Can I slip in a pic. of a visitor to my yard last year?

Okay--thanks!

Sort of *conflicting*, ain't it?

Okay---well, at least it's not a *Vole* with it's insides--out, now is it!!!

Thanks for the compliments!

Not only do the critters not hold still, but they sometimes sit on ugly sticks, or choose flowers which I don't like so much. This butterfly prefers orange-ish daylilies, and the combination is not pleasing to me.

Janice, just how big was that spider? I'd stay clear of him!

About 3/8 of an inch--thank God! I'm not 'into' spiders but I do love the little 'jumper' varieties.
This is one of the more colorful--just plain cute and non-aggressive towards *us*!

I love how if you put your finger down toward them, they hop back on their hind leg--s, and wave
the front two in the air over their heads as if to say "LOOK OUT! I'm bad, I'm bad"!! So much posturing!!!

I'm glad that I need new glasses. If I saw one do that to me, I'd back up fast. And I'm not afraid of "normal" spiders. Big exceptions being the hairy ones with bodies at least an inch across. Hang out around boats and rafters near water, and sometimes in wood piles. Ick.

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For anyone who is very sensitive... sorry about the bird kill. I love my backyard birds, and that includes the hawks. Unless, of course, I ever see one that has brought down a cardinal or other special bird. So long as I only see them with house sparrows and starlings, I'm ok with it. They do have to eat too.

Hawk

Hummingbird:

Baby Robin:

Swallowtail Butterfly:

Cardinal:

This is a topic I could go on and on with... I love to photograph the birds and butterflies in our yard. An occasional rabbit and squirrel sneak their way into the photo album too, but I don't love them in my garden enough to take up space here with their pics.

Keep 'em coming everyone. Like the pet thread, this one is just great!

Oh wow--this is a great thread!!

koidom, I've never seen a skunk like that before!! That is amazing--kinda cute, from a distance, to be sure!! :o)
Are you new to posting on this forum? If so--
WELCOME ABOARD and thanks for the neat pics.!

Joyce--you have some very beautiful pics.! Would you mind if I 'capture' some of them for myself--to keep? :o)
If you prefer I not do that--I promise I won't!!! I especially love the Cardinal pic.!

I think I found koidom's skunk - this article mention's California and I see you (koidom) are from Oregon. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://wwwstatic.kern.org/images/calmzoo/spottedskunk.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.calmzoo.org/stories/storyReader%24186%3Fprint-friendly%3Dtrue&h=266&w=400&sz=50&hl=en&start=0amp;um=1&tbnid=xLiJSVwalyeFzM:&tbnh=82&tbnw=124&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dspotted%2Bskunk%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1B2RNFA_enUS218US218%26sa%3DG

Janice, thank you for the compliment on the pics. Help yourself to copies of any you want, including the Cardinal! He (and his Ms) are a couple of my favorite back yard subjects. And their singing is so pretty too!

Wow! That's a url and a half, isn't it? It works though.. takes you to info about the spotted skunk :-)

jel48 - where ARE you? Must be 'up north' ??? I was born in Duluth, raised in Minneapolis, still have property in Grand Rapids and near Crane Lake. Sometimes I wanna go home so bad! Your pics are gorgeous - should be sent to National Geographic!!!

Westy

Hi Westy! Very very close to where you grew up! I'm in Owatonna (about 70 miles south of the twin cities). I work in Rochester, and my daughter and son-in-law lived in Duluth for about 3 years :-) You must have guessed from the snow in the hawk pic and the cardinal pic. And thanks so much for the nice compliment. I love photography and have a good camera so that gives me a good edge. On the down side, the older I get the poorer my eyesight gets (and autofocus doesn't work well for small fast moving targets like birds and butterflies) and the shakier I get. Just bought a new Image Stabilizer type lens that's supposed to make up for me shaking and will try it out at the Oshkosh WI airshow on Saturday!

Cool! Yup, the snow and your zone (3/4) except I truly thought you were waaaay up there in the Arrowhead. I've never heard of the stabilizer - that's what I need! Getting old is for the birds - maybe that's why we love to watch them. I have to admit the spider made me a little woozie, though. I hate them so much that if I see one on my wall or ceiling, I can't sleep. And, yes, I know they're needed and never kill one in the garden!

Westy

I am in LOVE with that skunk!!!

I don't have a pic but I adore the HUGE garden spiders. THey're so cool and colorful!

