Concerning unmowed lawns

I took this picture a couple of weeks ago. We'd gotten a lot of rain here in Eastern NC, over just a few days, and my lawn just went nuts. I soon learned that if you leave the lawn unmowed for very long, furry rodents would march right in and start nibbling.

The stuff of nightmares, huh? At least it's cute for a rodent.

Red Feathers

It's unfortunate that Cardinals are so shy. The bright red of the male and the more muted colors of the female are both quite photogenic but it's difficult to snap a picture before they fly away. I've only gotten a few non-blurred shots so far this Spring. Here's one in which the male is about to scoot...

Unsafe landing zone

This cat lives across the street but occasionally visits me, as in this picture where he's hiding in the bushes in front of my front porch. He's not doing this because he's shy--he's definitely not. He loves birds--and I assure you, not in a brotherly fashion.

I don't hold this peculiar trait of his against him. After all, cats will be cats. Unfortunately the other day he ate a baby bunny and that was really going too far--I wish he'd stick to birds! Very attractive cat and such a good hunter but I hope he leaves the rest of the rabbits alone.

Peonies and Ants

My peonies are starting to open up and there are ants all over the place. The damn things move too fast to get a good picture but I did get a slightly fuzzy pic of an ant speeding away, as you can see below.

In a few days the blooms will be magnificent. At this point they're just starting to show their potential. The ants seem to think they're just fine right now.

rainy day

I took this picture on Friday, as you can see--it was raining steadily. My flowering vine that I have on my birdfeeder has just started blooming. There's 6 flowers open now but many dozens of buds waiting on the sidelines.

An Elk in NC

This big guy was observed at the NC Zoo exactly 2 weeks ago. He looks a little scruffy with his fur coming off in patches and the antlers just getting started. No doubt he'll be looking somewhat better by now.