We’ve had about three inches of rain so far, and we’re hunkered down expecting some seriously bad weather – torrential rain, very high winds, isolated tornados, and flooding. Most of the local government is closed for the day, and there will probably be some delayed openings of businesses in the morning. If you’ve got anything in the yard that isn’t tied down, it might be a good idea to get it inside.
Thirty years ago, it was pretty common for a hurricane to follow the track that this one is on, and kind of blow out up here, after dumping a ton of rain on us. But this is the first time I can remember it happening in the last twenty years or so. It had been so dry for so long that I was worried about the trees, especially the dogwoods. It may be too late, but there’s no doubt we’ve caught up on rain, as most of it came in a drizzle and probably soaked in pretty well.
We’ve been seeing the Yellow-billed Cuckoo fairly often, but we haven’t heard them calling. They are kind of quiet birds, hanging out in the oaks and hickories, eating caterpillars. They have a curved bill, which is a dead giveaway, and they also have a long tail with large white dots. If you get a good look at them flying, the polka dots show fairly well. We enjoy seeing them, and they’re welcome to the caterpillars.