Get out of my flower garden!!!

It happens every year ... after all the chicks have fledged, the hummie wars start in earnest. P-Hummie (seen here above) now perches at the highest point of my butterfly garden where he "guards" everything. Unfortunately, he is guarding against another male and at least a dozen females/juveniles and while he is busy chasing one, another will dart in for a drink. It's actually very entertaining.

I've tried for several years to capture one of the chases and usually all I have to show for it is an empty frame or a bit of blurred wing or tail. Today, I managed to get two shots with both combatants in the frame and with reasonable focus (don't look too closely, though, or you'll see that P isn't all that well focused). So, the blip for the day is in the bag and I am not going to try to beat it.

I posted five other shots on Flickr, starting HERE, mostly hummies.

I believe this is my 10th hummie blip this season, and I think I've showed remarkable restraint. However, I feel the weakness coming over me ... the need to blip more hummers. Consider yourself warned. :)

Thank you for the lovely comments on my Lipizzan stallion yesterday. I am still over the moon about the whole experience - as a little girl I was fascinated by the stories of these horses so seeing them up close and in such a beautiful setting was very, very special to me.

My BIL and SIL are about 250 miles from here so will be here in time for dinner - yay! I went to the farm this morning and got a bunch of freshly picked basil, came home, and made up a big bowl of pesto. Once they arrive tonight, we'll have a nice bowl of pasta with pesto - Italian comfort food. And wine. :)

My commenting will be sparse for the next few days as I want to spend as much time as possible with my family while they are here. I will stop by and see what wonderful things are being blipped, though.

xxoo
Debbi