More tales

 It's been busy, down at the frogpond. I scattered some seeds, since bird feeding season will be over soon. The moths end up in the cans where I store it over the summer. This I have learned!

I spotted my first butterfly of the season. There are a couple of them who overwinter. Species, I mean. This is a compton tortoiseshell, ID'd for me. 

Oregano📹 was back, Mar. 22. 

I managed to look out front, and turn on the light, it shone on Butch Mar 22!

 

 The bears are awake and I will be vigilant. The deer and raccoons are cleaning up under the feeder, where bird seed was scattered. At about 30 seconds in, there was a food fight. They appear quite vicious, but they know the hierarchy. It would appear there are a group of 3 and a group of 2, then an interloper tentatively eased their way in. There were 7 at this point. Butch Mar 22 

  

The little bunny was back! bunny trailcam 

  

 

Note the cat, being watched by the doe! doe cat feeder

  

  

Home, home on the range

• 🐣WOOD DUCKS

The wood duck nesting boxes are FULL! Three boxes, three females. Box #3, the one on the left in the photo, has 5, perhaps 6 eggs. I didn't want to mess around in it. The female flew off as she heard me approach.



I figured I might as well peek. I'll use my snake scope a little later. Not today, it is raining.


The frog pond drains into the wetland. Hooper carefully navigated the little stream of water. What a pal.



BARRED OWL

I heard one last night, extensive calling in the dark. Perhaps they are going to nest here, again. They didn't nest here last year, 2018. They did in 2017, when the lone chick was killed by jays. They male didn't hang around. They did in 2016, when they fledged twins, but the male fed them, too.
This is the female just in front of the nesting cavity in an archive photo. 

Yardwork

It's all abuzz on blogs, people getting into gardens, doing work, cleaning up after a long winter. 

I gave myself a non-mental note to move the butterfly, since the tree is dead (Dutch Elm Disease), and has regularly been losing branches. I figured the photo would be my reminder. It didn't work. Over it went. Right on my garden.

It lost some parts, which I popped in.


All cleaned up, repaired, and repainted. I still need to get the tree cut up and moved. I need a lad with a chain saw!

• 🐻BEAR WATCH

I've had word that we had a bear going after bird feeders around the lake [April 18 – Bear trap set up in Otty Lake area. ], they trapped him (a 2-year-old, after he was on a back deck) so we know they are on the move. It was time for me to remove my front yard feeders.


Next thing: to replace the  bird bath, which is about to fall apart.


I've almost got the pump working in the goldfish pond. It needs more work. Long story, best not told!
 A chickadee was having a drink.

Ontario Flooding

There is flooding everywhere in the country. Ontario, into Quebec, for example. Out west and out east. Lanark County has quite a few areas where the roads have been closed.

Lanark village battles early spring flooding along the Clyde https://t.co/ebrDW7qhSQ #ottnews #ottawavalley pic.twitter.com/J0GcDEacQw

— Inside Ottawa Valley (@InOttValley) April 23, 2019

We are up a small hill. For this, we are grateful.

Flowers are abloomin'!

Thanks to my Facebook buds, they helped me ID the flowers in the field. I had one plant under the bird feeder as a specimen! Oil seed rape, the GM version is canola!

Meanwhile in the bog...

Deerflies are merciless

 I'd like to figure out how to make a hat for the cats, with this on the back!

Before my walk

After

Cabbage salad

My great-grandmother's bowl

Good story: I decided to buy a cabbage and make one. I shouldn't have used the whole head. Using the food processor hubby bought for his two-week cleansing, it wasn't too difficult. Not like the old days when the church ladies would phone and demand 3 salads, two pies.
My first husband baked pies from scratch, his mom taught him when he lived alone.
The salad was mine... Every time I'd have to phone my mom for the recipe. This was, of course, before Internet.

The processor was so easy. I've never had a big one like this. Adding carrots, dried fruits; apple, dates, and sunflower seeds, etc., was good. Now, hubby can't have regular mayonaise, and so I put in his garlic vegenaise. It was yummy. However, I ran out of his vegenaise. Wisely, putting excess in another container, knowing it would not fit into our friges, I hopped into the car and drove the bowlful to my client's house. His wife is a vegan, and his son does all the cooking. It's a stressful time, and he was quite pleased to get the salad for his mom.

White admiral

Flowers and misc.

This was all I captured on the Trailcam. It's been focused on the Wood duck nest, to no avail. Moving it back to the meadow I had high hopes! The bird set it off, but with the 5-sec. delay, didn't pick it up intil too late! The bugs were merciless after a night of rain! Experts think "looks like a great crested flycatcher, the actions also support it, She likely thought it was a great place to nest in. "

mystery bird from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Question Mark butterfly – Dorah tried to help

Butterfly birth from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.
Another butterfly transformed. Dorah came by, I had to send her away!

funny gold colour

they are everywhere
and love my Hops

All gone!

It's like herding cats - capturing butterfly photos!

It was tricky trying to capture a shot of this butterfly. That is, until one died, hanging off of a flower. We often find road kill, or other dead critters, and I like to take the opportunity to examine them closely.

Limenitis arthemis arthemis White Admiral 

I totally forgot about this species. I had to go back to BAMONA, to have an expert volunteer confirm it for me. It's been out and about in the garden. Several at a time! If you could see me pleading with it to stop, alight, and let me take its photo you would guffaw!
I enjoy the way the top is so much more plain that the bottom of its wing.
Its underside is different than the top!
You should have heard be begging it to alight. It did, but on the lower deck, hiding behind a pansy! What fun!

White admiral from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.
This silly butterfly wouldn't let me take its photo.