Sunday in Paradise

It's a beautiful Sunday morning and I am sitting out on the lanai watching a little Tricolored Heron fish for his breakfast. Bill is off to the last day of the Gathering of the Giants airshow at the R/Seahawks Park on Cape Coral and Mike and Mel are sleeping in.

We all attended the airshow yesterday and they had a wonderful turnout with lots of fabulous planes. The weather was perfect in the morning - but the wind picked up a bit in the afternoon. Fortunately, the wind is not as much of a factor with these planes.

Bill had the camera for the day so these are some of the pictures he took.

Most of the planes were fueled by gasoline - not the electric - battery powered - ones that Bill flies. There were also a few jets.

One of the young instructors, Alex, flew a demonstration that was mind boggling. He made that plane stand still just a few feet over the runway and did flips and loops like I'd never seen before.

Earlier in the week, we took what was probably our last trip to Six-Mile Cypress Slough this season. I'm never disappointed with our walks there - and I always see something new. I don't remember ever seeing a Wood Stork at Six-Mile before - but I'm sure it's a good fishing spot for them.

The Tricolored Herons are quite a bit smaller than the Great Blue Herons. I think I finally have them straight in my mind. We watched this Tricolored from one of the boardwalk observation decks.

Love is in the air - a beautiful pair of Red-shouldered Hawks in the trees.

Mel, Mike and Bill. We are fortunate to have Mike and Mel as house guests until Wednesday when they will head back to their home on Table Rock Lake in Missouri.

This time of year even the common Ibis are gorgeous. Just look at how bright red his bill and feet are!

You can really see the lime green facial skin on this high breeding adult male Great Egret.

I never get tired of looking at the Great Blue Herons.

We heard this Carolina Wren's melodious song long before we finally located him sitting on a Cypress Knee in the underbrush.

Even the common Brown Anole are showing their colors.

How could I visit the Slough without taking a picture of this wonderful Anhinga showing off his fancy wings?

Back over on Cape Coral we are finally seeing some of the baby Burrowing Owls outside their deep burrows. This little guy has huge black eyes - unlike the adults that have yellow eyes - and a fluffy buff-colored chest. He will get the darker markings when he is a little older. I'm glad Mom is keeping a close eye on him!

Lots of Pictures!

Yesterday we took our friends to one of our favorite places - Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. It was VERY crowded with photographers everywhere. The cameras looked liked like they were competing to be the biggest, longest and best.

Just look at these cute raccoons peeking out from a hollow tree. There were so many photographers lined up on the boardwalk to take their picture - it was a circus. Every time one moved - all you could hear were clicks. I hope they all got great shots!

This is a Barred Owl sleeping in the woods. I wish I could tell you I spotted him - but even after being told he was there by one of the naturalists, I had trouble locating him. At almost two feet tall, you would think he'd be easy to spot but he blended in very well with his surroundings.

The staff had a scope set-up to view the owl better and Bill shot this photo through the lens. (I really need to get him his own camera!)

As usual, we saw lots of White Ibis. This is a young Ibis - just beginning to turn from brown to white.

I can't decide whether I like the foreground or background best in this picture! The bird is a Great Egret - but just look at the reflections in the ripples of the water!

Pretty flower. It's hard to remember that it's winter down here.

This is a blue-gray Gnat-catcher. We saw quite a few during our walk but they are hard to photograph because they move around so quickly. I don't know if Bill or I took this shot. Most of our shots were of blurred leaves.

This is a Black-crowned Night Heron, but again, I can't decide if I like the bird or the background best! I love the blues and greens. Even the way-out-of-focus branches that look like bright spots seem right in this shot

I spotted this green Anole eating an insect. These small lizards come in two colors - green and brown. We have the brown ones by our house.

Mel was standing on the side of the boardwalk and motioned for us to look behind her. This guy was about 7 or 8 feet long and close enough that we could almost pet him!

Just look at this beautiful air plant! The blooms are exquisite - very exotic looking!

We also drove through Ding Darling on Sanibel Island. I was pleased to see the White Pelicans are still there - but the Roseate Spoonbills have moved on.

This Morning Glory looks right at home among the Sea Grape leaves.

This Tri-colored Heron was running and hopping in the shallow water looking for food.

Just a pair of friends out to dinner! The Ibis would peck in the water and the gull just hoped he would stir up more than he could eat!

This picture was taken from a gas station lot. It's kinda sad seeing this Snowy Egret sitting on trash - but it's better than not seeing him at all!!

And today is another beautiful day in paradise...