We see this butterfly at least once per summer and usually on the same week in mid-July. I am having a difficult time correctly identifying the species. Looks a bit like a form of white or a form of a sulphur. It is beautiful regardless the specific species and we always enjoy finding and observing one on our mid-summer hikes.
Meet the local bully a Male Rufus Hummingbird. We typically only have Calliope Hummingbirds list our backyard feeder so it was a surprise, and a welcome one, to have this beautiful guy visit. It was a pleasure until we observed his bullying behavior. He would fly to the tree the feeder was hung from and perch on a hidden branch waiting for unsuspecting Calliopes to visit. He would then swoop down and chase them off. The funny part is that he seldom visited the feeder for a sip of nectar himself. Beautiful but quite the bully this Rufus guy.
A Raven soars below as we walk above.
Freedom to roam is freedom indeed.
While out at a local lake on our kayaks we were treated to a very unexpected sight…a mink hunting crawfish. This guy/gal was working the shoreline and caught at least two crawfish while we watched from out in the lake on our kayaks. We had no idea mink lived along the shores of this lake and have never seen one before. Another reminder that those little moments sure can make your day.
A quick visit from a Warbling Vireo was a treat one recent morning. I hear them singing in the large conifers around our neighborhood all day long but seeing them down low is another story.
Yellow whispers in a big old sea of green.
That is what this Yellow Columbine felt like on a recent hike into the forests nearby. A rainier than typical spring and early summer has the forest looking green as green can be and even a large patch of Columbine growing strong could only mustard a whisper in that sea of green yet sometimes a whispers is all you need.
A Black Capped Chickadee bringing a warm welcome to this mid-summer day.
Finding wild Orchids growing in the forest always feels like finding a little treasure, a treasure offered by the forest itself. Sometimes the treasure is small and hidden deep in the undergrowth as was the fairy slipper above.
Other times the treasure sits alone in the forest waiting for you to some along as this spring coral root did on recent day.
And every once in awhile the treasure sings out to you saying look at me as the Striped Coralroot has a habit to do.
Any time I find these orchids growing in the forest it does indeed feel like finding a small treasure that brightens the day.
Something about this dandelion must have been just right.
The clouds got interesting, as well as the waves, when the afternoon breeze kicked up. Photographed while kayaking on Shoshone Lake in Yellowstone NP.
nature has no boss 
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