"fawned" of the babies

 The garden is in full swing!

I took these photos a week or so ago and so many more things are blooming now.  

And again I say...where did all these CONEFLOWERS come from?!?  I only planted a few, but apparently, they spread.  No complaints, though!

Coneflowers are great for pollinators.  Sure, you have the usual butterflies, but also bees, of course.

southern plains bumblebee

The stiff, full petals provide great cover for them at night, or during the rain.  You can see a bee peeking out here, checking to see if the coast is clear!

I also spotted this tiny green lacewing egg last week.

Caterpillars, like this Eupithecia moth one, love them too.

I'm getting some great variants.

I picked a big armful of them yesterday and have made some beautiful bouquets!  

In the heat of summer, lots of interesting things around.  Caterpillars...

pipeville swallowtail

sycamore tussock moth

...and moths, of course.

harnessed tiger moth

banded tussock moth

Other interesting fliers...our tiger bee flies are back!!

Tiger bee flies lay eggs in carpenter bee holes, and their larvae eat the bee larvae.  We have an excess of carpenter bees, so they are definitely welcome here.  When I start seeing white drops on the porch rails and larval casings on the ground...

...I know that it's tiger bee fly time!

I've also found some great eggshells this week.

cowbird

robin

Now, a few weeks ago I mentioned that there was definitely a fawn or two around.  Finally, the trail cams confirmed.  BABIES!!

Now that he's getting older, I'm starting to see him in the yard, too.

Our apple tree is absolutely overloaded with apples...

...so he's got plenty to eat!  

So much going on that it's hard to keep up.  Have a great week!

a bit of fun from the trail cam

salamander meander

 Okay, it's hot, and we're still in a drought.  But the bugs are out!  Japanese beetles are a pain, but they're so beautiful.

More makin' babies...

milkweed beetles

...or just hanging around.

green leaf hopper

Io moth

green-striped grasshopper

pipevine swallowtail

striped assassin bug

This water strider pile is a massive feeding frenzy!  Somewhere beneath is an insect or some other tidbit.

A happy accident - discovering this braconid wasp cocoon!  They are the parasitic wasps that sting and infect tomato hornworm caterpillars.  

Remember this guy?

(spider averse, look away!)

I was so excited to see this tiny silver stretch spider on my yarrow.  Check out those long legs!

It's not just insects.  We see "the chog" (the chunky hog, our groundhog) every single day.  And rabbits...so many rabbits.

A turkey pair visits pretty frequently...

A Carolina wren nesting on our porch frequently reminds us of her important work!

We also had some salamander sightings this week...

two-lined northern salamander

...and juuuuust missed a Dekay's brown snake in the grass.

On a hike, a friend's dog investigated an eastern box turtle.

Little sweat bees are busy with pollen...

...while, inside, the kittens are busy catching zzzzzzzs.

Busy week with so much activity!  Who knows what I'll see in the next few days?

Have a great week!