough to get a great shot or two before it scurried away.
Why the Right Water Source Is So Important In My Habitat
One of the four main components necessary in order to have a backyard wildlife habitat is a source of water. I always assumed it was for the birds and that a birdbath would suffice. It wasn't until I put in a pond a few years ago that I realized that the water sustains more than just the birds and that a birdbath doesn't really cut it particularly for important insects, like honeybees, that often drown in it while trying to get water.
I designed my pond based on the guidelines I found at the National Wildlife Federation's website on backyard wildlife habitats (it is also where I eventually applied for and received my official certification from the NWF).
NWF's guidelines suggested that somewhere in the pond needed to be protruding rocks for smaller creatures to be able to get to the water or out of the water if they fell in accidentally.
NWF's guidelines also suggested possibly a "beach" area that sloped into the water so the transition was gradual. Again, it was for smaller creatures to be able to access the water without falling in and drowning.
I did both in my pond just for safe measure. I put in an "island" with rocks of all sizes on it, and I also made a flowing water current over river rock that was set on a beach-like area. The water current starts from a waterfall over flat rocks and then passes on both sides of that "island" in a Y to the main deeper section of the pond where the pump is located that sends the water back up to the bio-filter and then out over the flat rocks and back down the river rock again. It's kind of a closed system beach, creek bed and pond all in one.
This evening as I was out feeding the fish before sunset (they're favorite feeding time), I noticed once again why my design and the NWF guidelines are so critical to my habitat. The honeybees were coming down to the water's edge on the big round river rocks at the tip of the Y and getting sips of water as it gurgled by. The bees like to get down in the crevices between the rocks on the island in little groups. It's quite enchanting to watch them. I can get within inches of them, and they've never stung me. They are too busy getting the precious water to be concerned with me.
As I watched them, I knew that they had just finished a busy day of humming from one bee-friendly flower in my garden to the next. They probably lighted on the newly bloomed sunflowers in the front garden at some point today (bees love sunflowers). They also probably sampled the canna lilies too just as the hummingbirds do. And then I'm sure they did the job that I need them to do of pollinating all the blossoms in my fruit and vegetable garden in raised boxes throughout the flower gardens (done to encourage balance in good insect population so I don't have to use pesticides on my produce--this is the year 6 that I haven't had to use ANY).
I had my camera with me this evening, and I photographed the bees as they got their drinks before going back the hive for the night, wherever it may be. And I found myself being thankful that I had made my gardens a wildlife habitat. I found myself grateful that the honeybees have not disappeared from my little part of the world.
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