Contention for the duck

We have a little bit of contention in the canal in the backyard these days.  We have a floating duck that holds up the sprinkler pump intake pipe.  Our regular male anhinga used to enjoy perching on the duck to dry his wings.  But now a cormorant has come along and has taken over the duck.  Poor anhinga.

It's my duck now.

Yawning on a lazy afternoon.

Poor anhinga lost his duck

Our frequent great egret visitor was again across the canal doing his thing.  He wasn't too close to the water this time.

Today I'm looking for bugs instead of fish.

I'm again trying to attract monarch butterflies to lay eggs on one of my milkweed plants.  I put it in a hanging pot to keep the iguanas away, along with a pink penta plant whose flower is attractive to the butterflies.  Fingers crossed that this works.

Milkweed and penta are calling to the monarchs.

When it comes to flowers, my dahlia is getting closer and closer to blooming.  I can't wait to see it!

It shouldn't be long now!

Just over the water's edge in the canal, a number of Eastern amberwing dragonflies were flitting about.  I actually was able to get a photo of one in flight, which isn't easy considering how fast they usually move.  They are only an inch long.

In midair, heading for a nice leaf to rest on.

There were a few odd bugs on my hanging plants in the side yard. One was a midge, a non-biting one thank goodness, and the other was a type of fly that I have never seen before, called  a golden fly.  There must be so many insects around the house that I have never even noticed.

The non-biting variety of midge checks out a leaf.

Golden fly looks more orange than gold.

And finally, the apple snail egg sacs are continuing to appear all over along the canal bank, attaching to anything that stands above the water where the hatchlings need to drop.  We're awaiting what should be a bumper crop of snails this year.

Snail eggs have attached themselves all over the canal bank.