Peaceful Paddle

Late one evening at the end of June, my friend Theresa and I, drove to my favorite place to kayak: Lake Martin. She was taking a lesson from Pack and Paddle, so I hitched a ride with her.

Kayaking relatively late in the evening - 5:45 to 7:45 - was a most pleasant experience. Since I was alone (Theresa was with the P&P group), I stayed in the open areas instead of paddling through the abundant cypress. Alligators were croaking, but thankfully I never saw any. Being alone and mostly floating, I was able to get pretty close to the wildlife. A great experience!

Great Egret

Charming sign in the lake. Many people hate that the lake has become so touristy,
but it doesn't bother me.

American Lotus or Yellow Lotus

Male Anhinga drying his wings.

Male Anhinga vocalizing.

Female Anhinga

Tourists

Juvenile Little Blue Heron eating grub worms from the lily pads.

Female Red-winged Blackbird trying to scare me away or warn the others.

A Sleety Day

How is it we are in the first week of March and still seeing nasty, sleety days? The poor birds. I photographed these from our boat port window, but even being inside there it was too cold to last long! Once my lens iced over, I waved the white flag. That scared me.

Dark-eyed junco

Brown thrasher keeping one foot warm.

The sleet has beaten Mrs. Cardinal's crest into submission.

You talkin' 'bout my woman?

Mrs. Red-bellied is having a bad hair day, too.
Don't you just want to run a comb through it?

Her retort: Hey lady, try to eat a meal in the sleet and see how your hair looks!

Red-winged blackbird hunkered down

Grackle (probably common). Looks like he's in a bad mood and I don't blame him.

Hope everyone is staying warm!

Linking with the generous hosts of

I'd Rather B' Birdin' and

Wild Bird Wednesday

Crystal Springs

Moving along with my vacation adventures, I now present to you Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden. Another favorite destination in Portland, I visit this magical place each time I visit. This is the only place that I can hope to get close to the wood ducks, since they are so accustomed to human activity. And of course the flowers are something else. Hope you enjoy!

Wood duck, male and female

Stellar's jay

Red-winged blackbird, female (if not, please correct me)

Behind The Levee

Some time ago I googled "birding Baton Rouge" and found a place about 20 minutes from my house behind the levee. The write-up said this was private property, a working sand and silt pit, but that the owners were fine with birders as long as permission was obtained. So I emailed the Baton Rouge Audubon Society for the contact information of the property owner and finally called him on Sunday. Turns out he is my 3rd or 4th cousin on my mother's side! He was very nice (of course!) and said to explore to my heart's content. So I did!

One of my first shots was a yellow-billed cuckoo! According to allaboutbirds.org, this is a very secretive bird.
Most people only hear them, so I was elated to get this one and only image.
They eat large insects and some berries and seeds.
They work a caterpillar back and forth between the bill, possibly to remove hairs, before swallowing.
They develop very quickly—17 days from egg laying until fledging.
Both parents build the nest, incubate the eggs, and brood equally during the day. The male takes the night shift.
These birds like open woodlands with clearings, and dense, scrubby vegetation near water.
Listed as endangered in California where development is disrupting the areas in which it likes to live.

A pair of eastern bluebirds

Crimson clover

Red-winged blackbird, female

Great egret

Top of levee

Behind the levee

Peek-a-boo view