The morning was met with a threatening rainstorm on the horizon so the pier visit was cut short. Between the drizzly rain and the barrage of gnats, time spent on the water was short. However, in the few minutes allowed, I found a few bayou friends had gathered nearby. A dozen or so cormorants had settled in for the night and were just starting their morning feed fest. Most of these were juveniles that still had their grayish-white breasts. The birds were doing their usual "heavy swimming" with just their necks and very little of their backs above water.
Cormorants do not have feathers that repel water like ducks do. Their feathers often become waterlogged causing them to seek refuge on pier posts. There, they spread the wings and stand letting the wind and sun dry their bodies. This heavy swimming does allow the birds to do well with catching their meals. It has been said that having heavier bodies makes their diving easier. It does not, however, make taking flight easier. The birds have to do an awful lot of "water-walking" and wing-flapping to get airborne.
As I sat swatting gnats, I thought of how I am going to miss my friends. It is time for them leave the area. They visit here for the winter then head north to breed. Once all of the migrating waterfowl leave, the Bayou seems a tad lonely. At least, then, the gators and cottonmouths will be back to add a smidgen of entertainment. There is never a boring day when you can find amusement in just about anything. I do.
Watching the brown pelicans fly above the water, dive then take flight again is much like watching some well-choreographed dance. While they are rather awkward on land due to the position of their legs, these birds are some of the most agile fliers ever to exist! They can fly just inches above the water's surface, splash dive and immediately "water-walk" back into flight. The water-walking is their method of getting up and out of the water before takeoff. Brown pelicans sort of do a hop, skip and jump before lifting up from the water. Their wide wingspan (of about 7 feet!) propels them along nicely but folded can enable a quick dive. Speaking of their dives, contrary to what most folks think, they do not catch fish on the initial dive. The splashdown is merely to confuse any fish and send them in a panic. The bird actually sits and scoops up the disoriented fish in their huge bill. If you ever watch the birds, you will notice that the bills can hold gallons of water (and hopefully fish). After scooping, the pelican will point its bill skyward and allow the water to drain, all the while, keeping the fish inside.
Early this afternoon, Son and I headed to the pier to adjust the moorings of the small skiff. The stiff winds and heavy rains of late had pulled at the ropes and loosened the boat enough to cause problems. While he was securing the ropes, I watched the pelicans. Nine of the birds were diving in the shallow water. They were scooping the six inch long mullet that were seeking deeper water. The birds were definitely getting their bellies filled today!!
It is good to see the waterfowl coming back into the Bay and Bayou after all of the troubles caused by the opening of the spillways this spring and summer. Now, the area seems much more natural than earlier. Plenty of fish have returned which has caused the birds to come home again. Things are getting back to normal...good to see. Let's hope the officials make better calls next time.
Dawn is one of my favorite times to be on the pier. The serenity that comes after the darkness of night is refreshing, to say the least. Watching the sun peep up over the pines on the opposite shore of the Bayou is nothing short of miraculous. I can meditate a bit before facing the trials of the day.
Yesterday, Mark and I headed to the pier just in time to catch the sun trying to break through a heavy layer of clouds. In the distance a rain shower gave relief from the bit of a dry spell. We were hoping it would swing this way but it kept on its northward path. While we were watching the eastern sky, a small bird swam out from the shore and kept a wary eye on us. This was a pied-bill grebe. These birds would rather dive than fly to get away from potential predators. They do what is called a "crash dive" where they plummet themselves beneath the water and swim for a good distance before bobbing up again. Pied-billed grebes are known to be able to trap water in their feathers to help with buoyancy. This allows them to sink deeply and expose just a bit of their body as they scan the area for predators. Sometimes, you will only see a small head above the water's surface.
Pied-billed grebes are also known for eating a good many feathers. They will actually feed feathers to their chicks. This is to create a block against harmful fish bones or spiky fins from reaching their intestines. The feathers make a plug around the sharp items and the bird regurgitates it much like a cat does a hairball.
The little grebe made our morning even nicer. Being near the wildlife on the Bayou is another part of what makes living here special. Getting to know the critters and their habits has become an interesting pastime. My critter friends bring plenty of smiles. Life is good.
In a matter of a few days, the Bay went from being almost barren of waterfowl to being dotted with hundreds of birds. While the "locals" are still here, newcomers are flying in quickly. Our locals being the herons, pelicans, egrets, geese, terns and gulls are joined by the cormorants, ducks (quite the variety!), loons and mergansers. I love them all but have to admit being rather partial to the little mergansers...especially the Hooded Mergansers. These birds are beautiful! Although, the hoodies are a smallish bird compared to other ducks, they have lots of character!
This evening, one hoodie stayed close to shore while all of the other birds were far out in the middle of the Bay. At first, I wondered if the little one was ill or maybe hurt but those fears were soon laid to rest. My little friend was merely feeding in the shallows. With the north wind blowing the tide far out from the shoreline, minnows and shrimp that normally stay in the marsh and bayou cuts were an easy target for the hoodie. He was happily filling his belly!
Welcome back, my little, winter friends. You are always welcome here on the Bayou. I hope your stay is pleasant!
Yesterday afternoon, Mr. PJ and I had a new visitor at the pier. The small Green Heron entertained us with his fishing techniques. His use of lures (bits and pieces of marsh grass) was pretty ingenious but my interest was more in the fact that he was using a "plunge" technique instead of the usual stalking. Green Herons are pretty versatile birds to be able to swap up their methods to suit the need.
