.

.
Borrego Springs, CA

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

A tale of two spoonbills

I called fellow volunteers Lynn and Barry this morning to see if they would like to go with me to the High Island, TX, rookery this afternoon.  They were up for the adventure, so off we went about 3:00 in the afternoon.  I hadn’t been to this Houston Audubon site since before hurricane Ike hit in 2008, so I wasn’t sure what to expect.  I’ll talk more about this site in a later post, but tonight it’s getting late, and I’m feeling a little whimsical.  So the post will mostly be pictures.

I’ve had two people especially in mind while writing this.  Sue, for her joy in seeing roseate spoonbills, and Sherry, for her deep love of nature in general.  I’m thinking they’ll forgive my anthropomorphism.

IMG_6379

When we eventually arrived at the rookery, it appeared that most of the spoonbills were having a siesta.  Things were about to change, however.

IMG_6388

                                       “Bubba, wake up!  It’s time for us to start building a nest!”

IMG_6390

                                                                “What’s that Lula Belle?”

IMG_6412

                                                             “Okay, I’ll start looking around.”

IMG_6408

                                                                 “Look right down there!”

IMG_6409

                                                     “I just can’t seem to get it loose, darling.”

IMG_6420

                                        “Oh, forget it!  We’ll try again tomorrow…”  “Yes, dear.”

Goodnight all… Flirt male

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

26 comments:

  1. They have such beautiful pink feathers! Great pictures and narrative.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Do you have to use such big words? It confuses mere us mortals...

    PS: Great pictures, you are forgiven. :cP

    ReplyDelete
  3. Was hoping that oil spill did not affect your part of the world (well any part is not ok or good) Would love to see those spoonbills. I remember all the birds around the Venice, LA area... so, so many!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. First of all. I spent a little longer than usual admiring your new header picture. Then I laughed myself silly going through your pictures and captions! Thanks for such a wonderful post. The roseate spoonbill is indeed a gorgeous creature.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Very interesting looking birds. And who knew they could talk? :-)

    ReplyDelete
  6. They are beautiful! What about the oil spill?? I saw that this morning in the news:(

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'd love to see these guys in person. Maybe someday youwill show us where they are.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Such beautiful birds ... and the story put a smile on my lips on a dreary, rainy morning.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Haha. Are you sure in your other like you weren't a children's storybook writer?

    ReplyDelete
  10. We have not been there in a while either...it is a wonderful place.

    ReplyDelete
  11. what a wonderful day. . .the pics were fabulous!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Absolutely beautiful! The Rosetta Spoonbills are at the top of my "to see" list of birds. What an amazing capture Judy!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Great photos Judy--one of these days I will see a roseate in person!!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Jealous!

    Cute "story" -- beautiful birds. Wish we'd had more time to visit High Island....

    ReplyDelete
  15. 'A little whimsical', eh ..?! Read about the oil spill too. Hope these beautiful birds will be allright!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Now THAT was a real hoot!..oops, no owls there...LOVED IT..THOSE SPOONBILLS ARE ONE OF MY FAV'S!!!

    ReplyDelete
  17. I think that roseate spoonbills are my favorite bird
    I felt so lucky last year to see at least one!!!
    and you whimsy post tonight was great!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Your having learned Roseate Spoonbill-talk suggests that it's time for you to migrate to Minnesota. Probably you will have gone that way by the time we come thru Texas. Do the RSes stay around High Island, or do they migrate elsewhere for the summer?

    ReplyDelete
  19. I used to go to that rookery each year. I really felt like it was a privilege to see the birds. I got a chance to help with the costs of purchasing and developing the different audubon areas in High Island, and bolivar Flats! Thanks for bringing back memories!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Judy these pictures are absolutely fabulous!! I love the story and I'm just positive that is exactly what they were doing. I am so honored that you had me in mind and my friend Sue. The only thing I could possibly have liked more is to have been there with you. Not being a news watcher, I had no idea about an oil spill that might affect this gorgeous area. Now I'm worried.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Oh my gosh! This is what we saw from afar....Now, even more, I wish we had seen them. I just can't get over how beautiful they are.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Letting the pictures speak for themselves, priceless

    ReplyDelete
  23. Thanks for the spoonbill fix. My favorite memory, and one of my favorite images is of two males fighting over a stick. They sounded like fencers since they used their bills like weapons and also used them to block each other. So there was a lot of rattling and crashing sounds to go along with the visuals.

    Hope you'll be there to see the babies when they look like pink fluffy tennis balls. I'll go see them in April but I think it will be late April into late May before that happens.

    ReplyDelete