8/25/2007 - Gatorland
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Categories: Photo-Journal •August 25, 2007
Hot! Hot! It was so darn hot in the office (Air Condition broken) and I had bees in my butt - so I grabbed my gear and headed to Gatorland. Pretty unambitious - since I knew that the park is quiet this time of year, I decided to just walk and look - and as always there - the rewards were coming. Got pretty good pics of the Year around Staff (those birds who just don’t leave G’land at all. Of course - stopping for lunch at Pearls Smokehouse and having my Espresso at Sam’s has turned into a ritual over the time.
So let’s start to check what I didn’t see - anymore, or not yet. Since the begin of the breeding season both Green Heron 
and Black Crowned Night Heron have disappeared. They are both pretty secretive and pretty much by themselves, so that I wait for them to soon come back - now that the coast is clear again!
Wandered off are all Cattle Egrets+ Kids, Roseate Spoonbills, Tri Colored Herons, Little Blue Herons. So I don’t expect to see any of them until early next year, other than the occasional loner.
Speaking of it, while taking a break to cool off (yeah - it’s cool outside compared to inside) I saw a flock of about 15 -20 Cattle Egrets hurrying to shelter from an approaching heavy thunderstorm, who is showing it’s ugly face on the horizon.
Back to Gatorland - taking stock, while my 1st full year there is drawing to a close - it appears that more Snowys stayed compared to last year. Some young Wood Storks also seem to have decided to stay. Only two Great White Egret nests are still being maintained with 5 chicks - but the numbers of Great White Egrets seem to be steady aside from that.
Common Moorhen numbers have increased about a handfull one year olds add to the community. New arrivals are peacocks. Lenny (the resident and wild peacock male) has 5 offsprings - 4 “regular” ones and one white - or better crème colored male. It’s going to be interesting how that will pan out. But speaking of it - I haven’t seen the 2nd Peacock hen for quite a while.
A family of Racoons is making the area unsafe and are in the crosshairs of Animal Control, since they do endanger the birds on the premises. But as long as they are they - I took some pics…
A pic was also taken of me. I called Ilona in the Netherlands, to let her know that we can exchange some winks via Gatorland’s webcam - and she shot this one. <<<SMILE>>>
While roaming around I come to realize, that the human species consists primarily of morons. While that of course is not always true, I am in awe (not the good one, though) of how blind and inconsiderate many people are.
Blind because they can stand in front of something beautiful without noticing it. For example I spotted a orange Sulphur, my first ever and went to a flower display, where this beautiful and pretty big Butterfly flattered around. Of course I took some pics and some people got up and asked me what I was shooting. Despite it being quite obvious - me following the Butterflies every move - it was big, too! Of course my answer was that I was chasing the “Hyacint OxyMORON“, which in return was taken at face value, thank you!
For being inconsiderate - I often see parents just standing by when their kids are chasing after animals, who dare come close to walkways etc. Not a word - just uninterested glances. A bit frustrating… Same people get up on a picket line to prevent Seals from being slaughtered.
All in all however - a good day - and see for yourself…
8:39 pm on August 28th, 2007
Klaus,
Although the bird population has diminished, evidently where there’s a will, there’s a way! You managed to have accrued a wonderful assortment of cool shots last week, or is it maybe they are following you???
Great job….
Yvonne;)
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3:40 am on August 30th, 2007
The photos are all pleasing to the eyes.Yvonne seems correct, in that nature seems to follow you.But you have the right eye for the compo and etails.
This photo gallery withing a blog is something that has been boggling my mind for awhile.Is it plug in or…? Typing a period brings up a gallery image.Cheers
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1:58 pm on October 30th, 2008
So lucky you are to head out when the office gets annoying.
About people… I agree 100%. Maybe THAT’S why I blog, because it’s easier to find people with some brain activity if you take in a large chunk of the planet than just one’s immediate area.
Noticing beauty: I think many people have to be taught. My children are being taught. They notice so many things about the beauty around them, and it makes me feel like I’m doing a good job.
About children misbehaving: This goes for ANYWHERE. I’m a “tough” mom. Many of my peers think I’m way too hard on my children. Buy my children are happy. They know I love them. They love me. And people LIKE THEM! They know how to behave in public, whether it is inside or outside. They respect animals and most of the time are pretty attention to other human beings. (They are 4 and 6, so we still work on this, but it is far and away different than most children we run into.) There is no excuse for the behavior your described… NONE.
And you are right, those same people are the ones demonstrating for seal rights, etc. The paradoxes in human nature astound me.
Louises last blog post..Card Contest Results
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