Like these, Andrea?

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Not my photos but I HATE those things!!

I grew up in Fla. where they were very common. We'd tease them (not unkindly, mind you) till they'd spit at us!

One night, one got even with me as I was walking back home from the back of our property, through some Azalea bushes! I know it had my number, and placed it's net just where I would walk into it with my face!! You can imgaine what happened--I hooped and hollered, danced around, throwing my hands in the air and thrashing at my face and hair! I was SURE it had gotten on me somewhere! By the time I reached my house, I could hear the soft chuckle back in the bushes of a very pleased Garden Spider!! Brrrrrhhhhheeeekkkkkkk!! I still get shivers just thinking about it!!!!

The poor skunk had been traped in a trash barrel for about three days (unknown to me,) I did hear something in the barrel thinking it was something just running around in the trash ben, I looked inside and seen that little guys head peaking out. I felt bad about him being trapped and dumped him into a cage where he was feed a meal of cat food before going on his marry way, when he was done eatting I opened the door all he could think about was water, it was raining out and I snapped a few more pictures. I had to get less then two feet from him as my camara is not very good at all. and he did not seem to care as he was so hungry and thirsty poor little guy!
they are quite rare to get a picture of and a pro wildlife photographer was quite jealous as he had been trying to get a shot of one for years :) he asked if he could set up a Digital Motion Activated Camera on my place lol.
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Thanks for the Welcome Hey-J! Yes I am new, I did post on the hosta saying Please help me ID free hostas from hubbys boss and a few other lost tag help me I'm a newbie posts ;P

I have went on a hosta buying rage and now on my way starting a garden with mostly hostas and a few other shade plants.

I seen on the other post about pets you can fix red eyes? was that you? if so I may have a few pictures for you if you don't mind :)

Koidom, that is the coolest-looking skunk I've ever seen! Thanks for posting the pictures. Dan

Great photos. Not crazy about the spiders though, I've done the "Spider Dance" myself Janice, neighbours must think I'm crazy, thrashing about in my yard with arms flailing!! lol

Thought I had a butterfly pic but it must be on my other 'puter. Next time.

June

LOL, June--the 'Spider Dance'--that just might catch on, ya know!!! hahahah

koidom--thank you, so much for sharing more of your skunk pics. and experience! Just amazing, and oh, yes I'd love to do the 'eyes!! I hope I'm not offending anyone when I ask such questions! I look for opportunities to exercise my Photoshop skills as I am a frustrated 'wanna-be' graphic artist! I have no real training beyond my own self-taught efforts. But, I did teach myself CAD in order to do the plans for our house addition! My husband who has worked with CAD in his profession, was fairly impressed!! And he thought all I could do is the dishes!!!LOL Not really--he's always complimenting me on my 'brain' (and ALL) when it's there anyway, which seems to be less and less in some ways!LOL He's always been very good at affirming me! I'm very blessed in that way, for sure!!

Send or post pics. to me that you want fixed! I can 'grab' them from a post just as well and if you email me, I can send them back as an attached file, or you can 're-capture' them from the post, as well. It's up to you!!! Sometimes, I like to take photos, and tweak the color intensities, and clarities, contrast, brightness, crop etc. and make them portrait quality! I do like to "ask" permission first, though!

Oh, but be aware, (if you're not already) that once you post a pic. it is 'public domain' on this forum! Anyone can 'snatch' them and use them in any way--good or bad!

Great thread everybody! I get a lot of different birds. Here are my recent visitors.

Awesome Photos Everyone!!!!!

'Bean' is that a wild turkey? Love the 'Blue Jay', a favorite in my yard!!

I think this beautiful Monarch must have been injured or maybe old and "on his way out," because he didn't mind being gently held by me...

Took this photo of a toad on our trip to Cory's last year...

"Mrs." Goldfinch

"Mr." Goldfinch

Some of my many hummingbirds that visit my feeder...

Bee visiting Thunderbolt flowers (last year's pic...)

A grasshopper on June...

Love the pictures! grasshopper one is really neat!

These are all wonderful. I hope people keep adding. Here's some of my local critters.

I had to add these two shots, just taken. By the way, those spiders are fascinating in a creepy sort of way.

Wow! Everybody...the photos are beautiful. Send more!!!

I laughed when I saw the Llama just casually strolling down the road. Did he escape?

