These green lizards like the sugar water.

How do they find it? I have to be ever so careful not to spill a drop of syrup so the ants don't find mine.

I have no idea how they find it. But they did the same thing last year.

Glad you still have the native green anoles, it appears ours have been replaced by the more aggressive and invasive brown anoles. That’s interesting they are attracted to the feeders. Is it possible they are after fruit flies or other insects attracted to the nectar and not the nectar itself?

unidentified crawling object on violet yesterday

pondgardner wrote: ↑Mon Aug 24, 2020 2:13 pm I brought home dozens of these from the testing lab a couple of years ago before I retired, but this is the first one that I spotted in the garden. They never call, don't write...
mantis.jpg

I was out in the field on Sept 1st, tall grass scrub late afternoon, and the place was loaded with praying mantis. Two different "couples" I found. I watched one for almost a half hour, maybe more, his abdomen twisted right to left. Eventually I lost interest, but I wanted to see if he was going to makes his escape afterward or become a snack.

JRinPA wrote: ↑Sat Sep 12, 2020 8:31 pm unidentified crawling object on violet yesterday

The object in question is the larva of the Fritillary Butterfly.

JRinPA wrote: ↑Sat Sep 12, 2020 8:40 pm

pondgardner wrote: ↑Mon Aug 24, 2020 2:13 pm I brought home dozens of these from the testing lab a couple of years ago before I retired, but this is the first one that I spotted in the garden. They never call, don't write...
mantis.jpg

I was out in the field on Sept 1st, tall grass scrub late afternoon, and the place was loaded with praying mantis. Two different "couples" I found. I watched one for almost a half hour, maybe more, his abdomen twisted right to left. Eventually I lost interest, but I wanted to see if he was going to makes his escape afterward or become a snack.

When my daughter was young, she raised many of these. We had a few pairs mate every year and not once did we ever lose a male by being decapitated by his lady. May as well though. The males have spent all of their body fluid in the mating process and dry up and die the following day.

I figured probably fritillary from the pic posted above, I think it said Gulf fritillary, looked similar. I see a lot flying around here that could well be meadow or silver lined, but never noticed a caterpillar. Webpage says they eat violet! I'll second that. Something to look for next year.

Grow bags with New Gold lantana and angelonia.

Lovely morning, cool and clear. Love the dewdrops that form.

I let a single native purple bindweed plant to grow in front of the house.

Blooming today....

Mona Lavender, red Pentas, hot pink and orange Shrimp Plant.

Summer hanging on here along the Gulf of Mexico Wish I had planted another C. Moschata type or two. These big, hardy squash and pumpkins are interesting to look at.

Okra tops are winding down, but the undergrowth is still cranking out pods. Black beauty eggplant still going strong. Some Lettuce is bolting, gambled, lost. Tuscan kale looking strong.

The Monarchs are here. On pentas, Mystic Spires Blue salvia, and tropical milkweed.

Nature is unaware of our pandemic.

Love walking out first thing in the morning and looking at the garden.