BUTTERFLIES ARE FREE

(JULY 17, 2010) Last night on PBS there was a program out of North Carolina about butterflies and moths. I had often wondered what the difference was, and the expert lepidopteroligist (one who studies butterflies and moths - a new term for me, too) made it rather vaguely clear what the differences were.

He said that one of the main differences is that moths come out at night and butterflies come out during the day (well, he qualified that by saying, in most cases this is true). He also pointed out that the antennae of the butterflies have small balls on the tips (well, he qualified that by saying, in most cases this is true).

What I saw this morning were butterflies, I'm 100% sure. They were out in the day time and their antennae had small balls on the tips.

As the butterflies flittered among the flowers, Sadie seemed to be enthralled by the beauty. I just kept snapping pictures.

Later in the day Sadie and I went to Angler's Park after the heavy rain. We had walked about a half mile and saw large puddle. Sadie danced across the puddle and a butterfly, just like the ones we had seen this morning, flew up. Sadie immediately jumped at it, missed, jumped at it again, and missed again. This seems to be a day filled with butterflies, and when a day contains butterflies, it proves to be a beautiful day.



(CLICK ON PICTURE TO SEE THE ANGER OF THE BIRD MORE CLOSELY)

At about the same spot we had seen the butterflies, there was a mockingbird that wasn't too happy that we had stopped to watch the lovely insects in the tree. As often happens, mockingbirds are a bit temperamental - they have been known to dive-bomb passers-by and will, at least fuss at someone who has wandered too near the nest. This morning was no different, but this morning I captured the intolerance the bird showed for the two sojourners who had wandered too close to a nest.

We moved on since we didn't want to irritate it any more, and Sadie, who had once been dive-bombed by a mockingbird flying close to her head, was a little anxious and relieved when we finally continued our morning adventure.

Beautiful butterflies in a mimosa tree and an angry mockingbird in a poplar tree made for another good day on the Riverwalk.

OUT OF FOCUS/IN FOCUS

(JULY 16, 2010) This morning as Elizabeth, Sadie and I entered the dark woods from the parking lot, Elizabeth said, "Look. A deer."

There within 30 yards of us was a single small deer walking by the water. I lifted by camera, aimed and took several shots. ALL WERE OUT OF FOCUS, and the deer climbed the bank and disappeared into the woods.

Disappointed? Yep, kinda. However, there will always be new pictures to take along the Riverwalk like the mockingbird on the fence (out of focus) and the geese on the shore (out of focus). However, even with those few out of focus shots, I still got some good pictures this morning on the Riverwalk.

There were three young sparrows on a tree - very cute little guys looking at me as I was looking at them. There was a dragonfly that flitted from railing to railing on a fence, and trying to take its picture was not helped with a dog on the end of a leash.

We were late enough going out that the sun was up. Along with the birds, when the sun comes up, the butterflies come out. There were a number of butterflies around the flowers and on the fences. Sadie often points them out to me as she goes into her pointing pose. As she points, I get closer and take pictures. The light was nice this morning since I got some good color; some mornings, when the sun is too bright, the colors are faded by the light.

By taking a few hundred pictures every day on the Riverwalk, I end up with some that are pretty good. However, I also end up with a much larger number that are out of focus or just bad shots.

It was another good morning on the Riverwalk.

VARIOUS SHADES OF WHITE

(JULY 15, 2010) WHITE. The beautiful color of Tiffany's wedding gown. WHITE. The color of geese on the river. WHITE. The color of snow in the winter.

I heard that, actually, pure white is the absence of color. No other colors can be combined to form white. I don't know if that is true or not (probably is), but I saw several different shades of white this morning on the Riverwalk. But, are there actually "shades" of white? I don't know, but I saw what I thought were different shades of this absence of color.

Each day when I go to the Riverwalk, I see something I haven't seen before. This morning was very special in that I saw what appeared to be a white sparrow. It was hanging out with a couple of other sparrows and was, I assume, a sparrow. I thought, at first, that it was an albino sparrow, but when I saw the pictures, it didn't have pink eyes, which, I think is a common trait of albinos. Perhaps with was a hybrid - kind of the Prius of the bird world. I have inquiries out to those who know more than I do so that I hope I will soon know what this bird is. It was white almost a pure white.

