Tag Archives: nature

Bobcat Sanctuary

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I wonder if this gorgeous bobcat knew how much I miss Bandit, my kitty daughter, and decided to take a before dawn stroll through the upper gardens at Casa de Enchanted Seashells.

I have a new wildlife camera; one that has audio as well as video, but no sounds emanated from my nocturnal visitor.

It’s been a long, long while since my coyotes stopped by but I’m hopeful they’ll pass through very soon.

I placed my older camera in the lawn area and I’ve been enlightened as to what goes on while I sleep. There are a lot of RATS seemingly coming out of nowhere, more than I had suspected. I placed white mesh bags around every grape cluster on the vines and that seems to be working to protect them from being totally destroyed by those rodents. I’ll try the bags next year when the apple tree bears fruit again. At this point, I’ll try almost anything.

I can’t tell if this is a male or female, so I’ll need to find a name that works for either gender. Any suggestions?

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Scrumptious Strawberries

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I think I finally found the right place to plant strawberries that have so far remained untouched by rodents.

Yum. They taste as good as they look.

Happy summer Sunday!

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Ebb and Flow

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It was too hot too early to walk the full six mile round trip to the Pacific Ocean and back, so I settled for a longish trek around the lagoon with detours to observe it from different perspectives.

I ended up walking mostly all the way to the beach anyway and stopped at Rite Aid to buy myself a treat but nothing looked fun or appealing or was small enough to fit in my little backpack, so I continued on my journey.

Looking east from a secret side street overlooking Snug Harbor and the swan boats on Agua Hedionda Lagoon.

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It wasn’t even 9am and the little beach was full of families enjoying Father’s Day and paddleboarding and kayaks. Thank goodness there’s no gigantic mall marring the view on the south shore.

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Well, well, well, it seems like we have a very low tide, too, combined with our drought situation.

It’s not often that one could literally walk all the way around the lagoon to the beaches on the south side. I was wearing new shoes and didn’t want to ruin them in the muck, but for once it was entirely possible.

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Glad-iolus to See YOU!

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This hot spell is a catalyst for all of my blooming bulbs. Here are the first two gladioli who decided to flower together in shades of pink.

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All pink, ALWAYS.

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A Modern Day Apologue

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[Apologue, a moral fable, especially one with animals as characters.]*

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful garden. It was filled with lush fruit trees and vegetables and flowers of every color.

On this day, the sun shone warm and bright even though it was late afternoon.

Three rabbits and a baby bunny were in a sort of circle, sharing a meal of a small green apple that had fallen from the tree and rolled onto the lawn.

I was able to view this idyllic scene directly from my bedroom window where I had stopped for a moment to take off a couple of rings and a bracelet.

Without warning, a gigantic rat ran up to the bunnies, stole the apple and scurried away with it in his mouth.

None of the bunnies seemed to care or even defend their ownership of the apple.

I became paralyzed, rooted to the floor, unable to process what I was seeing and unable to even snap a photo.

The End

*I don’t know what the moral of this story is supposed to be, except that I seem to be surrounded by vermin and also it’s also a play on words (apple/apologue).

More than 15,000 rat bites are reported each year in the United States. All rat bites should be treated by a doctor. Some of the diseases that can be spread from rats to people are bubonic and pneumonic plague, murine typhus, salmonella, leptospirosis, Hantavirus, and tularemia.

Early Morning Butterfly

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That’s not my newly planted milkweed, but a forsythia bush where this Mourning Cloak butterfly is soaking up the quiet morning sun.

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Bunny Breakfast

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Around 6:30 this morning as I pulled back the curtains and looked out my bedroom window, I was greeted by a darling bun chewing on a few kale leaves I had picked but forgot to bring inside.

I thought I read somewhere that rabbits don’t like kale, but this little one enjoyed every bite.

What a happy way to wake up and face a new week!

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Raven or Crow?

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Both ravens and crows live in my neighborhood, but I think these two thirsty birds are crows.
What do you think?

This photo was taken as I peeked through the long pointy fronds of a ponytail palm situated directly outside my downstairs living room.

Here’s an especially informative Audubon link that helps to discern the differences between the two:https://www.audubon.org/news/how-tell-raven-crow

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Bees All Around

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I guess the bees in my neighborhood decided to celebrate Earth Day by swarming in my loquat tree which is right next to the deck.

I can’t believe how fast it happened. As recently as yesterday I was tying the long branches of a grapevine to the loquat branches — not ideal, I know — but this year the grapes went crazy and there was no other place for them.

This morning I saw a few bees near the vines and the tree and thought it was odd, and as I started to walk closer and closer I saw a gigantic mass of bees.

Somewhere I read that a swarm of bees means happiness. Swarming bees mean richness, gain, and luck.

It’s very windy and in the eighties today but I’m keeping a VERY WIDE berth away from these bees. I hope they rest and move on quickly because that location is too close to the patio door and as much as I heart bees for their existence, I don’t want them in the house. Or even close to it.

UPDATE: I had to close the patio doors when those hundreds of bees that created a swarm decided to buzz away at the same time. It was a frenzy of bees! I wish I had gotten video but I was rooted to the spot watching the activity. Moments later they were all gone. Not one single bee remained. I feel so lucky that they chose my tree to rest in and catch their breath before moving on their journey. They knew it was a safe place, a sanctuary. How awesome is that?

My Beautifully Perfect Yellow Daisy

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I didn’t intentionally plant this California native Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) — she’s a happy volunteer in the front garden, but I welcome her smiling face and bright yellow petals.

The Daisy follows soft the Sun

The Daisy follows soft the Sun—
And when his golden walk is done—
Sits shyly at his feet—
He—waking—finds the flower there—
Wherefore—Marauder—art thou here?
Because, Sir, love is sweet!

We are the Flower—Thou the Sun!
Forgive us, if as days decline—
We nearer steal to Thee!
Enamored of the parting West—
The peace—the flight—the Amethyst—
Night’s possibility!

Emily Dickinson