Chachalaca bird in Buenavista, Quintana Roo
(Posted for Judy by Forgottenman.) Judy & Xill finally arrived at their casa rental in Buenavista late last night after some issues getting their rental car for the 2-hour drive from the Tulum airport. Photo is a This a Plain Chacalaca bird––noisiest bird in the world at least in La Manzanilla, but here they don’t seem to be making the same ruckus.
For JohnBo’s Cellpic Sunday
(Click on photos to enlarge.)
It would be hard to choose which sense is most stimulated by Mexico. I’ve written a few times about the sounds of Mexico as well as her flavors, but for me it is the visions of Mexico that top my sensory list of thrills. Time and time again, it has been color that has attracted the lens of my camera, but one morning many years ago, I exited Cafetto Saga and happened to look up at the monstrous “Egret tree” where egrets perch for the night and I was thrilled to have this opportunity to photograph white––not only the snowy perfection of egrets, but to also find that I was in a perfect location to photograph this mother and her chicks. The somewhat goofy appearance of the chicks offsets the elegance of the adults. I especially love the one of the chick stretched out to caress its mother’s beak. In fifteen years, I have never lost my excitement in viewing these graceful, gorgeous birds.
For RDP Wednesday, Gorgeous
Click on photos to enlarge.
I loved the bird photo by Johnbo, so had to send off three of my own favorite bird photos.
For Cellpic Sunday
I had just taken my last bite of Sweet and Sour Chicken in Min Wah, a popular Chinese restaurant in this part of Mexico, when I caught sight of this fellow diner, politely perched on the back of a chair between his two humans. He sat there without moving for the entire time, watching them enjoy their meals–hopefully of a less avian nature. I had to stop and talk to the humans on my way out. I neglected to get any names, but did learn that they had all cohabited for 32 years now. I told them of an African Grey I had once encountered as I walked through the local outside flea market in Santa Cruz, CA. He was on the shoulder of a man who wound up walking in front of me now and then most of the way, and off and on, had carried on a conversation that seemed impossible to me, even then. The bird seemed to understand what I said and to answer, as though we were carrying on a real conversation, and sometimes responded to my questions with questions of his own. When I told them this, they seemed unsurprised, as though this were common in the personality of African Greys. My human companion was patiently waiting outside for me to exit, so I garnered about 1/10th of the information I would have liked to have had the answer to, so I did a bit of research afterwards.
“Overall, African Grey parrots are highly intelligent and fascinating birds that are known for their exceptional cognitive abilities and their ability to mimic human speech. Their cognitive abilities have been studied extensively and they have been found to have similar cognitive power as a 4-year-old human child.” (From Dan’s Pet Care.) (From Judy: A study at Harvard found their reasoning ability to surpass that of a 5-year-old child! They live an average of 60 years, with some birds reaching 80 years old. Recently, the oldest known African Grey died at the age of 89.)
The whole dining family.
For Johnbo’s Cellpic Sunday.
Click on Photos to Enlarge.
I loved watching these birds bathing in this pool. Unfortunately, the photos of their actually splashing around didn’t come out as well as the ones of them perched on the rocks before or afterwards.
For the Whatsoever is Lovely Challenge
Many birds, but all seen on Nov 28 on a trip out to Scorpion Island in Lake Chapala.
For the Birds of the Week prompt
These fellows seem very at ease wandering through the town of Sheridan, Wyoming, this summer during the hottest week of the year. Here they stroll through the shade of my friend Duffy’s yard. Definitely not camera-shy. They were about as Cold Turkey as they could be during this snap when daily temperatures reached 110 degrees!
For the Bird of the Week prompt
Click on photos to enlarge.
From Lake Chapala to La Manzanilla to Alabama to Wyoming to the rainforests of Peru, I never met a bird I didn’t have to photograph. Here are a few of the long-legged ones, as directed by the prompt! Yes, I got carried away a bit.
Lifelessons
My perception see-saws between wonderment and worry,
all our lovely world devoted to such hurry
that in the furious ruckus, much is overlooked,
as if every second has been overbooked.
Take time to watch the sunrise and to hear the finch’s song.
Pick these things like flowers and carry them along.
Everything’s a lesson. All of nature is a book,
so between your rushing-offs, be sure to have a look.
(Be sure to click on the blue links in the poem to see the rest of the story.)
Prompt words today are wonderment, ruckus, see-saw, perception, lesson and sing.
lifelessons - a blog by Judy Dykstra-Brown 