White-Faced Ibis, Moorhen feed together at Beaumont's popular wetlands marsh

A White-Faced Ibis and a Common Moorhen (the smaller black bird on the right) scour the shallow waters of the  Cattail Marsh Scenic Wetlands & Boardwalk
in Tyrrell Park on the South side of Beaumont, TX.
The pair was visible from the boardwalk that stretches over the artificial marsh, giving birders and naturalists a good view of the habitat of wild birds.

Swamp guards alert birds that photographer is in the swamp.

While I was out shooting at the Cattail Marsh Scenic Wetlands and Boardwalk in Tyrrell Park in Beaumont, TX, these Black-Necked Stilts would be quick to spring from the marsh and to warn other birds that I was a threat.  They would fly throughout the nearby marsh screeching their warning.

They would also fly over me to take a good look and apparently to let other birds know of my presence.  It was a behavior I had seen in other areas, but these watchbirds were much more aggressive.

I don't know how this Red-Winged Black Bird found something strong enough to hold him up in this sea of young plants out on Pleasure Island. But he grabbed hold of two stalks -- on in each leg and sent a message by looking up. However the wind was brisk and after a few minutes he gave up his King on the Flowers position.

I was out at Cattail Marsh and caught this group of mud brothers trying to dry out with very little sun to share.

Glowing sky is a glimmer of hope for rain swamped SE Texas

A soft glowing sky settles over Beaumont, TX -- hopefully a sign of better times to come as the region tries to recover from the torrential deluge with which Harvey swamp our area.

Fire-breathing sky

A fire-breathing sky  in Beaumont, TX settling in for the night.

Sunset: Flecked, brushed, hatched and pied

Flecked, brushed, hatched and pied, this sunset from last week caught my eye as it gave calm comfort to the ending of a busy day.

Calico shore bird turns escape artist

We were down on Bolivar Peninsula checking out the pre-storm conditions (with Hurricane Harvey moving up through the Gulf of Mexico) when I shot this photo of a Rudy Turnstone.  Because of the bright conditions, I didn't notice at the time that this guy had gotten snagged in what looks like a remnant from a net.  I checked the photos I took after this and notice that he did finally get free from his bondage.

Clouds circle around as storm builds

This was a look at an interesting circular cloud on Sunday.  The first view was as we were driving home from the north side of Beaumont. and the second was at our house, just moments before the heavy rain started coming down.

Setting sun can't quench boiling mad storm

This was part of the thunderstorm that violently boiled up over our house at sunset yesterday.  The storm dumped about two inches of rain as the daylight faded.

This is a sunset shot taken from a I-10 overpass on the south side of Beaumont. Tropical Storm Cindy probably had a large hand in the color scheme -- tropical systems seem to make sunsets more interesting as the systems approach

So just a couple hours before our pool party this weekend, Linda sees this guy taking a swim and asks me to get him out. Not wanting to hop in I went for the net. He apparently sees what's coming and hops out (guess he got all his laps in and decided to call it a day).

Flittering Giant Swallowtail butterfly adds lift to birthday party

This flitter was fluttering around at a birthday party for three of our grandchildren yesterday. Because of her size she made quite an impression -- She appears to be a Giant Swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes).

Feathery sunset watchers of Bolivar Peninsula

The suns sets over East Bay on the Bolivar Peninsula ( on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico) while a Brown Pelican and a Gull take up their sunset posts at the dock by the Stingaree  Restaurant and bar to enjoy the view.

Sky flying wrestlers

A wrestler takes a flying leap at his opponent -- seeming to flaunt his personal safety -- at a Mexican festival in downtown Beaumont.

Fire-filled nightfall on Bolivar Peninsula's East Bay

A fiery sun slides into East Bay off Bolivar Peninsula as the boat docks grow quiet for the night.

Sundown's last cast at Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge

A wading fisherman takes his last cast at Frozen Point in the Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge as the sun's rays take their last skips across East Bay.

