Florida is amazing on so many levels. Bountifully beautiful weather, eternally sunny skies, no personal income tax and spectacular critters galore! While I freely admit to being captively enamored with the all avian life forms of the state, I do take the time to notice the "other" living creatures along the beach. No, not babes in bikinis, however they can be quite a distraction. Reptiles and other scaly looking mammals are what I'm referring to for purposes of this blog. With my camera always at the ready; I tend to snap pictures of damned near anything that interests me, making no apology with each click. I've even been known to photograph my airline food. Most likely because flying is such a treat for me and doing it so very seldom, I find it a huge blast when being afforded the opportunity. I guess the true romantic in me is a bit of a "memory-keeper" and since memories occur when you least expect them to...well...
What do you know about armadillos? I admit to not knowing much. Due to this fact, I have provided for the both of us ( me-Birdstud and you- Dear Reader) a handy dandy LINK that should answer just about any questions you or I might have. Interestingly enough however, one fact about them I found out I was correct about - they are generally nocturnal. So imagine my surprise when out of the blue (literally) I encountered a good view of one in broad morning daylight! Of course my propensity to be a shutter bug drove me to capture the images you see in this blog...why you ask? The answer is always; I though it was cool.
Just like I thought it was cool to take a photo of the huge aligator sunning himself on the far bank of the pond on St. George's Island, Fl. That's something you don't see everyday right? That little Pied-billed grebe(pronounced like "feeb") in the foreground-right; better not nod off and wander into shore eh?
The island, an extremely narrow strip of white sand is a bustling tourist magnet for those folks who want to get away from "most" of it all, but have some creature comforts nearby. There are plentiful tee shirt and hat shops on the island...YES so that makes it fine with me. There are places to dine and feast on fresh bay oysters, and LOTS of bird life both on the beach and just a bit off shore even MORE. One needs their super-duper strong Bushnell's to see them, however it is totally amazing to watch the Northern Gannets diving from way up high into the surf in search of an ocean meal. These bad boys have very descriptive and etched facial markings, making them appear fierce. They are basically built like little white fishing missles. I watched them flying along the beach on several of the days in large flocks, not unlike White pelicans do. Their gutteral calls in these larger groups can sound a bit like a pod of manatees...or at least what I imagine a pod of manatees would sound like, since I have not seen, nor heard a pod of manatees...come to think of it.
So that takes us to the end of another scintillating installment of Birdstud's Blog. Have we all learned something? I sure hope so...cause there's soooooo much TO learn each day, every moment of our lives if we keep our eyes and ears and heart open...remember to save those memories and to WATCH FOR BIRDS!
Great Blue on St. George's Island, FL
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