Little things...

I've been thinking about little things.

Little things that lots of people don't notice.

Things like leaf skeletons.

Leaf Skeletons

Things like the 7 porcupine quills

Pulled from Libby's lower lip.

Each end so very sharp.

Porcupine Quills 

This black monarch butterfly caterpillar.

Found in the garden on a dill sprig.

Came close to squishing him,

But decided to find out what he was.

My curiosity saved him.

Black Monarch Caterpillar

So today

When I heard a hummingbird 

Making a big fuss.

I went over to see what the little green thing was on the hummingbird perch.

A praying mantis.

Being somewhat misguided, I thought that the praying mantis was in danger.

Praying Mantis

So I did what any nature loving gal would do.

I removed the praying mantis from his high perch,

and placed him in some lower bushes.

Can you find the praying mantis?
(Just below the middle of the picture.)

The hummingbird continued to come around.

It dived bomb me a couple of times, 

which it has never done before.

It was obviously stressed, 

So I came inside.

Hummingbird

Curious about praying mantis and hummingbirds,

I did a search and found that 

Praying mantis have been known to ambush and kill hummingbirds.

They can kill birds, frogs, lizards, scorpions, snakes, fish, and even small rodents.

Woah!  Perhaps they should be prEying mantis.

I have always liked them, 

But now I feel a little creepy about them.

I'm glad the hummingbird was astute enough to realize

 that the praying mantis was laying in wait on it's rusty garden perch.

And here I thought it was the praying mantis that should beware of the hummingbird.