Today, however, yet a different heron came to visit. While Mark was throwing the net to feed our resident Great Blue Heron, Moe, a sudden flutter of wings shifted our sights to the newcomer. A graceful Yellow-crowned Night Heron had flown to the pier. It seems that the place is becoming quite popular with the herons, lately!
The Yellow-crowned Night Heron is one of my favorites. While this bird does not employ the intelligent techniques of the Green Heron, its grace and beauty make it worth watching. Despite its name, the Yellow-crowned Night Heron often hunts during the daytime hours. It will quietly fly into an area, pick a spot that is slightly secluded and, then, wait for prey to come to it. The smallish bird feeds mainly on crustaceans but has no problem taking a fish, frog or insect if the opportunity arises. The Yellow-crowned Night Heron has also been known to feed upon small turtles as its stomach secretes an acid that can dissolve the shells.
You just never know what will visit the Bayou! Each day is a new adventure if the time is taken to observe the surroundings.
About a week ago, my cousin sent me a video of a bird swimming in the shallows of a small inlet by her house. "What is this, Cuz?" she asked. Looking at the bird, it was hard to identify positively but once the bird called, I knew right away. "A loon! Rather a Common Loon." was my answer. Knowing that these birds should have been long gone from the area, she and I fretted over the health of the bird. This past December, a loon had been seen with a fish hook lodged in its bill and another in its wing. The two hooks were connected by a steel leader so there was no breaking loose. All efforts to catch the loon were futile and the poor bird suffered greatly. Now, this bird appeared to be having problems.
As the week progressed, the loon stayed near. Some mornings, it was at our pier and others, it was back at her place. She and I both worried that something was not right with poor bird. Never did we witness that the loon was fishing. It could dive well and did preen but we never observed it feeding. We were both in hopes that perhaps the bird just needed rest before heading northward to be with the other loons.
This morning, however, my cousin sent another photograph. This one was saddening as the bird had perished during the night and its lifeless body was floating in the inlet at her place. While neither of us could call this bird our "pet", we were both disheartened to learn of its death. If only there was something that we could have done to preserve the bird's health. While I do not believe the two loons mentioned above were one and the same, I do find it strange that we lost two of these fine birds within a matter of months. Hopefully, this death was just a fluke of nature and not something that could have been prevented like the one in December. That deathtrap was caused by the sheer stupidity of some so-called fisherman. Rest in peace, Little Loon, rest in peace. Your plaintive wails will be missed during the nights on the Bayou.
I guess we truly are creatures of habit. Mark and I almost never miss a morning hike to the pier. More oft than not, this walk will take place with camera and a mug of coffee in hand. There is nothing better than starting the day with a piping hot cup of coffee and a sunrise. Things just always seem to go smoother after starting the day as such. The camera is always with me just in case some fantastic critter wanders into view. One (or more) usually does!
On our way down the pier, we both noticed a rather large bird perched at the end. While it was not as large as a Great Blue Heron, it was much bigger than the Yellow Crowned Night Heron. This had to be one of two things...a Little Blue Heron or a Tri-colored Heron. I was betting on the Tri-colored. The stature of the bird led me to this conclusion. I made mention to Mark that if the bird had a white belly, then the identification could be deemed accurate.
As we strolled to the end of the pier, the bird took no notice of us. For the longest time, it sat without moving. Then, when we were just a few feet from it, the bird flew to one of the pier posts. Yep! I was right! A white belly could clearly be seen when the bird was in flight! That identifying trait could not be wrong. Tri-colored Herons are the only dark heron in the Deep South with white underparts. With its blue-gray upper parts and white underbelly, the bird can easily be identified. This bird also has reddish plumes on its lower back and throat area during the breeding season.
It is good to see the vast variety of waterfowl around the Bayou. As long as the birds stay, it is a sign that the Bayou and Bay are healthy areas with plenty of foodstuffs and nesting sites. With the encroachment of housing plots threatening the very existence of the Bayou, it scares me to think that some day, the area will not be as I know it now. I sure hope this never happens. I shall miss my critter friends.
There are several cormorants hanging about the Bayou recently. They, along with other waterfowl, have flown in to spend the winter with us. I am sure that just about now, they are wondering why in the world they ever left their summer home as the weather has not been exactly agreeable with their migration. Things will change soon and they will be happy that they made the flight. In the meantime, the cormorants are happy campers with the Bay full of little fish. Feeding time is easy.
While most folks think that cormorants are strange birds and are not too pretty, I find them "strangely beautiful". Even though the birds often appear to be jet black, their feathers are actually iridescent. If the sunlight hits the feathers in a certain way, the bird is gorgeous! While their plumage is quite notable, it is their eyes that I find captivating. If you ever manage to get close enough to come "eye to eye", you will notice that cormorants have bright greenish blue eyes. The teal color stands out against their dark feather with a certain flair! These eyes sparkle like jewels! The eyes are set off by a bit of reddish orange around the face. AND...the cormorants' throats are blue on the inside! Imagine that! If you ever had the chance to peer down the gullet of a cormorant, you would find it bright blue!
While I never have the chance to come face to face with the cormorants, I am happy they call the Bayou home during the winter months. It makes me happy to have them around....even with their weird bird design!
