We have photos form two readers today. First, Saloni Rose is back after recovering from a bout of dengue. She has a lovely and dextrous bird for us; her notes are indented:
My father and I went birdwatching in the rice fields outside the township of Rawabhata (Rajasthan, India). It had rained a few days ago and streams were gushing with water. On the other side of the stream we found a Baya Weaver (Ploceus philippinus) colony on a thorny tree.
I am amazed by the perfect shape of the nests. What finesse! Normally, both the sexes look like sparrows, but the males develop bright yellow plumage during the breeding season. The males start weaving the nest even before courtship. The generic name is derived from the Greek word “plokeus”, meaning weaver.
And a fast reptile from Andrea Kenner:
Here is a photo of a common five-lined skink (Plestiodon fasciatus) I took near Upper Marlboro, MD. These little guys are native to Maryland. I posted this photo on my Facebook page to mixed reaction. Some folks (like me) found him beautiful. Others said things like “yuck.” I thought you might appreciate him. BTW, this photo is pointing in the right direction. I had to snap fast to capture him scurrying down the wall.
Wow, thank you for these, I can’t stop looking at the nests, even though the birds are gorgeous!
Thank you so much
Ditto!
Lovely bird photos.
Both are very interesting. Thank you for sharing. Have not managed yet to see that skink species.
I wonder if those nests are done with an end-state “in mind”, like with human architecture (as opposed to termite architecture).
Very nice photos. Don’t know why anyone could assign the word “yuk” to the lovely skink.🦎
I saw something similar in Michigan years ago. It was on a dock so I figured in might have come in from some foreign port.