More so this year than some. Mind you, we see these ladies EVERY YEAR. They like my south-side-of-the-house garden, and they lay in the same spot, always.
Madame Snapper can just be seen amidst the milkweed and chives.
Here she is smiling (?) for the camera.
And this is one of her buddies, strolling over to the large sandy spot under the pine tree, which is popular with both Snapping and Painted Turtles.
This is a Painted Turtle enjoying the sandy spot.
I don't have pictures of the hail, since we weren't there when it happened, but it made swiss cheese out of most of my hostas, and broke dozens of ferns. Also damaged one milkweed, which I hope did not have any Monarch Butterfly eggs laid on it.
We also have to contend with the squirrels and the chipmunks, who think digging up my plantings to see if there is treasure under the roots is fun.
They're so darn cute, though!
Something we saw for the first time this year was a Giant Hornet a.k.a. European Hornet. Not very aggressive, fortunately, but HUGE! Head to tail he was about 1 1/4" long.
According to my insect books, they are supposed to only come as far north as Maine. It's another sign that North America is warming - everything is moving farther north.
And just for the heck of it, here's a picture of a dock spider that is unsettlingly large. He was hiding, but peeked out to see if I was edible, when I stepped onto the dock.
