Praying Mantis

It was time to get some last minute lawn mowing done before the next major rain event hits this area. I was mowing the lawn at our cabin when this Praying Mantis appeared in the grass. This is a Chinese Praying Mantis (Tenodera sinensis) which was accidentally introduced in Philadelphia back in 1896.

Reaching a length of over 4 inches, Chinese mantises are the biggest of all North American mantises.

West Hill Bears

I hadn't checked some of the game cameras at our West Hill property since April and found this family of bears enjoying the warm April weather.

The bear family was back at 9:30AM on May 1st which was the first day of spring turkey season. Our son Matt got his turkey the same day, at this same spot, at 6:15AM. The shadow of our hunting stand is in the lower left of the photo.

One of the bears checking out the game camera which is attached to the hunting stand.

Fawns in the Lawn

As I headed out on my evening wildlife drive I didn't have to go very far and found these fawns in our lawn.

Frog Gymnastics

With 2 inches of rain this week the grass in the lawn was getting out of control and needed to be mowed. As I'm mowing the tall grass at our barn I caught a glimpse of something fly up and land on the running mower deck. It was a Wood frog jumping out of the path of the lawn mower.

This Wood frog was able to time its jump to avoid becoming "frog sushi" and safely stick the landing on the moving mower deck.

Catch and Release

This bird somehow got into the lower level of our barn and became trapped. Time for catch and release.

Purple Coneflowers

Our patch of Purple Coneflowers has been blooming and putting on a nice display for the past couple of weeks.

Coneflowers are a favorite among butterflies and bees.

We've had this patch of Purple Coneflowers for years and now some white coneflowers are starting to appear.

Checking Out The Neighborhood

I was having my morning cup of coffee when this flock of turkeys walked up the township road checking out the neighborhood.

Where Have My Apples Gone?

On my evening wildlife drive I found this fawn attempting to get some apples out of a tree.

Need to stretch a little more ...

Maybe jumping will work ...

Success! Got the limb but no apples.

Wildflowers - Joe Pye Weed

Our local electrical power company has been clearing trees/brush along the power line right-of-ways and revealed this patch of Joe Pye weed hiding behind the brush, outside of the right-of-way.

Looking for a Cool Place

The heat index for our neighborhood has been in the triple digits for the last three days. This local deer found some shade but was unable to escape the flies.

Bat Number 5

As I returned home from my evening wildlife drive I found bat number 5 fluttering around in the solarium connected to our garage. Unlike the other "sleepy" bats I removed from our house, this bat was a very active flyer and took multiple tries to capture and contain in a coffee can.

Unlike my previous bat relocations to our barn, this was a nighttime release and at least 4 other bats were flying inside the barn to welcome the new arrival. This bat was marked with white paint on the back of the left ear.

Lightning Strike

We've had a lot of thunderstorms pass through our area this summer and one of the game cameras caught this lightning strike while a deer was feeding.

Bat Wrangling

I'm starting to feel like a wrangler collecting stray bats.

Another bat showed up at our doorstep (backdoor to the patio). This is our fourth bat encounter in the last couple of weeks.

An easy capture of the bat at our house and a release at our barn 1/2 mile away.

Since I'm still not sure if this is same bat returning to our house I decided to place white paint on its right ear (bat branding) to see if this bat returns.

It's Raining Cat and Dogs

I had just settled in to watch some TV when I heard a roar of rain coming down. A check of our weather station confirmed "It's Raining Cat and Dogs" (at bottom of display). At one point the rain rate was 3.33 inches/hour, with an average rate of 0.72 inches/hours. Since June 30th we've received over 11 inches of rain.

This Year's Fawns

This year's fawns are starting to come out of their hiding places.

The mothers and fawns are socializing with other members of the herd.

"Mommy, who is this guy?"

In the past two months the fawns have gone from wobbly legs to speeding bullets.