Purple Gallinule

 

 

Most of the gallinules we see are common gallinules.

 

At Brazos Bend, there are purple gallinules.

 

Here is one in the brush.

 

One in the mud.

 

With huge feet for walking on lily pads.

 

Skulking.

 

Or not.

 

 

 

And sometimes swimming in salad.

 

Another wren visit when we were at Brazos

 

 

Carolina wren.

 

Inspecting the van.

 

She tried all the doors and even disappeared inside briefly.

 

She flew out and back a few times.  While she was out, we closed up the van before a nest could be started.  We’ve seen this movie before.  A few years ago here, a wren built a nest on a back ledge of an open slide on the coach in two days.

 

How many stories

 

 

 

Has the hole in this tree held…

 

Black Vulture

 

 

Liftoff!

 

Is this the best car commercial ever

 

 

Or what!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYuVpvA0nus

 

 

An armadillo

 

 

In the roadside undergrowth.

 

Rooting about.

 

Face buried.  Unconcerned about me.

 

Until finally, we get the shot.

 

 

The Kodak moment!

 

 

Three different butterflies

 

 

That look a lot alike.

 

The primary one is the monarch.  It’s really distinctive and is poisonous to birds because of the milkweed it feeds on.  All of its white spots are on the black edges.

 

A butterfly that looks a lot like the Monarch is the Queen.  It’s tasty but birds mostly avoid it because it looks like a Monarch.  It has white spots on the black edges, but they’re also on the colorful part too.

 

The third is the Viceroy.  It isn’t poisonous to birds but it’s very bitter because it eats willow leaves.  The white spots are on the black edges, but it has that black bar across the lower wing that the others don’t.

 

The Viceroy is the one we just saw at Brazos Bend.