Mellow marsh menagerie on display on Gulf-side boardwalks

The walkways over the marsh at Sea Rim State Park give an up-close view of these "next-to-the-Gulf" habitats.

Long-billed bird wave feeding at Sea Rim State Park

This Long-Billed Curlew was one of our finds at Sea Rim State Park this week.  The Gulf of Mexico beach is a great place to see a variety of birds all feeding together in between the waxing and waning waves.

Duck doesn't duck out of the way very fast

This duck didn't seem to be in as big a hurry as his fellow Coots, which explains why I was able to get a good shot of him. The white dots on his back are water droplets -- left over from his morning  task of dunking over and over into the water for food. The shot is from the Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge's Shoveler Pond Auto Tour loop -- a five-mile nature drive with lots of waterfowl, hawks, herons, alligators and more.  The Refuge is located in Chambers County, Texas. You can drive the path or get out and walk part of it for a better view. There are several boardwalks and paths into the marsh.

There is no entrance fee. They have maps at the Visitors Center at the front gate. See fact sheet here (pdf file).


The refuge's Headquarters/Visitor Center is east of Houston. It is located on FM 563 approximately two miles south of I-10 (exit 810).

See the maps section of the refuge website for additional directions.

The address is 4017 FM 563, Anahuac, TX  77514.

Head twisting lizard gives me the twisted eye.

This young lizard was hiding out in our canopy in the back yard.  I think the green color made him think it was a tree.

If you look at the images below,  he was watching me with his right eye.  In image two, he begins to twist his head. In image three, he has his head twisted all the way around to see me with his left eye.  It was as if he had to give each eye a chance to figure out if I was going to spoil his nap.

Sprinkle bedazzles morning flowers

These beauties woke up to a morning shower that added some shine to their faces.

Nest on electric panel has been source of joy, mourning for dove

This Mourning Dove has been returning a couple times a year for the past few years to this spot above our electric panel on the side of the house. It has been perilous a a few times when storm winds blew the nest and chicks to the ground.

She abandoned the nest a week or so ago while we were away.  The nest is still there and we expect her back in the Spring.

Playful, plashy platform brings pleasure to fun-seeking Yogi fans

This splashy, swashing sentry in the middle of the splash pad at Yogi Bear Jellystone Campground in Waller is the scene of excitement for kids and smiles for grown ups. We took some of the grand kids camping there this summer and got them hooked on water parks.

Storm monsters charge at us with empty threats

For the second night in a row, the storm monsters charged at us from the northeast, eating up the sky, but became cold and sleepy before they could dump their left overs on us.

We did get a great dark-falling breeze out of it.

Night-fall boast by rushing storm

This night-fall-rushing front blowing off from a thunderstorm over Beaumont didn't bring any rain for our area, but sure boasted it wanted to.

Remembering Hurricane Rita

This was the part of the scene of destruction from Hurricane Rita in Southeast Texas, 10 years ago today.

Watchful white-winged dove

As long as I kept a reasonable distance, this white-winged dove in my backyard didn't mind me snapping a few shots.

Grackles grapple with glass of goodies

The guy on the bottom seems to be saying "I tell you there's a way to get those seeds out.  I saw that little bird do it.  It CAN be done."  (They didn't figure it out.)

Gull glides by looking for lunch

This friendly fellow flew by me slowly several times as I was at Walter Humphrey State Park on Pleasure Island shooting pictures.  I guess he was wondering why I was throwing him some of the fish I caught (I wasn't fishing).   I don't know what the hanging leg was all about.  Maybe it was in case I tried to some of his food or something.

Ominous clouds can't deliver on rain threat

This was the weather system that blew past our neighborhood last night. Ominous as it might look, it was all bluster and no rain.  The air cooled down to about 80 degrees, and it turned breezy  -- but not even a sprinkle.

Black Skimmer in flight over Port Arthur

Skittish as they were, I was still able to catch this shot of a Black Skimmer while I was in Port Arthur Sunday.  As soon as they saw my head over the bushes, the squawking got visible louder and sharper.  However, a few of them flew past where I was standing. That's how I snapped this photo.

