Bees, Grackles, Dragonflies and Bunnies

Photo by Darla Sue Dollman.

It was a busy day for the little creatures! I stopped at the library today while running errands and when I was getting back into my truck I heard a humming noise. I thought I was going to be swarmed again, so this time I reached into my truck for my camera. The sound was coming from the Sandoval County Veteran's Memorial Garden next door, so I opened the gate and tracked the sound to a large bush covered with branches that were filled with some kind of sunflower.

Photo by Darla Sue Dollman.

It was stunning--I have never seen anything like it.

Photo by Darla Sue Dollman.

I glanced around the garden and noticed five or six more bushes just like this one. I think they are blooming so profusely because of the recent floods, and we are coming to the end of our monsoon season. Regardless, the bees seem quite happy! 

A very happy bee. Notice the pollen on its legs? Photo by Darla Sue Dollman.

My daughter is very allergic to bees and has to carry an epi pen, but I am obsessed with them. I love the sound of them as they swarm around the Russian Sage in my backyard, and the color contrasts of their yellow and black stripes.

Photo by Darla Sue Dollman.

After I left the park I stopped at the grocery store and the tree in front of the store was filled with grackles. I love grackles. They are so chatty, and really are beautiful birds, though the females tend to look a bit grumpy when it's cold outside!

Grumpy Grackle photo by Darla Sue Dollman.

Some people view grackles as nuisance birds because they hop around the parking lots searching for food, but the Road Runners do the same thing! I think they're fun. I like the sounds they make when they call back and forth to each other.

Photo by Darla Sue Dollman.

As soon as I got home I started unloading the groceries and noticed the dragonflies had returned. We had a few cold days this past week and I thought the dragonfly season was over, but tonight we had some huge blue and red ones flying in front of the house, and a small sparkly one that landed in the arroyo behind my house.

Photo by Darla Sue Dollman.

It only has a few spots of color on its wings, but when the sun hit its wings the sparkles seem to have color, as well. It also has a striped body. 

Photo by Darla Sue Dollman.

Then, as I walked the dogs around the block, I noticed a few bunnies in my neighbor's yards. I have to remind my dogs that the bunnies are God's little creatures or they try to take a bite out of their tails, which is odd considering we have a bunny living in the house that they don't seem to mind at all! It was a great day for watching God's blessed little creatures! 

Photo by Darla Sue Dollman.