Birds, Skinks and Flowers

Happy Wednesday to all!

Have you ever seen a skink? I saw this little fella on our back porch 3 years ago. I think he is a very young one. He is really pretty with his black and yellow stripes and a blue tail. With his tail, he is approximately 4.5 inches long.

Well, last week, I saw this one on the pool deck. He is much bigger than the one above. It is probably around 8 inches long with his tail. He is not as pretty as the little one. They change in color but you can still see some stripes on him.


I was walking around the deck drinking my coffee one morning and when I looked down in the secret garden, I saw this thing which I thought was a snake. The head is a pretty orange. I would have run inside the house but I was way above him so I just kept observing him and took pictures.


Then he moved a little more forward and I realized it wasn't a snake but a huge lizard. I think it is an adult skink. He must be at least a foot long and I did not even see the end of its tail.

The next day, I saw this guy near the gazebo. It's funny that I do not see any of them for 3 years and then I see 3 in 2 days.

We see the green lizards all the time but usually, not these type.

Anyway, I know I have posted about the bird's nest and eggs in one of our hanging planter on the back porch before but I'll show you the progress.


They hatched and grew feathers.


Look at the beak and big eyes!

Last Easter Sunday around 7 PM, I heard lots of chirping in the back porch. So I looked and I saw 3 baby birds on top of the nest. I called John who was just about to take a nap and he got up right away to take a look. He was worried that they would fly into the pool and drown so he was watching them closely but they didn't even go near the pool. They pretty much stayed in the back porch, flying from one hanging basket to another, unto the potted plants on the ground and on the chairs and tables. I immediately grabbed my camera and took pictures. Sorry it is blurred but I was taking it in a hurry from inside the house through the glass door. I wonder what happened to the 4th one? I could have taken more pictures but the birds kept flying all over the porch. One even flew on top of the roof. I could not believe how well they already knew how to fly. It was so much fun to watch. Then the mom came and they were all chirping, talking to each other. It was really exciting!

Do you see 2 baby birds below? One is on the left chair and the other one is under the right chair.

Here is a close up of one. He has blue eyes! The birds are not sparrows but Carolina wrens.

They must have been excited about learning how to fly because they flew all over the place for quite sometime.

The next morning, they came back to play on the back porch again, at least I saw 2 of them.

Let me just show you more blooms and birds in our garden. Here's a dahlia.

Isn't this red necked woodpecker gorgeous?

Peonies, gaura and orange roses in the background on the left.

Hibiscus

Not sure what type of bird this is. Do you know?

daylilies

My tomatoes are starting to bear fruits.

Cardinal

These flowers are growing wildly in the secret garden. What are they?

Geraniums

The squash are blooming.

Confederate jasmines creeping up on the arbor


Before the area behind the arbor was cleaned.

This is "after".


I am linking with Susan for Outdoor Wednesday at http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/
and Tootsie's Fertilizer Friday at http://www.tootsietime.com/

Thanks to our hostesses for these fun events and thank you all for coming by!