Baton Rouge airport sky view

This is the scene at the Baton Rouge airport as we waited for our flight home.

Great Egret does a high five

How about a high five?

You always see egrets standing on their legs and rarely see them using them for anything else.  In this case, the Great Egret is getting ready to do some scratching.  It does, however, look like he's doing a high five.

The shot is from a small bayou at the edge of the Atchafalaya Basin in Louisiana.

Red-Headed Woodpecker

This Red-Headed Woodpecker was flying around City Park in Baton Rouge, unbeknownst to the kids having fun with more terrestrial pursuits. AllAboutBirds.com notes "These birds don’t act quite like most other woodpeckers: they’re adept at catching insects in the air, and they eat lots of acorns and beech nuts, often hiding away extra food in tree crevices for later."

Tree top egrets post watch

In Lacassine, LA, these two were posting watch at the top of the tree as their feathery fellows came circling in.  On the left is a Ibis, and on the right, a Cattle Egret.

Hot air balloons make the Moon Glow

A hot air balloon pilot release sa flare of fire into his eagle-shaped hot-air craft at the festival yesterday in Gonzales, LA.   We were there for the Moon Glow -- a show put on by several dozen of the big heat bags.   Quite a show.  Check out my post on New Orleans Daily Photo for another peak at the fun.

Heron "hand" stand

I don't know what the one-legged stand is all about. Perhaps this tri-colored heron is just practicing gymnastics with a goal of a run at the Featherlympics?

Smiley Gators

Well, snap my finger!  

It looked like a chorus line of Alligator mississippiensis.  They sat staring out at the crowds from their French Quarter shop perch.  They seemed almost to be saying "Come on, snap me up."
Okay, it was a bad joke, but I tried didn't I?
-steve buser

Aligators, New Orleans, French Quarter

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Giraffe ballet anyone?

A little giraffe ballet anyone?   These giraffes were just checking me out -- trying to guess if I was going to feed them or something.  I was standing about eight feet back from the fence at Global Wildlife Center in Folsom, LA. Nonetheless, the attendant wandered over and suggested that giraffes have a longer reach than that, should they decide to lean across.   I had no problem moving back.
--steve buser

Giraffes, Louisiana

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Egret -- just winging it.

A Great Egret takes a leap into the air and glides away from his perch.  The picture is from the Oil and Gas Park in Jennings, LA. His companion for the the morning, the Anhinga on the right side, doesn't give it much attention.
-steve buser>

Great Egret, Louisiana

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Sniping Stripes --Zebras zerks

My biggest surprise at Global Wildlife Center where we visited this past weekend was the orneriness of the Zebras.  They would push their way to the front nearthe wagon train we were in and then chase away any animal that would push on them.  We were warned not to feed them from our hands because they will bite -- apparently an expression of affection. Apparently, from the way I see it,  the stripes are just to a make them look more friendly.

--steve buser

Zebras, Global Wildlife Center

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Wildlife are happy to greet you

We had the grandkids and a bunch from Linda's family at the Global Wildlife Center in Folsom this weekend.  I don't think I have ever seen brighter kids' eyes thatn when they found out they got to feed giraffes, zebras and buffaloes and more.  It's a vast open range prairie that the animals roam freely.
--steve buser

Global Wildlife Center, Louisiana

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Great Egret,

This lone Great Egret (Ardea Albus) was ranging around the pond at the Oil and Gas Park in Jennings today. I managed to get in a spot, just behind a tree, that allowed me some camoflauge and a place to steady my shot.  He quickly found me, though, and took a couple stares right at me to check for threats.

The fishing wasn't so good, so he soon decided to head to his (seemingly temporary) nesting place in some bushes near the bank. 

What surprised me on this shot, was how limber you have to be, to be a Great Egret and keep your feathers straightened.
--steve buser

Great Egret, Ardea Albus, Louisiana

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Can I have a bite?

 
This is one of the gators at the Louisiana Gas and Oil Museum in Jennings, LA, where I stopped off the Interstate the other day. If I remember right, he is about 14 years old. It's a fun stop for kids and the whole family. The visitors center there is a great place to stop and learn more about the region and these guys.


This gator has just one question for you. "Can I have bite?" Fortunately, he can't get to you.


--steve buser

Come on, let me see you wash a tail feather

Bath time. Save these pictures for the next time the kids complain. Even ducks like to take baths. This fellow was ruffling his feathers at the Louisiana Oil and Gas Park in Jennings the other day. Several good long splashings later, he was ready to retire to the shade, straighten out his feathers and pick off the stuff that had come out.




Abraham Lincoln on this bird blog, Sunday, had a great little write up about this routine and more.

Stare-down -- Great Egret and Comorant

 
A Great Egret and a Comorant seem to be having a stare-down on the small lake at the Louisiana Oil and Gas Park in Jennings, Louisiana. The Egret flew off when he noticed me. A few minutes later the Comorant's partner swam up to it as if to plead with it to make a quick escape, also.


The I-10 park, which is midway between Baton Rouge and Lake Charles, is a great place to pull over for a break and a little scenery


--steve buser

Wind and water skimming

A Great Egret (Ardea alba) skims gracefully away over the water to find a better feeding spot. This is at the Louisiana Oil and Gas Park in Jennings where I stopped the other day for a break from my I-10 travels. Never one to miss a good shot, even on a bathroom break, I had to hold nature back while I ran back to the car to get my camera. Map

Driving down the sun

It's getting late. The sun is sliding from the sky. The road is getting longer. You're out over the Atchafalaya basin -- the 25+ miles of bridge with virtually nowhere to get off. Up ahead the bridge at Whiskey Bay rises straight into the sun... what's left of the sun.

It's going to be a long drive through the night.

--steve buser

Into the heart of the sunset

Heading into the sunset over the I- 10 Atchafalaya Basin crossing at Whisky Bay. The bridge is about a 25-mile crossing of the swampy basin. The Atchafalaya River is sister to the Mississippi in the Southern part of Louisiana. It would love to carry all of the Mississippi River's water to the Gulf, were it not for a gate structure built by the Corps of Engineers to prevent that.


I guess if that ever were allowed to happen, this bridge structure would have to be twice as long.


--steve buser

Steamy sunset

Low hanging clouds above, a retiring sun, a clear horizon and steam billowing from a plant combine for this effect. I caught this shot south of Lafayette, LA the other night as I was driving home from a trade show. A little bit different twist on the sunset genre. Seems to me the sun doesn't just use clouds to do his aerial art works. Like any good artist he likes to experiment with different media.


--steve buser

Arboreal art vs kids climbing land

Through the workings of storms and millions of little happy feet, the trees near the lagoon in City Park have been formed into very climbable works of art. The branches hang low enough that even the smallest of munchkins can climb aboard and pretend to be aerial arborists. But the tops of the tree, seem to want to distance themselves from all that and use their twisted limbs to wave Spanish Moss art at benched parents.

--steve buser