By the Light of the....Sea Nettle?

Ms. Ez and I headed to the pier late this evening to watch the sunset.  We had watched it rise this morning and thought it was the thing to do to watch it set again.  We had to make sure the sun went to bed..no staying up late for it!  Anyway, all joking aside, while we were on the pier, we watched all sorts of activity going on around us.  The pelicans were diving for mullet.  Their loud splats could be heard from all directions.  They were obviously feeding heavy to pull them through another cold night.  There were masses of ducks on the Bay having migrated in from the North.  I counted six different types just among those that were near enough to identify.  Most stayed a good distance out from the pier as they were not sure of our presence.  Ms. Ez being a Labrador Retriever might have sent red flags up to the duck population.  Perhaps the ducks thought that we were hunters waiting to shoot at them.  Not so..the only shooting I planned on doing was with my camera...and Ms. Ez?  She would have argued that the water was too cold for a swim!  This is no hunting dog for sure!

After the sun had set and the night sky was growing quite dark, I noticed something with a faint glow in the water near the pier.  Investigating, I soon came to recognize a familiar shape.  Jellyfish!  Sea Nettle!  Stinging Nettle!  All one and the same, a bright, rosy-red blob undulated in the water.  The tide was falling so the critter was going along for the ride.  Any tiny ripple in the water caused to Jellyfish to glow a bit.  Last night I talked about the not-really-glowing eyes of animals but tonight was different.  Jellyfish do give off light..they do not just reflect.  This blob of stinging tentacles actually glowed enough for me to take pictures in the waning light!  I was able to photograph the Sea Nettle as it floated in the water!

I watched for a bit while the Sea Nettle drifted by the pier.  Once it disappeared under the planking, I decided that it was high time for me to make my way back up the board path to the Little Bayou House.  I needed to gather a small handful of kindling on the way as I knew that by now, the house was growing cold. Ms. Ez and I hurried up the hill snatching twigs as we hustled!  Well, I did...she chased a rabbit.  If only I could train her to get the firewood.....hmmmmm?  Idea...ponder..ponder....