future bounty
Author: Hashi
nursery
Our local hardware store and nursery is a rambling collection of small rooms built around big sycamore trees. It’s such a pleasing change from the big box corporate places, which might offer lower prices but can’t compare to the shopping experience here. I like poking around in the sinuous nursery, just to spend time with the plants.
pandion haliaetus
I often see this raptor at the lagoon, always solo.
The osprey (Pandion haliaetus), also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey. It’s large, reaching more than 60 cm (24 in) in length and 180 cm (71 in) across the wings.
The osprey is unusual in that it is a single living species that occurs nearly worldwide. Another oddity: osprey and owls are the only raptors whose outer toe is reversible, allowing them to grasp their prey with two toes in front and two behind. This is particularly helpful when they grab slippery fish.
hyalophera cecropia
Another one for National Moth Week. The cecropia moth is North America’s largest native moth, and can be found all across the continent. Females have been documented with a wingspan of five to seven inches (125 – 175 mm) or more. Like other members of the giant silk moth family, the cecropia moth lacks functional mouth parts and a digestive system. Due to this, they survive approximately two weeks. So if you get to see one, rejoice!
erinnyis ello
It’s National Moth Week! I haven’t yet seen any awesome moths lately, so here’s one from last August … but I did see a tarantula hawk today, so that was pretty cool!
agave americana
I’ve been collecting the maguey fruits a couple of times a day as they fall to the driveway. I’ve read they are edible (boil first, then sauté in butter or bacon fat) but they are pretty bitter. I’ve tried roasting and slow braising, hoping that will sweeten them up, but the bitterness persists. A little further research reveals that it’s the unopened buds that are good to eat, not the fallen fruits. To take advantage of the bounty, we should have cut down the stalk before the flowers even opened. Oh well … I think I’ll just leave these for the squirrels.
basket o’ paint
My rarely-used acrylic paints live in a fabulous large basket, gathering dust. One day I’ll get back to them …
squash blossoms
dragonfruit
I’ve had these dragonfruit cuttings jammed in a pot for years. They periodically flower, but never set fruit. I should get them in the ground; they might do better if they could spread out.
egretto rufescens
Three photographers and a sketcher watched the reddish egret pose and dance in the lagoon’s shallows.
