A Walk on the Beach

We went for a walk on the beach this morning before it got too hot. It was still hot but enjoyable. Not too many people out and around yet. And really, it wasn't all that early either!
The Gulf is like bathwater. Wonderful to wade or swim in. And it would seem that the Pelicans feel the same way.
I enjoy seeing the birds on the beach and always manage to take a few pictures of them.

I thought these two Laughing Gulls were a hoot. They looked like bookends or twins or something.

But the cutest thing of all were the Snowy Plover chicks. Snowy Plovers are endangered and are protected on Sanibel. Whenever a nest is spotted it is roped off and watched over until the chicks hatch and are on their own. There are at least 4 such areas between the 2 and 3 mile mark on the beach. I have never seen a chick in the wild--only at CROW. Today we saw an adult running around kind of flapping it's wings and looking like it was in distress. It dawned on me that it was a mama trying to draw attention away from her chick. This is what they do. Then I saw the chick. It was about 2 inches tall. Can you find it in this picture?

Here is the same picture blown up a bit. When mama decided that we weren't really a threat to her baby, she went back to join it.

Later we saw a Mama and Papa with 3 or 4 chicks. So cute. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of them.

Nice walk on the beach even if it is a bit warm. But it was nice to get out and see oil free waters and wildlife. Let's just hope it stays that way!!!

The Beach

I actually went to the beach twice today. This morning we went to the Nerita St. beach to go for a walk. Despite having to walk into a heavy breeze going east, we made it to Summer of 42 which is about a mile. And of course it's another mile back. :) The Monsoon we had yesterday played some real havoc with the beach. Lots of little ditches dug into the beach from the wave action. One of the ditches was pretty big though and was about 5 to 6 feet across and at least a foot deep.When we got home I decided to head down to one of the West Gulf beaches to see how the shelling was after the storm. It's always such a pretty walk from the parking area to the beach.

The beach was relatively empty. Season is definitely over. There were lots of birds on the beach--probably enjoying the uncrowded beaches like I was.

And--there were several sting rays scaring the heck out of the minnows and kept coming right up on the beach with the waves. They were so fast I couldn't get a decent picture. The shelling wasn't all that great but it was so nice on the beach I didn't really care. Lots and lots of ghost crab holes. I saw one but by the time I got close enough to take a picture, he saw me and went down into his hidey hole.So, I had another dog encounter today! This time it was a puppy and was on a leash but when these people passed by me, I just had a feeling. So I turned around and was ready to take pictures. Remember all the bird pictures I took? Well, I walked up on the beach and around the birds knowing full well that they were resting. I always have and always will do this. Why do others feel that they own the beach and the birds should get out of the way??? Anyway, This couple with their leashed puppy proceeded to walk towards the birds which meant the birds had to high tail it up on the beach. At which point, the puppy pulled at it's leash to chase the birds. AND---the gal let the leash out to it's full length so the puppy could go after the birds making them all fly away. WHAT IS WITH PEOPLE ANYWAY?????Interesting--there were no ditches on the beach like there was at the East end. One thing I like about the West Gulf beaches are the flowers growing on the dunes.As I was leaving the beach, nature presented me with one other beautiful sight--nice big puffy white clouds.

So--The Leash Law Doesn't Apply to Everyone????? RANT

We went for a walk on the beach this morning--along with a LOT of other people. As you may or may not know--Sanibel has a leash law. Every (or at least I thought every) dog must be on a leash at all times. So we are walking along and come upon a woman giving her black lab a drink of water. I noticed that it wasn't on a leash but I didn't say anything. So, the woman and her dog are following us. The dog is running all over creation. Running in the water. Running up to people. Running all over the beach. But I didn't say anything.

About a mile down the beach, there is an area taped off for a Snowy Plover nest. Sanibel has the only significant breeding Snowy Plover population in SW Florida.
We walked up to the taped off area where I took a picture of the sign. We looked and looked for the nest but they are very hard to find. Didn't find it. So we continued our walk on down the beach.

When I turned back to look for the dog again, there he was running through the taped off area!!! The woman yelled at him and he ran back to her.

We walked a bit farther down the beach then turned around to head back to the car. As we were heading back, some little kids were petting the dog and the woman was talking to them. I got up the nerve and told her that the dog should really be on a leash. She said that she knew this but he was a police dog in training and needed to run. When I mentioned that he had run through the Snowy Plover area, she said she didn't know why he did that--he never bothered the birds before. (Well I guess there is always a first time, huh?) I also nicely told her that she shouldn't let the beach patrol catch her without the dog on a leash. She very nicely responded that she knew the beach patrol person and that it was ok.

