friday's fringe - 6 (believable)

every friday. just one of my nature shots.

(believe...in...yourself.)

empty nest syndrome

ABOUT  the wren nest...in the spider plant...on our front porch. remember, there were 4 eggs...they hatched...i posted pictures in a previous post.

well, in case you've been wondering how they're doing...i hate to be the bearer of bad news...

but one by one the babies have disappeared. NO, they didn't fly away...

they were just starting to get feathers!

i THINK the culprit...was milo...

our cat.

every day i saw her getting a little too close for comfort...to the nest...and i had to whoosh her away!

i think her curiosity...her cat instincts became overpowering.

i'm not totally blaming her, because i didn't catch her in the act. BUT it wouldn't be the first time she went after animals smaller than her. she's left us little gifts before...squirrels, baby rabbit, lizards, moles.

and i tend to think that if it was a snake...it wouldn't have left the nest, until all  the birds had been devoured! but they disappeared one at a time...for four days in a row... 

now we're left with an empty nest. and i feel the loss every time i walk by the potted spider plant and feel the urge to peek inside.  = (

oh well...so is life...in the big world...in nature...

birds.bugs.and bottle art.

i've taken a few pretty cool pic's over the past few days. and i think i'll start with the baby birds! last time i checked...just a few minutes ago...they're all doing fine! no intruders! like snakes! momma bird is in the nest with her hatchlings!

sometimes both mom and dad bird are in the nest with their babies! and they're constantly building on the nest...adding material...notice the snake shedding one of the parents found and laid across the back wall of the nest...

the other morning i noticed THIS weird looking bug attached to my car tire. actually, it was some kind of beetle molting (which are not uncommon)...BUT there was another pale-winged-big-eyed beetle type bug sitting on the back of the molting! i ran in the house...grabbed my camera...and took the shot!

weird, huh?! i see the empty beetle shell or moltings all over the place...usually on trees...wood railings...or tires. but i've never seen this! it took me a while to search online...but finally found out what it is! it's a 'cicada'. there are 2,500 species...found all over the world. they're even a delicacy in some countries.(well, so are roaches...so that's not too surprising!) they're also known as 'jar flies' or 'july flies'. it's also a pretty rare sight to actually see one of these emerging from their former shell!!  cool!!  anyway, before i drove away, i took a stick and carried the cicada safely to the bushes...

the next couple of pictures i took after the rain...

grasshoppers on a rose

rain drops...

another grasshopper...eating away...

teeny weeny anole...

hummingbird at a feeder

a few days ago, at the end of my post, i showed a picture of a small vintage bottle art i started working on...with pressed flowers, butterfly & dragonfly wings. i added a little paint...and took a picture with the 'mod podge' i use to coat the one decorated side of the bottle. i give it a thick coat!

after it dries clear...i'll spray it with acrylic glaze...you can check out a couple of my other 'bottle arts'  here.

OR go check 'em out at my etsy shop!  thanks!  stay cool...

nesting wren & hatchlings...

another day with my massage appointments not til later in the afternoon...so while i'm listening to a john sandford audiobook (broken prey) and making a pot of spaghetti sauce...i thought i'd post a few pictures of the little wren...(OUR wren is camera shy! i copied this wren pic from online)

mom & dad wren made a nest in the spider plant on the front porch, on 6.26.2010.

Day 1...one egg

Day 2...two eggs

Day 3...three eggs

Day 4...four little spotted eggs

and finally...we noticed the little featherless hatchlings on 7.12.2010

wow!!  what a shot, huh??!!  i've been trying to get a pic of the mom bird sitting on her eggs...but everytime i get close enough...she takes off!!  it also seems as though both mom and dad bird take care of the babies as they've been taking turns sitting on the eggs. and the whole time...they're both constantly gathering more nesting material. now we're just hoping that a snake doesn't find them, which is what happened 2 yrs ago. same spider plant...same wren (well, maybe not the SAME wren...but a wren all the same...)...made a nest... and when the babies hatched...we actually got a pic of the yellow rat just after eating them! ugh!

don't look at the following picture if you're easily grossed out!

anyway...mother nature at work...will keep you posted on hatchlings progress!

now i have to get ready for work...seeya!

the following picture was added LATER....the baby birds are starting to get feathers 

and their eyes are open!!

three of the four are obviously ready for mom!! FEED ME!!