Image #230 – Caesar, the family goose

Meet Caesar, the large white goose standing between two of his harem members. Caesar is a Roman Tufted Goose and according to Wikipedia:

The Roman Tufted was developed for exhibition. Due to its small size it is not suitable for commercial meat production, but is well suited for weed control and as a table bird for small families making it good choice for a backyard flock.

“[A] table bird for small families. . .”!!?? Yikes! Well, this particular Roman Tufted Goose does not need to worry about such a end. Caesar has landed among a harem of three Tolouse geese at Mary’s farm in Sarasota. His job is enviable. He is to provide companionship, protection and, perhaps, an heir. He is a replacement for the recently departed Doodle who was excellent in all three required areas. Mary wondered if any goose could fill Doodle’s . . . webbed feet. Well, I am happy to say that Caesar has not only met the mark, he has surpassed it.

When I arrived in Florida last February Mary had only just gotten Caesar and wasn’t quite sure how things would work out. It’s the old Romeo and Juliet, Tony and Maria thing. Would Tolouse geese accept an, ahem, goose of a different color? Things were a little tense at the start but then Caesar led the gals to the pond and, well, let’s just say that geese like to do it in pond. Love ensued. Eggs were laid… 20+ eggs is the last count I heard. Of course not all eggs breed chicks but Caesar and the girls are working on that … clearly.

But the best part is that Caesar is a modern dad. Mary discovered him sitting on the nest a couple nights ago. She was quite amazed but we all know that Romans are definite familia-oriented. He is also definitely into protection. He attacked poor Tango on a couple of occasions, nipping his back end and inflicting no pain except for surprise. Tango would run away and Caesar would puff up, extend his wings and, if he could, crow. But geese can’t crow. They make the most awful noise and it would take one to love one. Thankfully nature, and Mary, has taken care of that. ❧

April 9, 2014 0

Image #229 – Fawn Hill spring

I’m back at Fawn Hill in western North Carolina where spring has arrived. You can almost feel the land exhale in a collective sigh of relief. Today it is cool and rainy but on Saturday we had a very nice day with sun and mild temperatures. Tango and I decided to take a walk in the neighborhood.

Green grass is popping up and Potts Branch, the stream in the center of this picture, is swelling with plenty of spring rain. The old shed up the street from our house seems warmer in the spring air but is still very foreboding to me. I half expect Jud Fry to walk out. If you’ve never seen the 1955 movie Oklahoma you won’t know what I’m talking about but I can tell you that Rod Steiger made a lasting impression on an eight-year-old girl and smokehouses still give me the willies.

But I digress. This is about spring! Nature celebrates spring in many ways and humans follow suit. There are some who make bold proclamations, like these magnificent blooming trees. They are, I think, bradford pear trees. I suspect their owners hold their breath every winter, praying that an ice storm won’t take them out. They seem vulnerable on the hill crest but they are beautiful.

Lots of people enjoy the forsyth bush. And why not? Anything that screams “Yellow” with such exuberance is okay in my book.

And daffodils are always in abundance. The previous owner of our land planted quite a few around the property but they are the miniature variety and most had faded by the time I got back. Down the road a bit, however, I found this great stand. So many eager faces, they make me think of children vying to be on camera.

So many beautiful flowers at this time of year.

And a final blossom, just peaking out, was found on one of our apple trees. It holds such promise. Yum, I can already taste their fruit. ❧

April 7, 2014 1

Images #224, 225, & 226 – Bunny’s 94th Birthday

I’ve written many times about my cousin Bunny. Yesterday was her 94th birthday and her son John put together a small party. He served one of Bunny’s favorites–Maine lobster! I can tell you that despite her age she still knows how to appreciate a Maine lobster. It brought back some wonderful memories of a long ago summer when my mother and I traveled to Vermont, where Bunny was living at the time, and we went out to a small restaurant with brown kraft paper for a table cloth and the best lobster I have ever eaten. But what was more delicious was watching these two women, my mother and cousin Bunny, expertly dissect those lobsters to get every possible morsel. It was masterful.

Bunny has a kind of dementia that makes it hard for her to retain short-term memory but she still enjoys a good party. Her dementia made for a couple of interesting moments during the party. John presented the lobsters and Bunny asked what was the occasion? When told it was her birthday she was completely surprised.

It gave new meaning to “surprise party.” 🙂

This was the first time I ever attended a party for a 94 year-old and how lovely that it was such a special lady. She’s got 94 years of memories in that head and she shared some of them last night. The present may not be that important anyway. There is a Simon & Garfunkel song called “Old Friends” with a lovely line: Preserve your memories/they’re all that’s left you. That’s something to think about. Let’s hope we can all smile this warmly when we are 94. ❧

March 27, 2014 3

Image #223 – Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis)

A Cattle Egret. One of my favorite birds. This one has his mating feathers and is very handsome indeed. The younger ones look very punish when their beautiful crown feathers start to fill in. They are aptly named and can often be found in pastures among the cattle. ❧

March 26, 2014 1

Image #222 – Ancient Oak/Ancient People

Tango and I came across this incredible, ancient oak tree while exploring at Myakka River State Park last week. The base of the trunk was enormous and I would estimate that it would take three people holding hands to encircle it. Its gnarly, pock-marked bark put me in mind of my cousin Bunny and a song that John Prine wrote and was covered by numerous people, including Kris Kristoferson and Bette Midler. Called “Hello in There” the lyrics go:

You know, Old trees just get stronger/Old rivers grow wider every day

But old people just get lonesome/Waiting for someone to say

Hello in there/Hello.

