This week, we have a couple of subjects that help lead into further posts, at least one of which may come later on today – I’m starting to get a small stockpile again. So let’s get into it.
With the clearing of the duckweed, which may be due to the appetites of the ducks and geese, or the temperature dropping below their growing range, or both, the water is now clear enough that the wading birds can see prey within, and so at least one great blue heron (Ardea herodias) has been coming around – this image was from yesterday early morning, and the heron was already aware of my presence up on the deck better than 30 meters off. In a few moments, it stalked away from the tree out into the open, enough to take flight and head towards The Bayou.
I have to admit, this is pretty spooky for herons because I was much too far away to pose any threat, and it’s not like herons have a lot to fear from just about anything in the area regardless. Yet it was too much for this one, and so it left quickly, but not before I snagged a few frames.
Aaannndd it’s getting to be ‘that season,’ which is when the camellia (Family Theaceae) bushes start to bloom.
I have to admit, having winter-blooming flowers is a good idea, and I was surprised this past winter at how quickly the honeybees would find them as soon as it got anywhere near warm enough. This particular bush is the only one blooming so far, and it was the same last year; we have several others on the property and all are in bud right now, preparing to bloom on their own schedule. Does this mean they’re different cultivars/subspecies, or the conditions for this one are better, or what?
These are not the only thing blooming right now either, but what I will feature later on are things that are still blooming, one a little surprisingly. Getting back to the camellias, however, these are the kind of evergreens we can deal with, unlike the pines that have made their own little mark in this image, the needles draped across the branches (and across damn near everything else in the yard, despite the fact that we only have three pines at the edge of the property.) No sure why so many people in this state find the pines so appealing, but at least in this neighborhood, a lot of cypress and camellias were established to offset them a little…