Critters

John woke me up last night about 2:30 a.m. to see the fireflies, the first of the season, they really were brilliant. He commented that the Moth Man was up as the lighted sheet was on.
Later in the morning after he'd left for the store, I was taking the dogs and saw Jim & Katherine coming down the hill, he was excited - it had been a bonanza and we had to see.
Stephen and I followed them and the sheet hanging just to the side of the patio door was covered with moths. Apparently conditions were just right - hot, humid, overcast sky - and he showed them off like a magician pulling tricks

The three large moths on the sheet the other night were:
Luna moth: http://moths.ca/saturniidae/pages/07758-actias-luna-A2.html
Cecropia moth: http://moths.ca/saturniidae/pages/07767-hyalophora-cecropia-A.html
Waved Sphinx moth: http://moths.ca/sphingidae/pages/07787-ceratomia-undulosa-A.html

They had put the light on at 12:30 then he checked it at 4:30 a.m. then pulled Katherine out to see, she said there were also 5 Ladyslipper orchids growing close by. Jim said he had heard gnawing under the cottage during he night and that he'd seen mama porcupine with her baby.
Have a feeling that they moved up under the shed as their original haunt, the Trout Cabin has been restored. Will have to check the tires on the Mazda in the shed as porcupine are fond of chewing them for the salt.

John has seen the mother Mallard Duck with 10 little fuzzy ones parading down the road. Raccoons are about [why do they have masks?] and some critter had eaten the Scarlet Bean seedlings I had started in the porch.
There are two Humming Bird feeders, and other seed feeders hanging in the patio so lots of bird life and a horde of Chipmunks picking up seed that drops - they are very friendly and will wait while I fill the feeders, scatter to safety if the dogs approach.

The first garter snake of the season appeared on the patio this morning looking bright and clean will watch to see if his 'shed' is nearby, I have one very long shed skin draped over the computer and it is so light that every time the computer turns on the skin jumps... We often have a large family of the snakes basking on the patio in the early morning sun, before they head off in search of breakfast.