Soooooo--I guess the leash law doesn't apply to everyone--especially "police dogs in training." And---should a "police dog in training" be allowed to be so friendly with people? I know nothing about training police dogs but it would seem to me that you wouldn't want them all that friendly.

On the way back past the Snowy Plover area, we saw a couple of the birds out on the beach. I don't know whether these were the parents who got scared off the nest by the "police dog in training" or whether they were chicks.
I do know, though, that apparently leash laws don't apply to everyone!

Mid Morning Visitors

I took my book, my coffee and my camera out on the deck this morning. These were my visitors.

A Fantastic Gift

Dr. Amber, one of the vets at CROW, is an amazing artist. Each year she does a pencil drawing for CROW's Art Auction and each year her drawing goes for quite a large amount. Last year, she did a drawing of one of CROW's patients, a Gopher Tortoise, who was released. The person who won the bid gave the picture to Amber's father. He agreed to have some prints made and put them on sale in the CROW gift shop. I had to have one and bought it as a present to myself.

This year, Amber's drawing was of one of the 20 sea turtles who came into CROW during the January cold spell this year. The person who bought it at the auction this year gave it back to CROW to hang in the lobby of the new hospital. It is dedicated to the memory of one our our volunteers and staff members who died from Ovarian Cancer in February. I was hoping that again prints would be made. And they might be, I don't know.Last night was CROW's Volunteer Recognition Dinner. When we entered we were given a raffle ticket and were told that the winner would win a print of Amber's drawing. I was assuming it would be one of the gopher tortoise prints. Imagine my surprise when they announced that it was a print of the sea turtle. As they were preparing to call the winning number I said that I hoped they would have prints for sale because I was going to get one. Imagine my delight and huge surprise when they called my number as the winner!!! I was in tears when I got a hug from both Dr. PJ and Dr. Amber. Guess I don't have to buy one now:)

Duckie Drama or The Adventures of Donny and Marie

Those of you who are my friends on Facebook already know the saga of Donny and Marie but for those of you who don't--here goes!

A couple of weeks ago I was out on the deck filling my two bird feeders when who should come paddling along but a pair of duckies. I threw some birdseed their way and they thoroughly enjoyed it. Next day--same two came visiting so I threw them some more birdseed. (BTW--NEVER, EVER feed ducks, birds etc bread. Not good for them!) So about this time I'm thinking I need to buy some duck chow for them The closest place to get stuff like this is Futrals which is about 45 minutes away. We had to go in that direction anyway to get a couple of propane tanks so we stopped and I got a 50 pound bag of chow--the smallest I could get. So, next time the duckies came around I threw some chow in the water but near the shore for them. Boy did they love that!!So, by now, I'm thinking I should name them. I first went with Donald and Daisy but that just didn't seem good enough. Then I came up with Donny and Marie! Loved it. So, Donny and Marie would come back about 2-3 times a day for a handout. I've even caught them out there at 7:00 am! And Donny is such a gentleman. He always lets Marie have her fill first.

After our big monsoon a week ago, the city let some of the water out of the creek so that it was kind of low. Because of this we had many other visitors--Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, White Ibis and a Little Blue Heron. There was like a feeding frenzy going on and they were flying up and down the creek and from side to side. While I was out there watching, here came Donny and Marie fighting their way through the melee.A couple of days ago, I came home after a trip off island. As I got out of the car, I heard a commotion in the creek and Daisy came scooting up out of the water into the driveway. I had never seen them do this before. I wondered if she was so hungry she was now meeting me to beg or what. But, when I looked out into the water I saw Donny fending off a couple of other ducks--another male Mottled Duck and a Mallard. By the time I got my camera, Marie was back by Donny's side as Donny had successfully sent one of the males on his merry way and the other was at a distance looking on.
The next day, Donny was again agressively keeping the Mottled Suitor at bay. Donny loves his Marie and will defend and protect her to the end!

So, yesterday evening I went out on the deck and there is Mr. Suitor at a distance eyeing the food. Donny and Marie weren't there. The reason Mr. Suitor is at a distance was this guy! Apparently Mr. Turtle likes chow too. I guess Mr. Suitor didn't want to lose a leg by getting to close. Oh, and apparently another little turtle didn't want to lose any of his appendages either as he was lurking off to the side beside Mr. Suitor.Just then I noticed that someone else was watching all three. This didn't thrill me at all!!! I love this cat. He reminds me of my Shilo and comes to visit periodically but so help me if he goes after Donny, Marie or any of the other birdies out there, I will be very upset. So, that is the Saga of Donny and Marie--so far. Nesting season should be happening soon so I won't be at all surprised if someday they show up with a bunch of little Osmonds--oops I mean duckies. I'll keep you posted.