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As I look over to the left of the pier (the side I usually walk on), the rest of the gang is over there.
The top of the trash can seems to be a favorite place today! Before I even get up the ramp, Stretch takes off of the garbage can and heads down toward the water.
Leggs stays on her perch until I get down to the beach.
There were six of the great blue herons there today. I never know which one to photograph. So I photographed all of them!
This one hung around the garbage can for a while. One of the other ones chased him off the top of the can. Reminds me of Michael and Maria fighting over a seat on the couch!
One of them takes off to go hang out under the pier with Stretch.
Then they decide that's not where they really want to be. They fly out from under the pier and land just a few yards away.
Still hangin' out by the garbage can.
Stretch chasing Leggs!
It's fun to watch them when the are interacting with each other.
A flock of Pelicans flies over while I am photographing Stretch and the Gang.
This picture is sort of neat. Look closely and you can see a school of fish. When you first glance at this picture it looks like nothing. Look closer and you can see the fish. You can even see their eyes.
Some Pelicans fly right towards me.
Yesterday only saw one group of stingrays. They were a large group though. I followed them for quite awhile. You will see in the one video below they get hung up in a tree branch. That's where I lost them.
I got some good closeups of some of them.
This one has a piece of seaweed on his back.
My friend, Linda that I met last week told me that these stingrays were manta rays also called "devil rays". When they travel in schools another name for a school of devil rays is a "fever"!
Yesterday, Linda told me about the sea turtle nests, so now I am off to look for it. She said it was clearly marked, I couldn't miss it.
Don't know how I missed this yesterday! Guess I was too busy looking in the water at the "devil rays"!
They put this black netting around the nest and then dig a path to the water for the babies. The path makes it easier for them to find the water.
Here is the actual nest. There is a wire grate over it. I guess to keep out predators.
As I was approaching the nest, a photographer was there also. He was getting ready to photograph a family on the beach. He was showing the children the nest. He told me that the babies came out last night. He said he was there earlier, before they came out and he missed it. He pointed out their tracks. Said they weren't there when he was there last night.
A couple went the wrong way, going around the corner and back up the beach. Hopefully they found their way down to the water.
The trough was lined with their little footprints all the way to the water's edge. I think this would be fascinating to watch. However, they don't leave the nest until around midnight or later when most of their predators are not around and can't see them. This helps ensure their safety to the ocean.
Getting up at 5:30am everyday, I don't think I could come to the beach at midnight and wait for them to hatch and come out. I'll work on that for next year.
Arriving back at the pier, Stretch and some of the gang are still hanging around. Nice to see them.
Stretch looks a little ruffled!
Wonder what he was up too!
While my walk was a bit shorter today, I still really enjoyed it!
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