Wild winged ones, a couple crustaceans and a lazy feline

Being surrounded by nature's beauty is just one of the wonderful things about living on the farm.  Every day bears witness to Mother Nature's amazing creations.  Some pass through without a second thought allowing us only the briefest glimpses of their splendor.  Others come back regularly often taunting us with gobbles only fifteen minutes after legal hunting hours have concluded.

This Cooper's Hawk is a regular in the dooryard.  Captured here with the aid of a spotting scope she is perched a top the barn at the far side of the yard eyeing the chickens.  Most days she will will leave them alone, but every once in a great while she will go after the smallest or slowest, looking for a quick treat. 


Too slow to escape the clutches of a couple of 12 year olds this summer, these crawfish were guests of a recycled pickle jar on the kitchen table.  On beautiful summer days I cannot see spending the day in front of the video game console or television set.  The kids grumbled a bit at first but had a great time capturing all sorts critters in the yard, from the lake and the ponds.

After an unsually warm winter and fairly dry summer, several varieties of winged insects gathered around the house.  This interestingly colored moth measured about four inches across its wingspan and rested on the front sliding glass door for a couple of hours before heading out for its evening meal.

Monarch butterflies were paticularly abundant this year; my stepdaughter captured this great picture of one on the geraniums in the front flower bed.

Next year we will raise turkeys for our table.  These birds continue to taunt my husband by disappearing during hunting season only to loiter in the front yard less than a week after the season ended. 

Some of the more recent arrivals to the lake and the farm include a family of bald eagles.  I am not sure if this is an immature bald eagle or if it is a golden eagle.  It was at the far end of the corn piece amongst the young corn seedlings this spring.  They came within view of the house at least once a week throughout the summer.

Being city cats originally, our fearless felines are much more comfortable snuggled into a blanket in the living room, safe from where the wild things are.