Mostly sunny early, with clouds building through the morning and becoming overcast. Light winds and temperatures into the 50s.
I considered getting out for a hike today, but when I noticed clouds building over the mountains and the forecast calling for overcast by late morning, I decided to focus on getting things done at home.
I did get out for a walk while blue skies still prevailed. The sun was rising in the sky just fast enough to out pace the clouds building over Verstovia (at least from my perspective).
On the way to Swan Lake, I saw damselflies for the first time this year. Neither of the two I saw stayed put long enough for me to get photos, but I did spot a more cooperative one at the lake.
I haven’t seen any downy ducklings this year. Today I saw a group of Mallards swimming across the lake. They were large enough to have regular feathers, but still not quite as big as their mother. Given the number with her, she did a good job keeping them safe. Many broods get picked off and few survive.
Three big cruise ships were in port today, so it was going to be busy downtown. It was already picking up while I walked through and spent some time on Castle Hill.
Orange-crowned Warblers were actively foraging, and I heard young begging. I’m not sure if they were still in the nest, or not. The ones I listened to mostly seemed to stay in the same spot, though I never saw parents visit. It’s possible they went low through the vegetation where I couldn’t easily see.
Rowan told me a cat was in the yard this evening. She had noticed a Song Sparrow alarming, but couldn’t see anything. She stood at the window and watched for several minutes before she saw an orange cat move out from where it had been concealed.
I made good progress catching up on publishing photojournals. I’m now only a week behind. With the completion of May, I now have a solid 8 months (October 2024-May 2025) of published entries. It will probably be all I can do to keep up with entries through the summer and fall. If I manage that, when things slow down in the winter, I’ll try to get back to the many older entries I’ve written that remain unpublished.
My iNaturalist Observations for Today