Black Skimmers having summer beach party in Port Arthur

Daragh Castillo posted on her Facebook page that Mary Meaux with the Port Arthur News had taken a photo of some black skimmers in Port Arthur.  Since I had never seen black skimmers, I took a ride down there and found these guys.  There were about 30 of them, but it was hard to get them all in the photo.  In fact, it was hard to get a picture at all -- they were so wary.

As soon as my head popped over the bushes, the call went out and they took flight. A white bird, not a black skimmer, was doing the watch-out duties and kept flying over my head and squawking -- just in case any of the black skimmers needed to know where the enemy was.

The photo below shows why they are called "skimmers" -- they fly just inches off the top of the water and all they have to do is open their beaks. The beak easily scoops up what they are after in the water.

Both pictures were taken on a sand bar beach on Pleasure Island just to the right about 200 feet where the bridge road drops out on Hwy 82.

Feather-flustered grackle

Size does make a difference.  This grackle was frustrated because he couldn't fit on the small lip around the bird feeder and all of his blustering and puffing was to no avail.  The smaller birds were thrilled to see him fly off feather-flustered.

Dragonfly defends his territory, but puts up with photographer

This dragonfly and I had a long visit, as I tried to photograph him with a short lens.  As I moved closer, he had a certain distance of comfort.  If I came into that space, he (she?) would take a short flight to assess the danger.  But in a few minutes he would be back on his perch. I suppose this stick gave him the best vantage point to watch over his neck of the ditch.  

There was another dragonfly (that had the same color markings) nearby.  But this guy made sure he stayed a couple yards away.

I suppose his little area was a prime one for hunting.  The stem was about a foot and half off the water of the ditch.  But the water was very high from recent rains.  I wonder if he will move when the water goes back down.

Wet Hibiscus Flower

When the sprinkler finished, I spotted this opportunity for a photo of this hibiscus.

Black-Bellied Whistling Duck duo dodges danger

This pair of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks were out on the Brentwood Golf Course but flew off in the direction of our house.  As we were walking home, I noticed they had taken to the safety of the top of neighbor's house.  According to eBird reports, this is about as far north as they are see in our area. They are more commonly see at the Terrell Park Cattail Marsh.

Green lynx spider lurks across sunflower

This gal was pretty conspicuous as she walked across the sunflower petals  -- from that, I assume he is pretty much at the top of the food chain in the sunflower petals realm.  I'm thinking this is a green lynx spider -- and she has a venomous bite, though it's more painful than dangerous to humans.

One of the things I love to watch on Galveston Island is the pelicans flying in formation.  They are taking advantage of aerodynamics to conserve energy -- getting a little lift from the pelican in front and a little to the side of them.

Their dawdling drift down the beach will put you in a mood to slow down and watch.

Sunflower-- the Dance of Spring

A sunflower will emerge, but it this moment, the orchestra is playing the Dance of Spring.

A yellow feast for a yellow jacket

A yellow jacket must get completely delirious when he sees a feasting field like this.  Colors on flowers probably help the buzzers to find the better varieties of nectar.  This white flower, however, must be fast-food giant of the nectar industry -- "We got it. It's yellow and it's yours."

Gulls gamble for ferry throws

"Come on dude, off my back, I was here first.  This ferry boat food is mine."  This shot is from a ride across the Galveston to High Island ferry.

Dark ferry ride conjures up phantom ships

Continuing from our ferry trip post of yesterday -- As we pulled out of Galveston Island's ferry dock, heading back to the Bolivar Peninsula,  the ship above passed by us, seeming a dark phantom on the water.  It seemed strange to only have the light from our ferry illuminating the silent somber shadow as it slid by.  However, out into Galveston Bay we were passed by another indistinct, light-less hulk that was even harder to distinguish except as it passed between us and the lighted shores. The cabin and deck lights were all off.

Though I had taken the ferry many times, this was my first night-time ride, and it was well worth the trip.