This is an unladylike position for a couple of ladybugs.

I was so focused on following the flight of the Great Blue Heron on the left that I didn't notice the one already perched in the tree on right, even when the first one perched about ten feet higher up in the same tree. There was also a third one on this pond that I didn't notice until I blew up and examined a photo of some ducks.

This Great Egret was found just around the corner, standing in the pasture here on the farm. It was a bit shy and started walking away as I got this photo and then took off flying lazily up to treetop level and circling the pastrure looking for a place to perch.

One of three cicadas I found literally on my doorstep about 3:00 AM earler this week. Including wings, this one was about two inches long.

This is a top view of a Pearl Crescent butterfly I found recently on Balthaser Rd. in Windsor Twp. To confirm the identification, the underside of the wings must be observed and that can be seen in the photo below.

This is photo shows the same butterfly as above, but with wings folded showing the characteristic "crescent" on the underside of the hindwing.

I went out to fix a wiring problem with my DSL line and found this fellow's web in front of the interface box on the side of the garage. I had to tear down a big shunk of its web, but I left the spider alone. There are lots of these spiders around here. At rest they tend to ball up and look a uniform non-descript brown, but when aroused and moving about they show off their true colors.

Three skippers (I have not been able to identify which species) "puddling" about five yards from my front door. Male butterflies obtain minerals essential for reproduction by feeding on patches of wet or damp soil.

This Great Blue Heron was very patient and didn't fly away when I set up my tripod and tried to manually focus in the failing light at 7:30 PM yesterday. I used my longest lens at 600mm with a 2x teleconverter. I also used the 2 second shutter delay to minimize shaking. This is not the sharpest or best lit of this series, but I chose it because you can also see there are two ducks near the heron's feet.

If you look very closely, you may find a duck in this photo. Hint: start with the forelegs of the Holstein on the left and follow the reflection of her legs in the water.

Farmers in Albany Twp. setting off to bale hay on a hot afternoon last week.

The color of these reddish mushrooms caught my eye while driving in Albany Twp.

A Monarch butterfly at the Blue Mtn. Wildlife Inc.'s butterfly garden.

This tiny little butterfly is, I think, a Summer Azure. For size comparison, the AA battery on the right is 9/16" diameter.

Here's a fairly common sight, a mockingbird chasing one of the cats away from a nest. They give the same treatment with similar effect when the dog gets too close for comfort.

Here is one of a pair of Great Egrets I found in a stormwater management pond at the Tilden Township Industrial Park. Also called American or Common Egret, these beauties are only slightly smaller that the Great Blue Herons with which they often roost and feed. I have now seen herons in six area townships and egrets in two.

Here is a Gray Catbird I spied on the property of the WK&S Railroad casting a hungry eye on some ripe fruit of the Pokeberry. In colonial times this fruit, poisonous to humans, was pressed to produce ink, giving rise to its other name Inkweed.