The Exterminators!

We have been plagued with bugs!  And..I believe this is only the beginning of a summer-long ordeal.  With no hard freezes this winter, I am almost certain that our bug problem will intensify with the warming of the weather.  Already, the ants are swarming.  Hoards of the winged critters are leaving an old rotted stump behind the house and are setting skyward in search of a new home.  I stood looking out the window at the mass of critters flooding the Rose Garden.  I knew better than to go outside as the ants would be crawling all over me.  As I stood there pondering just what could be done about the swarms, I got my answer...let Mother Nature handle it!

The bright yellow patch on their rump gives the Yellow-rumped Warbler their name!

The Rose Garden was infiltrated by another critter!  As I was watching, Yellow-rumped Warblers flew in and started devouring the ants!  Hundreds of the little birds were flitting about the garden.  They were scooping up the ants while on the wing!  How the birds could even catch the bugs mid-flight was beyond me but they were!  The flock of birds were in a feeding frenzy and did not even care that Ms. Ez decided to join in on the fun.  She was prancing herself around the garden with birds swooping over her head.  The birds were oblivious to the large dog in their midst..or they just knew she would not harm them.  Ez, on the other hand, was all to aware of the presence of the birds and she thought it was great!  For some reason, this old dog loves birds!  But it was more the birds that interested me at the moment.  Their feasting on the winged ants made me wish that these were not migratory birds.  They sure would come in handy in the garden!  Can you imagine how much nicer it would be to let birds eat the bugs instead of the bugs eating my vegetables?

Just a few days ago, there were only a handful of the warblers in the area.  Mark and I found several resting on the pier posts after their long flight. The Warblers are still in their muted winter plumage and do not have the vivid coloring that most folks associate with them.  Today, there were hundreds in the yard! I am assuming that they are already on their journey back northward and are just passing through our area.  I do so wish these darling little birds would decide that the Bayou would be a perfect year-round home but I guess I have to be happy with their brief visits!  Little Warblers, I am glad you were here when the ants  took to the skies!  Eat hardy..eat hardy!