Prickly Poppies at QM

 

I came across these lovely Mexican prickly poppies at Quinta Mazatlan.

Just beautiful! 

Lovely, towering trees were all around.

And some other shady spots . . .

My First Hummingbird

My first hummingbird! 

I was able to get a photo of this gorgeous little hummingbird while walking at the Laguna Vista Nature Trail. What a sweet little thing! I hope to see more hummingbirds soon.

 

Kiskadee and Mockingbird

 

I enjoyed a nice walk today at the Laguna Vista Trail and was able to get some nice pictures of the greater kiskadee. I ran a few scripts on them for an artistic touch. It's cool to be able to get so many different looks out of one picture. 

Also saw a cute little mockingbird who seemed glad to pose for me.

Good Morning, Sun!

 

You know the saying - "Up with the birds?"

Well, today I was literally up with the birds, as I made my way to the beach to see the sunrise on the Jetties for the first time in months. 

As you may know, if you follow this blog, I came here to the Lower Rio Grande Valley because I have a lot of trouble with cold, so, while I'm still an early bird, I've been doing my mornings indoors ever since the first northerlies brought winter conditions to the LRGV. I have been waiting patiently for a time when the early morning temps would be at least 70 with no fog before going to see the sunrise. It made it to 70, but especially with that cool ocean breeze, it still feels cold to me. But I made it. 

The first seagull I saw was looking pensively at this little yellow rubber fishy (some people have rubber duckies, but here on the Jetties, you will occasionally find rubber fishies, unknowingly left behind by the fishermen), evidently trying to decide it if was just ornamental or actually a good breakfast food. He passed. 

A great blue heron was also out quite early, watching the fishing boats come in. 

Today, I was actually the first one on the beach, but before long, the first of the hearty fishermen and women were lining the Jetty. 

And then came the sunrise. There was no fancy show of colors, since the cloud cover was too much to allow for that, but rather, it was just a nice, golden glow. 

After the sunrise, I walked along the beach for a while, looking at shells, and then headed home. 

Those Friendly Cardinals

I haven't been feeling well (not Covid, but my regular health issues that I have dealt with for most of the last 35 years), so I have been sticking to the Walking trail close to home, rather than venturing out. 

Besides the buds, blooms, and blossoms popping up all over, there were more cardinals and woodpeckers out today, which made for a nice walk. 

I really like taking pictures of cardinals because they often seem to be looking right at me. 
It's so cute. I hope to see more. 

 

Buds, Blooms, and Blossoms

If you had asked me a year ago, I would have said that I didn't even think the southern tip of Texas had a winter, let alone a spring. I just thought that with temperatures rarely dipping below 50 or 60 - and almost always reaching at least 70 during the day - I would have just said it was just one warm climate. 

But after having been here almost a year, I can see that there definitely are seasons. They aren't as discernible as in Nebraska. It's not like one month all the trees turn and the leaves fall and that's it - A new season. 

I never really noticed the transition here. But one day, as I was driving to Brownsville, I looked around at all the dried up shrubbery and thought, "Was all of this always dead, or do I remember a lot more green?" And I noticed the palm fronds were turning a rusty brown color - still very pretty. I really hadn't noticed any of it happening. I was just so gradual. 

But now I'm definitely seeing signs of spring. Trees and cacti are budding. 

One spectacular clue is the vast array of little yellow flowerlets all along the budding trees of the Laguna Vista Walking Trail. I looked them up and they adorn the huisache (or sweet acacia) trees. 

And then, there are these sweet little evening primrose flowers are popping up all over the place. They seem to be like the dandelions of the deep south. 

Some of my photos are available on Fine Art America. 

Back to the Beach

After our cold February, things are finally warming up a bit, so I thought it would be nice to head out to the beach for a bit. It was nice to see the gulls again. I've missed them. 

The laughing gulls are my favorites and they were out today. I think a lot of the gulls and pelicans must have been lost to the freeze, because they certainly have been sparse. But I'm glad to see them around. 

I didn't stay long, since that cool ocean breeze is still a little too chilly for me. And the water is definitely too cold for my little feet. But I'll be back.