Happy New Year!

We hope that you and yours have a very joyous and healthy 2014.

While Chris and Joan were at the very windy beach, shelling with the diehards, Peter and I went to the Ding Darling Preserve and I shot a few birds.

Before going to the preserve, I shot this Bird Of Paradise flower just outside our condo door.  These flowers can be very messy, but they compensate by having dramatic colours and shapes.  Some of these plants grow to two stories high!

At the preserve, this Osprey was learning to fish, not very successfully in my opinion...

On the other hand, a fisherman was much more successful, showing this colourful fish off to surrounding kids before returning it to the tidal waters.

White pelicans, at a local favourite gathering site.

Of course, a gathering of just two can be visually dramatic also.

Here are a few shots of our young osprey practicing fishing...

This is just one of many who graced these lakes.

This medium sized shorebird had a damaged right leg, but tended to her little ones without complaint.

This is one of the two little ones she was looking after.

We also spotted a Magnificent Frigate bird, that's their real name, and it is quite appropriate.

And to end this year, a group, gaggle, or bunch of the white pelicans with some small shorebirds for your pleasure.

And what happened to our intrepid shellers you ask? Wipe out, nothing worth keeping, nada.  They were both wet from head to toe, shivering, bad hair, and some attitude...  Not a good day for shelling at all. Maybe next time...

I hope these periodic posts have peaked your interest in some of the wonders of nature that I'm privileged to shoot.  Happy 2014!

Bunche Beach

Peter and I went to Bunche Beach today while Chris and Joan went shopping, two days before Christmas, fun or what...

Before we left, this moth was on the wall near our unit. It might be a Banded Sphinx Moth, but maybe not...

This next shot is also near our condo, a small gecko, who jumped 8" off the wall to hide in a nearby bush.

Next is a live horseshoe crab.

I'm certainly not sure of these birds, but they sure look like the Magnificent Frigate bird, just young ones.

These are live Kings Crown Conch

I'm not certain what the joke was, but this Reddish Egret thought it was a riot...

Later, the same Egret fought and swallowed this fairly large fish.

Here's an Osprey that ended up buzzing me.

This could be some kind of Sandpiper.

We ended up going to Bunche Beach just before high tide, maybe a rising low-tide would have been much better.

Hope you enjoyed the show as much as I did making it.

Six Mile Cyprus Preserve

Well now: plans are made to be amended right? So much for every other day...

Peter and I went to the Six Mile Cyprus Preserve today and spotted a few beasties of interest.

Here's an interesting alligator: his right front foot was lost in an argument; so they call him 'Stumpy'.

Some birds are not very good at camouflage...

... others are.  Can you spot this bird; it's the same size as the white one, but hides itself much better, even if it's right in the middle of the picture.

The reserve is a very quiet space and this little guy was copping a snooze.  Can the grandkids guess what it is?

Here's another bestie that doesn't hide very well.

As far as I know, there are no animals in this next picture, so can the grandkids tell me what the stars of this picture are?  You should remember from previous years, but I'll give you a hint: this is a cypress swamp...

These White Ibis are usually found aerating grass, but here they are 'au naturel'.

And finally, an osprey for your delight.

Butterfly garden at pelican preserve

Settling down to a routine here is kind of difficult.  i wanted to update the blog after everyone else was toes-up, but then I was sleepy too.  I think the new drill will be to update in the morning when convenient.  I'll aim for every other day.   ..or so...

Here's a bright cardinal that thinks he's much better of with a natural smorgasbord than a frozen dinner at the feeder.

Nearby was this tree that had the misfortune of being used as a fence post: ouch!

This is where we live, if you look closely, there's a shiny Solara under the carport: look quickly, it doesn't get washed often...

The title says butterfly garden, but before we get there, here is a shot of the Koy pond within the garden.  Hope you enjoy the mystery as much as I do.

And now, the butterflies:Here's the underside of a Queen butterfly, and the following picture is of the topside of a similar Queen butterfly.

Another Queen:

This next one is a Long Tailed Skipper

The last three are the Polydamas Swallowtail; the only florida swallowtail that lacks tails.  Go figure.

This type was in constant motion not really landing when feeding.  I did manage to get two shots of it flying: the last one right at me.

While this is to be continued, who knows what will be next.

Tuesday in Palazzo

Our residence is in Pelican Preserve which is a huge 2500 residence gated community; our end of the preserve is named Palazzo, and for some reason, this is where those that know how to enjoy life live.

Tuesday night at Palazzo involves a poolside happy hour with nibbles brought by all the locals.  A wonderful opportunity to meet people and share happy hour.

Happy hour here starts at about 4 pm, mainly because it's almost pitch black by 5:30...

The guys seem to gravitate towards each other while the women sit at the next expanded table; how civilized...

The pool area is a wonderful place to meet people and have fun. The building with the arches contains a full kitchen, access to washrooms, and access to two large propane BBQs that only need some outside flame to work well. The built-in igniter, totally automatic and failsafe, is busted...  Lit paper seems to work well...

Of course, the pool itself is a thing of beauty.

... with reflections and everything.

Just so you don't think all is cream and roses here, we're having a very cold night, below usual temperature.  We'll have to brace ourselves to survive a low of 39ºF.  Fortunately, our unit has heat...

Sorry, I just couldn't help bragging; I'm sorry that you're all suffering winter ills.  Joan and I hope you all enjoy winter from the warm side of the window.

To be continued...

Monday is for Sanibel

Monday already so it's time for Sanibel: the beach, the shells, the sunburn...

After about four hours combing the beach for shells, we turned red somewhat, but had a great time.

Chris had a state trooper give her a warning about having a dog on a leash and 'under control'...  The next 'occurrence' might cost $100.

After such a long day on the beach, Cragen needed a shower to rinse off the salt.  I'm not sure who got wet the most, but Cragen ended up getting a towel to keep her warm.  It was a paltry 70ºF or so.

Of course, after a tough day at the beach, Cragen was just dead to the world.

The rest of the crew had after supper clean-up and mental updates.

Of course, the best of the beach experience are these two quite large shells, Florida Horse Conchs, that showed up on the beach. The 'little' one is 9.5" long, the bigger one is 12".  No need to go back to the beach on this trip...    Not!

Of course, after Peter went to bed, the rest of the crew sort of passed out watching TV.

So there you have it, Monday in these parts.  Of course, Chance the cat was faking it, she did not go to the beach...