Saturday 30 August 2008

Safari Sunday.....a little bit early....out tomorrow........

"Frank, come over here, it's Safari Sunday, you need to get cleaned up."
"Coming, oh precious one."

Spiders are plentiful in the garden.....I particularly liked this one........
Britain has 26 species of harvestmen, but only a few are common or widespread.......
The first Red Admiral to visit this year...............
And it was worth the wait......I love this butterfly.......


"I am ready Freda, how do I look?"
"It's too late Frank, she has finished, we will have to wait until next week."
"Oh well.......I may as well go for a swim......be back later Freda."
Enjoy your weekend.....have fun in the sun...........




29 comments:

Tricia Ryder said...

I'm finding that I'm not waiting for the next comments from Frank and Freda - you judge this so well Cheryl :)

Dawny P said...

Gorgeous picure of the Red Admiral Cheryl - what stunning colours against the flower. And the spider shot is awesome - I don't know how you do it xx I skipped the froggy ones very quickly though but I'm sure they are fabulous pictures. Have a great day tomorrow xxx

Rusty in Miami said...

I agree with you the red admiral butterfly is beautiful.

Baker Watson said...

I just took a few photo's of a harvestman (though we don't call them that here) myself less than an hour or so ago. Frank and Freda seem to keep an eye on you like my turtles keep an eye on me.

That Red Admiral is really pretty. Must be a late summer species if that is your first this year.

ChrisND said...

Great early safari...I've seen a few spiders in the garden, but haven't noticed any with lovely webs. Love the butterfly...have a great Sunday!

Wendy said...

Awww - loved this post! Your froggies are sooo sweet. I went for a walk today and to my sorrow found a dead toad by the roadside. I almost cried for the poor little thing - kept thinking of Frank and Freda.

Your red admiral butterfly is really stunning!
Have a good weekend!

naturewitch said...

Hi Cheryl

The Red Admiral butterfly is beautiful. You must be extremely patient to get such a good clear photo.

I thought of you yesterday as I watched a bee come down for a drink at the bucket of water I always keep outside. (It's really for the cats, but all sorts of creatures drink at it when they are not around :)) Anyway, the bee was there for quite a few minutes, then sat in the sun before flying off. I wanted to get the camera, but didn't want to move and disturb the bee.

Oh, and I will get around to posting about elder soon. xx

beckie said...

I love the continuing saga of Frank and Freda! So glad they have decided to stay in your pond. The spiders are interesting and I can look at them on your blog as long as I don't think too much about them crawling around. :) The Red Admiral is beautiful! How lucky you are to have him visit you. I hope he stays around for a while. Safari Sundays always brighten my day. Thanks for the lovely pictures. Hope your Sunday is a good one.

Cheryl said...

Thanks Tricia......

Hi Dawny....the colour combination was perfect for the Red Admiral.....

Cheryl said...

Yes Baker......we get the Red Admiral sometime in the autumn.....I anticipate her arrival every year......

Cheryl said...

Poor toad Wendy....always breaks my heart when I see any dead animal in the roadside......

Cheryl said...

Hi Naturewitch......I love your bee story.....how lovely to be able to stand and watch this little creature doing his own thing.....

I am really looking forward to the elder post as it is one of my favourite tree......

Cheryl said...

You brighten my day Beckie......have a lovely long weekend......

Tricia Ryder said...

Cheryl - my apologies for an error in my original comment. The sentence "I'm finding that I'm not waiting..." should have read "I'm finding that I AM waiting".... Doh!!

I believe you'd already spotted this mistake - I do hope so :)

SweetAnnee said...

LOL
I just love your photos today.. the spider is so cool.
and the Red Admiral..we get them too.
The froggies..well just too fun..
smiles and hugs, Deena

Cheryl said...

I knew what you meant Tricia.....no problems....

Cheryl said...

Tks sweet annee....glad you enjoyed the froggy thing.........

Marimoy said...

You always have the best pictures and commentary to start my week. I too am quickly becoming a fan of Frank and Freda! Granted I do collect frogs (no live or dead ones, of course) so I am a bit biased... Your spider pictures made me happy as well!

Cheryl said...

Thank you Mimi you are so kind.....

Ruth said...

So interesting that there are Red Admirals in North America and Europe. Lovely pictures. I don't think I have seen any for a couple of years, in fact I have only seen them close to the Great Lakes.

Cheryl said...

Now that is interesting Ruth....we learn everyday......

Rose said...

The Red Admiral is such a beauty! I will have to look him up to see if he lives in the Midwest--I don't remember ever seeing one before.

Cheryl, I think you have found some substitute narrators for days you are too busy to write--Frank and Freda are such an interesting couple; I can't wait to hear more from them! Thanks for giving me a smile today:)

Kim said...

Oh, I love Frank and Freda! And that Red Admiral is so lovely. I'll have to check to see if we have them here. We do have harvestmen, but we call them Daddy Long Legs (very scientific, I know). We have big ones and little ones and dark ones and light ones all over the garden. I like the spiders better, and your spider is lovely.
My blog

Cheryl said...

Hi Rose....the Red Admiral is a stunner....I never get a lot in the garden but one has decided to stay......I see it most days....

Freda and Frank are becoming quite useful.....I will use them until I run out of useful photographs.......

Hope you are enjoying your long weekend...........

Cheryl said...

Thanks Kim...the spider is lovely......

Q said...

Dear Cheryl,
Thank you for a fun safari...
The Red Admiral is a gorgeous butterfly. Your photos are very pretty. Come winter it will be nice to look back on Safari Sunday and be delighted by the beauty in your gardens. The Red Admirals come to my Mid-west gardens too. Some years there are more than other years. This is a lean year. I think the Cardinals ate too many last year. I saw Mr. Cardnial give Red Admiral gifts to Mrs. Cardinal many times!
The Harvester is another delightful bug! Your photo turned out wonderful. I think they are hard to focus on...mine are too quick.
Please thank Frank and Freda for me. They are charming. They look good "as is" with out any primping.
It is a delight to bug hunt with you. What will we do come winter???
Hope your adventure was lots of fun. Getting out of my backyard is always exciting.
Sherry, who dances with the bees

Cheryl said...

Very interesting the Red Admiral visits you to Sherry.....there have not been many here either. I think they come across from Europe to escape the heat........the weather here is cool again and rain is expected....

We will have to think about winter safari....could we do things such as fungi, lichen and birds.....although I am not happy with my bird shots, they do keep a record of what is going on here........have you any ideas??

Thank you re harvester.....

Lisa at Greenbow said...

I always like to read about Freda and Frank. They make a darling couple. Just the couple you would like to go on Safari with.

Libbys Blog said...

I love your Red admiral, I haven't seen one in years!