Just Winging It-May 13, 2013
Lots of activity today, but in the midst of it all, this little dragonfly paused long enough for me to snap a photo. Dragonflies are amazing creatures. They seem so fragile, yet their iridescent wings are strong because of the network of cross veins that run through them. There are some 450 species of dragonflies in the U.S., so it make take a while for me to come up with the name of what particular kind this one is. There are reportedly 5,000 different species worldwide, though most are located in the tropics. These exquisite creatures existed in prehistoric times, too. The largest fossil found had a wingspan of 2 1/2 feet – that really is a dragon-fly. Today, there is one species in Costa Rica with a wing span of 7 1/2 inches. That’s impressive, too, by today’s standards.
Snowy egret in flight
Things were hopping down at the watering hole today. We had everyone there–the great egret, as well as the snowy egret, the green heron, and of course my favorite yellow-crested heron hanging out in the weeds. To top my visit off, three mallards flew in right before I left for the day. Which reminds me,
Green Heron
I haven’t seen the female mallard for days now – maybe for as long as a week. Hmm…wonder where she might be, and what she might be doing?
Over by the boat dock, it was bath day again for the turnstones. They are such a joy to watch splashing about in the water. By the way, the flock has practically quadrupled in size since I first spotted them there. The initial sighting included only about six or seven.
Turnstone bathing
Today, there must have been at least 30 of them scurrying around. They seem to be enjoying the area quite a lot.