The Blackbirds are Back

The blackbirds are back at my tree feeder and it is a treat to watch them while sitting at my computer looking out the window.  Here is one that I caught the other day..



HD video taken with a Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ10.

I know I'll be taking more of these and the other birds as I can set up my tripod beside me on the table in front of the window and film while I'm working on my computer.

 

I hope I can also catch some video of the little blue tits that come from time to time.

60 ~ Summer is Ending

Here it is nearly autumn. The sun sits a little lower in the sky but the days are still warm and golden.

We're waiting for some much needed rain which has arrived in torrential fashion to the Spanish mainland, where there is serious flooding.

But here in Canaries, we look at the sky, ask our old gardener if he can interpret any signs from the cloud formations, as most local people who have worked the land here are able to do, but with a glance skyward and a shrug of the shoulders he shakes his head. No, hoy no va llover. Quizás mañana. Not today, perhaps tomorrow.

So we put the sprinkler again on the lawn and hose the dust from the car, then take a little walk around the garden with the camera and Bibi, our new Siamese cat.

The warm weather has caused her to moult, losing much of the dark brown hair on her back, exposing some of the lighter hair underneath, and in places looking almost like pale stripes.

The mandevilla blooms well at this time.

We even have some dried leaves, but miss the autumn chill in the air that goes with raking them into a pile for the composter. The Madagascar Palm (Pachypodium Lamerei) is still putting forth white flowers on that one stem I photographed earlier.

Is this perhaps the last red rose of summer? In a few days it will be autumn, but the rose bushes are all putting forth new growth and many flower buds. It's not yet time for them to have a rest.





Hibiscus blooms most of the year; this one has just had a watering from the hose.





The hedges are growing rapidly now we have cooler evenings. There is always something to prune or trim.

A blackbird sits outside my window, waiting for the doves to vacate the bird feeder. They seem to find it a convenient place to dine, much to the dismay of the smaller birds.

Yes I see you watching me. Now move out of the food tray and let the smaller birds have a chance please!

Well I guess I'd better go now and make our dinner. Hasta la vista!

55 ~ July in the Garden

(click photos to enlarge)

I'm sorry I have been neglecting my blog posts in the last days. It's nearing the end of July and holiday time for most folks and here in the Canary Islands it is quite warm and humid. It sure slows down everyday activities and makes it even difficult sometimes to sit in a chair facing a computer for very long.

But I have a moving show in front of me. When looking out my window I see a continual rivalry between the blackbirds visiting the feeder hanging in a tree just outside.



The older males attempt to monopolize the food tray, chasing away the youngsters and females with threatening gestures and flapping wings. Added to that drama we now have an attractive resident dove who comes several times a day to feed. It is a ring-necked dove and as more have since come to visit, I checked that their latin name is Streptopelia Capicola.


In among the cactus and succulents growing, we have a plant with a spiky stem called a Madagascar Palm, (Pachypodium Lamerei),which isn't really a palm at all but is rather a succulent, and it has bloomed for the first time in 25 years, with beautiful white waxy flowers resembling a frangipani (Plumeria Alba).


This plant does take a long time to flower but ours was being overshadowed by a small palm which cast shade when it should have been in full sun.
These are the first photos:



And in the other side of the garden, the Piccabeen palm (Archontophoenix cunninghamiana) has a cluster of seeds which have turned bright red.



And the Mandevilla is blooming everywhere in this summer heat.





And the Iceberg Rose has its second flush of blooms.