The Gardens at Bluebonnet are just beautiful this time of year. We are behind on rain, but the temperatures most days are below 90. After baking at close to a hundred degrees in August, it is nice to be outside again all day. There is full sun where She has the plants for sale, so there are flowers everywhere! With the flowers come the birds & bees. Kates Cabin is about 20 minutes physically from the Herb farm. I have noticed that the birds and insects that live here are different than those on Rainbow Creek in the deep woods (I have all trees).
So, come in, take a nature break and look at what I found in our photostudy today of a red hornet with a black butt and a Mockingbird that lives at Bluebonnet! Enjoy!
Let The Class Begin!
Here is the Star of the photostudy today. I haven't found an exact photo to identify him yet, but I suspect he is a Red Hornet Wasp. He is the first one I have ever seen with a black butt. His legs are red. Please leave a comment if you know what he is!
It appears the top part of him has some brown and yellow. Some of the paper wasps are like that. He is feeding on Butterfly Weed Flowers.
The red legs blend in well with the color of the flowers. He easily walks on top of the flowers where he gets nectar.
He is checking me out, too! They make a decision if you are a threat to them or not. Usually the ones feeding on flowers will not attack. Those around a nest will attack with very nasty stings.
But this guy is just having a snack. I am standing far away and zooming in as opposed to trying to photograph him in close proximity.
The lower half of his tail is black.
In my opinion, he is a very handsome creature. These insects are Key in pollination of plants and do not deserve to be killed at will just because they are seen.
No Humans (that I know of) suck on flowers for nourishment. Some flowers are edible, but not sucked on.
This guy seems to enjoy sucking on these flowers!
Here is the proud Mockingbird that lives here at Bluebonnet.
I do not have any Mockingbirds at the Bird Sanctuary, so it is nice to get to know this one. I had forgotten how verbal they are. He sings many songs!
Here is a bird and a bee in the same photo!
The top of this little live oak tree is 'his' perch, so he says!
Goodbye Everybody!
This concludes our photostudy today on a bee and a bird at Bluebonnet Herb Farms in Hempstead, Texas. Come by and buy some herbs or some flowers or trees. She has the best selection in Town. Come at lunchtime and eat in Mary Helen's Garden Cafe. Yum!) visit their website: www.bluebonnetherbfarms.com
I will be gone for a few days. No homework while I am gone!
katescabin@gmail.com
O+O
Did you know that the more songs a male mockingbird knows, the more attractive he is to the girl mockingbirds? The poor young boys with a limited song variety don't fare as well in the romance department as the older, more well-versed guys.
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