Jackrabbit and Coneflowers

Coot in Smartweed

Antelope Among the Flowers

Pintail Ducks on a Playa Lake

     Of relevance to the migration, playa lakes in the Texas Panhandle provide an ecosystem that supports our avian friends during their journey. Smartweed, seen in the background of the top image, hides ducks with their chicks, in addition to serving as part of their meal. Crustaceans and reptilians, too, live in the playa lakes.

Red-tailed Hawk

New Pond

      Decades ago, when the land was re-shaped by a man with a bulldozer, several ponds were formed. I had passed by a formidable hole in the ground, every time wondering if ever it had accumulated water. Some mesquite plants grew along the bottom, and sometimes I thought that perhaps it was not intended to be a pond at all. What must have it been like, I pondered, long ago when the land had more rain? Here is my answer. The formidable hole is full now. Reptiles, such as the little snake that followed my around the pond, and the large frog that hopped in the water at my approach.

Milkweed and Bugs

Plains Coreopsis and Bugs

White and Pink Prickly Poppies (and Bees)

Pretty Pond Along the Fence

Busy Spider and Her Web

Splash of Light

One can enjoy endless possibilities for creativity with a blinking ring an an LED lamp.

Light Painting: Balloon in the Garden

    A lantern tethered to a string and MyFriendEllen's gift of a blinking ring provided me with an opportunity for light painting.

Light Painting An Old Gal's Old Cameras

Primrose Buttercup with Ants

Honeybee on a Passionflower

 

Blue Passionflower Fruit

View the Wikipedia article on the passiflora.

The blue passionflower produces a fruit the size of a chicken's egg.

Bug on Thelesperma

Gulf Fritillary on Lantana

Fireflies

     Left, lower corner of the image (perhaps by squinting hard enough), one can see the fireflies that emerge after sunset. 

     For more information about Lightning Bugs, visit the National Geographic page about them.