Early on our walk I saw some very small mushrooms growing in the grass. There were not true white, but a grayish white with some areas whiter than others. The pattern of the mushroom, with its ridges, is intriguing.

Later I saw a group of turtles sunning themselves on a large tree in the middle of the river. What caught my eye there was not the white shining turtle in the morning sun, but the yellow turtle. I'm not sure if the turtle was yellow because of the sun shining on it a certain way, if the turtle was yellow because of some natural coloration in its shell, or if the turtle just forgot to brush this morning. The white turtle had a grayish white and was eye-catching, but the yellow turtle was truly unique.

Finally, I see the white and purple flowers everyday while walking on the Riverwalk. However, it was this morning that I observed the purple and white merging to form a purplish white, another shade (or tone?) of white.

And, finally, I saw a white goose feather in the sand. The geese look show shiny white along the river, but this feather had been soiled with dirt. Though it retained its form as a feather, it had lost what seemed to be the pure white of the geese.

A white sparrow, groovie mushrooms, a yellow turtle, and a lone feather in the sand. All were white, but each had what seemed to be its own shade (or tone?).

It was another good morning on the Riverwalk.

Kids and Boulders, Bees and Toads - Bees and Toads

(JULY 13, 2010) Sing Along:

KIDS AND BOULDERS, BEES AND TOADS
(To the tune of the children's song: "Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes")

Kids and boulders, bees and toads (bees and toads)
Kids and boulders, bees and toads (bees and toads)
Kids and boulders, boulders bees and toads
Kids and boulders, bees and toads (bees and toads).

That song kept coming into my mind as I started thinking about what I had seen today on the Riverwalk. Some events just inspire a direction of a piece of writing. There were multiple events today on the Riverwalk stood out as I looked back at my photos taken this morning.

KIDS

The sounds of young voices were heard as we approached the bridge going to the train station. Sadie's ears perked up as we noticed a group of no more than ten children (aged, about, 11-12) starting a walk that was being chaporoned by a woman who appeared less than twice the children's age. The lady had them stop as Sadie and I approached an intersection on the trail, and we walked ahead of them. I heard their excited voices as they saw the ducks and geese.

These birds were being fed by a couple dispensing foot for the gluttonous water fowl. The children stayed a distance from the birds and walked on. The lady pointed out some pretty flowers and then they came to the small bridge near the Public Works Department. The stopped, briefly, to look over the railings, but saw nothing and continued on. Approaching the restroom, the adult asked the young girls if they needed to stop - the 4-5 of them unanimously said, "No." The adult said, "Well I guess we don't need to stop," afterwhich came a deeper voice from one of the young men. "I need to go," he said hesitantly. After that Sadie and I were too far ahead to hear anything else from this young, excited group who were enjoying the morning by the river.

BOULDERS

The morning was cooler when we began our walk than when we finished it. I had stopped at the water fountain along the way and given Sadie some fresh water to drink. She seemed to be OK, but she never passes up an opportunity to drink from "nature's abundance" - that is, anything that "puddles" after a rain.

One of her favorite drinking spots along the Riverwalk is out of one of several large boulders that form a barrier between the Riverwalk and the river. As it turns out, there are some concave indentations in the tops of these massive rocks, and Sadie finds the water there - TASTY. Of course, see seems to find the muddy water in a puddle on the gound to be just as tasty.

And, speaking of water - last night I took Sadie to Angler's Park - in the rain. I carried an umbrella and Sadie got wet. She loves running in the rain once she is out there, but later in the evening, it was raining, Sadie wanted to go out, I took her to the porch on a long leash - she saw the rain and did an immediate U-turn. She did go out later after the rain had stopped.

When we returned from Angler's Park, I rubbed Sadie down with a towel (which she loves) and she looked at me with an expression that say: "I wouldn't take a dog out on a day like this."

BEES

I spent much time this morning photographing bees. They were plentiful around the flowers blooming along the Riverwalk, and I found them very interesting.

Some bees flit from one flower to another, spending very little time on individual flowers. Others just curl up inside the flower and seem to be either sleeping or drugged. On several instances two bees headed to the same flower and seemed to bump into each other. More than once I saw a ladybug and a bee sharing a single flower. There seemed to be peaceful coexistence between the two as each did what it did and didn't bother the other.