~Bunnycat

McTavish, what great pictures! I really love the bee shots... I have a request for you :-) Hubby and I have our first baby on the way (a girl due in 10 weeks) and her nursery theme is "honey bees." I am planning to blow-up some garden photos I have taken, frame them, and hang them in her room. Would you mind if I "grabbed" your last extreme close-up of the bee? It is so fantastic, and I just ADORE the extreme close-ups... Don't feel bad if you say no! I'll totally understand :-)

Thanks,
Buff

Of course you can Buff. Thank's for wanting to, I feel a great compliment. I could send you the full size shot if you like for a better quality print. If you want, email me at myrlet@telus.net and I can send it as an attachment along with a couple other shots I took that day. McT

Thanks so much, mctavish!! You've got mail :-)

Buff

Great pics everyone! Here is a pic of my bunny buddy,who I used to see and talk to every time I visited my new garden. He was there every morning and no,he didn't eat my hostas,but he cleaned up a bunch of weeds for me! Phil
http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb146/hosta68/Mybunny.jpg

Let me try again. Phil
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Love the pictures!
McT how lucky to have those 2 Pileated Woodpeckers visit you!
Love the frogs too!
Phil what a cute little bunny.
Isn't is fun to have such wonderful visitors to our gardens!

Here's some of mine...
Female Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
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Male Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
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And our resident Cooper's Hawk doing his/her? part in garden patrol
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Janet

You know,Janet,that's the first time I have ever seen a female Tiger Swallowtail. I've seen plenty male ones though. I always thought they were the same color! I've taken plenty of shots of them. Good shots! Phil

Finally caught a pic of one of these little guys.

Hummingbird Moth on Bright Eyes phlox.

Here's one of my Tiger Swallowtails,on a native Flame Azalea,which grows right in front of my front door. Phil
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Phil I have to correct myself.
The black butterfly is a Female Black Swallowtail, not a Tiger Swallowtail, although the Tiger Swallowtail female does have a dark phase very similar to this one.
We study different species of butterflies at our local state park. They are beautiful creatures and such fun to watch, but sometimes very confusing to keep straight, lol.

The link below has some interesting info

Janet

Here is a link that might be useful: Butterflies

Bzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

Bee squeezing into Holy Mole flower.

Bee came out for this breather, then went back into Holy Mole.

Just awesome pics everyone! This is another wonderful thread!!!!!

Now you got me started!!!

Wow, those are amazing. It was fun to look back at all the pictures posted here. I loved the raccon with the headlight eyes. I can't imagine how you captured some of these pictures!

Wonderful pictures, Megaul! Hard to believe that big bee didn't snap the hosta flower off.
The blue in the spots on the tiger swallowtail match the petunia and make the pic especially nice.

Love all the new pictures!

Great shots! I love the wildlife, even though it is nothing like what y'all have shown, that visit my yard. Even those destructive squirrels are fun to watch. Here's a couple of visitors......

Oh, wow, Art---I love the Cicado transformation, especially! I can't believe you actually witnessed it!
I thought that usually occurs after dark!!!! Did you stay watching till it was completely emerged??

I'm saving that for my grandsons, if it's okay with you!!!!

lol....What happened to this post? It didn't look like that when I previewed it.
Janice,I did watch for a few. He was moving so slow though that I finally walked away. I also thought that the emergence was a night time thing but I guess this little guy needed to be "flipped" as my mom used to say about babies that got their days and nights mixed up.....lol
You are more than welcome to save any of my pics. Hope your guy enjoys it!
Art

Nice pictures toy!

Photo from my friend Jackie....a visitor to her garden.

Here's lookin' at you!

Thanks Koi......
Megaul I love that mantis pic! I used to buy egg cases and put out regularly along with lady bugs and was always surprised to see how many adults were still there at the end of the season. Very kewl animals to watch!
Art

I love the mantis, too! We found one in the top of our garage/barn one year when oldest daughter was about 12 years old. We named her 'Cleo' and kept her alive for quite awhile! We hated it when she finally passed on!

That daughter,(now grown married with two little boys) found an egg sack about 6 years ago, and swears she's still finding babies every year from those off-springs!

We're real fans of the mantis--for sure!

OMG! Totally worth topping. These pix are incredible. Some really talented photographers in the group. I wish I could take pix like that. So do you stalk your prey and hunker down to get the pic, or are you just lucky to be there at the right time?

Very impressed and a little jealous.

Jen