On June 30th I spent some time at the milkweed patch observing the various critters who came to feed.  It as warm with no breeze so there were lots of Hummingbird Clearwing Moths and several other butterflies and  beasties.  Lots of images here!

First the Clearwings:  (Click on the image for a close-up view of these moths.)

A fly of some sort:

A Monarch butterfly:

A White Admiral:

An (Arctic?) Skipper … I think.

Some more Clearwings.

A skipper?

Gotta have a grasshopper in the show too.

Another Skipper, I think.

I was lucky to get the above as most of the patch has now been mowed.   The mower operator told me that mowing is now prohibited on local Highways until August 15th to provide cover for turtles etc.   Maybe it will be possible to educate folks about the importance of milkweed patches!

Here are some sights along Riverside Drive:

First of the Monarch Butterfly larvae at the milkweed patch:

Medium sized bumble bee on the same patch.

Northern Bush Honeysuckle has replaced the American Fly Honeysuckle

There is a Yellow Warbler Nest at B and L’s place on Riverside Rd.

Beautiful Iris next to their garage.

Medium bumble bee visiting thyme blossoms in their walkway.

Jupiter and Venus a day before the conjunction:

I am playing catch-up with this blog.

The next posting will feature beasties feeding at the milkweed patch.