Sadie will point and jump at insects, but she knows not to tangle with bees. She was never stung, to my knowledge, but each time I see her pointing at one in the grass, I will pull on her leash and say, "NO! You don't want to tangle with that bee, Sadie," and she will back off.

TOADS

Bees are not the only critters Sadie needs to say away from. A couple of days ago I wrote about Sadie putting a frog in her mouth and then regretting it after spitting it out and having her mouth foam for 10-15 minutes.

At Angler's Park this evening, the rain brought out the toads. As we walked the asphalt trail, there were little peepers running in front of us. Sadie is not one to ignore anything moving - especially hopping - so she started lunging at the small toads. The little guys were less than a half inch from tip to tale.

I held the leash tightly so she could get to them. The marsh was singing with frogs on this rainy evening, the path was full of small frogs, and Sadie was frustrated. I'm not sure, but I think she would have regretted swallowing one of those small creatures.

It was a very good day on the Riverwalk.

DUMBER THAN DIRT

(JULY 12, 2010) This morning, since I didn't take my camera to the Riverwalk, I used Sadie's longer leash. It gives her a chance to run a little more and get more exercise than the shorter one that keeps her nearby.

The problem with the longer leash is that she often gets tangled up around a tree or a bush, and I have to untangle her. Over the years, however, she has learned to heed the leash and avoid getting into such messes, and when I make a clicking sound, she will move herself around the tree and avoid getting tangled up. However, there are times when she just doesn't understand that she just needs to back up and untangle herself.

This morning we had just entered the "dark woods," and she was jumping around in the woods, avoiding entanglements. However, we had gone no more than a quarter mile when she had moved around a tree. Her Pekingese doggie friend, Lucky, was coming towards us, and she saw nothing but Lucky and moved towards the dog.

She wasn't getting anywhere because the leash was around the tree, and I was on the other side of the tree. Stubborn minds were at work here. I called for her to come around the tree; she kept pushing forward towards Lucky. This continued for 20-30 seconds, and the leash on her side got shorter and shorter until, with each short lunge, she was banging her head against the tree. This happened twice before I realized what she was doing, so I eased up on the leash, walked around the tree, and we went to meet Lucky.

I thought "dumber than dirt."

Of course, I wasn't referring to Sadie, but to myself. She had outsmarted me and accomplished what she wanted which was for me to save her from the mess she was in.

"DUMBER THAN DIRT."

Last night, around 9:00, I took Sadie outside to do what she needed to do before bedtime. She has a propensity of going forth and sniffing anything in the driveway that may even resemble a small living creature - bug, frog, lizard. Last night she wandered upon a small knot on the driveway that was a very small frog.

She pulled on the leash to sniff it - the frog didn't move. She pointed at it, and I pulled her away, but she lunged forward and, unfortunately, put the frog in her mouth - immediately spitting it out.

Why did she spit it out?

(FLASHBACK) A couple of years ago Sadie saw a frog in the driveway, put it in her mouth, and then spit it out. Immediately, her mouth started foaming like a mad dog.

Being very concerned for her health, I went immediately to the internet and read about frogs and what happens when dogs put them in their mouths. I had feared that she might die from frog poisoning. Well, what I read was that there are no truly poisonous frogs in this area and that when a dog does get a frog in its mouth, the frog releases a distasteful liquid that doesn't kill the animal, but the animal, for about 10-15 minutes, wishes she were dead because of the awful taste left in her mouth.

Last night, this happened again. Sadie started foaming and spitting (as well as a dog can spit). We went immediately in the house, and I gave her a bone to chew on, hoping that the bone would help get rid of the bad taste. After about 15 minutes, sure enough, she was much better.


"DUMBER THAN DIRT."

Yep, it was two years ago that she had tasted a frog, yet she still went for this small frog and got "mad dog" mouth.

DUMBER THAN DIRT. Lessons are not easily learned.

Oh, again, when I say "DUMBER THAN DIRT," I'm not referring to Sadie but to myself. I could have kept her away from the toad, but I didn't. I let her pursue her interest in the small amphibian, and I should have known better.

Twice in two days I have been "DUMBER THAN DIRT" around Sadie. She, on the other hand, is much wiser than I am.