That describes my cousin Bunny perfectly. She will be 94 years-old tomorrow (March 26) and she has a form of dementia that is so hard, for her and us. She cannot retain any recent memory. She awakens and her mind is blank. She wonders where she is but when you tell her she cannot retain it. Things loop around continuously. I am very patient with her and have discovered that if you are patient enough (and she must be patient too) you can get some things to “stick.” Once that process happens you can dig deeper and things begin to emerge. She seems to have memories of 2005-2007 but not much beyond that. The fall that injured her pelvis and led her to the ALF occurred in 2010. So for 4 to 7 years she has been floating in the dream-like world wherein she frequently is driving and she awakens thinking she has just driven in from New England or “the boonies.” I asked her what the “boonies” are and she said “the Florida forest.” I wonder what images she is tapping into because she has been coming to Florida since the 1940s.

It is wondrous on many levels but on a basic human level it is very sad. Two days ago she got into a loop of asking if she had asked these questions before.

“Yes,” I reply.

“Today?” she asks.

“Yes,” I reply.

“Several times?” she asks.

“Yes,” I reply.

“Well,” she drolly replies, “that must be tiresome.”

I could only laugh … and hope the tears in my eyes don’t fall down my cheeks. ❧

March 25, 2014 0

Image #221 – Captive Bluebird

There was an unexpected visitor this morning. A bluebird got stuck in the pool cage! I can’t recall ever seeing bluebirds in Sarasota. The first one I saw was a couple of years ago in Laurel. But since staying at Mary’s I’ve seen several, at least three at a time. Hard to say if it’s a family settling in or just “snowbirds.”

We aren’t sure how this fellow got into the pool cage His mate was outside calling to him and he would answer–frantic, reassuring? Oh, to understand what birds say.

This shot displays his beautiful tail feathers.

And here is a good shot of his chest.

He safely escaped after we opened the door. I saw two bluebirds about an hour later as I walked Tango. I could swear one said, “Thank you.” 🙂

March 19, 2014 0

Image #220 – Flight pictures

Frequent visitors by now will have figured out that I take many pictures and only a small percentage reach this blog. I try to be discriminating but sometimes, I think, I may apply too high a standard. The picture above is a case in point. This was captured about a week ago. I was at a nearby park and saw these pretty birds “working” the area around the fence. The markings on this bird are quite distinctive but my reference resources are limited so I don’t know what kind of bird it is. Please, anyone, feel free to help me out.

When I sorted the pictures that night I lingered on this photo for quite a while because it is so dramatic. Birds are such awesome creatures of agility and I love pictures that capture their moves. I was going to post it but then thought better of it because it wasn’t “good enough.”

And then a fellow blogger — Bird Canada — posted a blog about flight and said, “in fact, a good picture can reveal things that go [by] too quickly if you are looking at it at normal speed (even after the fact on a video).” I immediately thought about this photo. Yes, it isn’t as sharp as I would like but it is a good picture because of what it reveals. It has caught this bird springing straight into the air from the fence, with his wings tucked and extended all at the same time. In the next moment, which I and the camera completely missed, he dove straight down in fast pursuit of a tasty morsel.

So, thanks Pierre for your wonderful photo-essay. Photographing birds in flight is not easy but even the less than perfect picture can be pleasing. ❧

March 17, 2014 5

Image #219 – Bachelor Button

This is, I believe, a variant of the Bachelor Button. At this time of the year they are scattered about Myakka River State Park, poking their heads through the brush. One amazing thing about these plants is the nautilus-like blossom crown which can be seen in the next picture. Another example of how patterns re-occur in nature. ❧

March 17, 2014 0

Image #218 – The Swamp Iris has Bloomed

The swamp iris have begun to bloom. Scattered throughout Myakka River State Park, they are a beautiful sign that spring is here … at last. Their botanical name is Iris virginica Southern Blue Flag but I have always called them Swamp Iris. Frequent readers of this blog have seen them before but, honestly, you can never see enough of them. ❧

March 11, 2014 1

Image #217 – No entry

These windows on an old Florida farm house caught my eye and imagination recently. There was a time when there were dozens of dilapidated, clapboard farm houses all across the Florida landscape but they are rapidly disappearing in the “new” Florida. I’ve photographed this particular house twice now. It’s still standing but doesn’t have much longer. To see more pictures from this shoot visit my Flickr set “Old Florida Farm Houses.” ❧