It was another good day on the Riverwalk.

FOUR CORMORANTS

(JULY 11, 2010) Today on the Riverwalk I started thinking about the cormorants. I didn't see any today because it doesn't seem to be the season for them to be perching in the spot of the river where I regularly see them. But, they will be back.

It was these creepy black water birds that first intrigued me about the fowl on the Dan River. I never knew their name, had never seen them until a few years ago, and now I see them everywhere.

This week on the Chesapeake Bay I saw four birds flying close to the water and realized, after taking a picture, that these are the cormorants that I see on the Dan River.

Last summer, in Sweden, I saw a cormorant on a rock with a sea gull.

Shortly after realizing what these birds were, I talked with a fellow walker on the trail who told me that he had actually gone "fishing with the cormorants" when he was in China. As it turns out, these birds are used in Asian countries for fishing. It is an age old custom for them to dive into the water, with a leash on their leg and a ring around their necks to keep them from swallowing the larger fish, and be reeled in with fish in their throats. The fishermen then push the fish out of the birds' throats and then send them back for more fish. This has been done for centuries, but now, according to my friend, it is done now mostly for tourists since there are now more efficient ways of fishing.

The cormorants are fishing marvels. They swim underwater faster than other waterbirds because their feathers don't have the water proofed down of other water birds. Therefore, when they come up, they perch on a log or in a tree and spread their large wings for drying in the sun. This is when they look like large evil Gothic birds.

In the fall I went to the river several evenings right at about dark and watched these interesting birds as they gathered on the river near a large nearly submerged tree in the middle of the river. A group of perhaps 20 were crowded, each evening, on a submerged tree and another 40 or so would be swimming in the water. These birds swim low in the water with their bodies nearly level to the surface and their serpentine necks standing tall. Right at dark, the birds in the water would take off as a group - running across the water before taking flight. Soon the river would hold all of the birds from the tree and they began their flights.

Once airborne, the birds would circle over head like prehistoric flying creatures and eventually land in the trees across the river where they would perch for the night. As they landed on a tree branch, their bodies arched in a C-shape. There they stayed until dusk when they would fly off to feed and then return that evening to carry out their daily ritual, a little earlier since dark comes a minute or so earlier each day in the fall.

It was a very good day on the Riverwalk, though I didn't see any cormorants this morning.

CHESAPEAKE BAY BIRDS

(JULY 10, 2010) Having returned from a wedding (my daughter, Tiffany's) in Pennsylvania, a time for Elizabeth to remember as we returned to her hometown in northern Virginia, a time for me to remember as we went by the cemetery where my parents are buried in Maryland and then by their home on Cobb Island, Md., and finally to the "Northern Neck" of Virginia on the Chesapeake Bay, I realized that I had bought back over 2500 photos taken along the way. Therefore, during the past two days on the Riverwalk, I have not taken my camera so I can catch up on the numerous pictures taken during the weekend and the first part of this week.

However, I did walk with Sadie yesterday morning and this morning. We had been missed by the regular walkers. Our short walk was lengthened by several stopping and wanting to hear about the wedding. One group of women and a man asked how it felt to have a new son-in-law.

I said, "Well, actually, I have another son-in-law in Chicago. So I have a son-in-law who was raised in Venezuela and is now an American citizen and another son-in-law from Sweden. The only single 'daughter' I have now is Sadie, so I reckon she will marry a German Shepherd." They chuckled and walked on.

The weather was humid this morning after last night's short rain, but the temperatures were bearable at 6:30 this morning. However, as we finished our walk at around 8:00, the temperatures were beginning to rise again.

Even the birds seemed to feel the heat as they were few and quiet. Hence, my pictures of the bay birds above. The pelicans were interesting to watch as they just crashed into the water as their way of landing. The osprey, on its nest, was interesting to watch and the closest I have been to one nesting. There are two osprey nests that can be viewed on the Riverwalk, but the distance and height make it nearly impossible to see them up close. The sandpiper, with its bright orange bill, was playing in a marshy area on Tangier Island. I did see an egret and some cormorants, so I felt that I was home.

Interesting birds, and it is sometimes good to get away from the birds on the Riverwalk; but it is always good to get back, too.

It was another good morning on the Riverwalk.