Air quality alerts, heat advisories, ugh… We came out of our nest twice yesterday, once to go to the farmers market and after supper down to the beach. Not much going on there and we didn’t stay long because of the oppressive humidity. Walking was a struggle. No sea breeze…
When we heard some vigorous splashing we looked over in the river to see a gull taking a bath. Was he cleaning off or cooling down? I’m amazed these pictures came out at all!
And then, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a tiny least sandpiper running around on the sand. He’s only six inches long and this is the only picture that came out! So cute!
Back inside, we’ve been working on jigsaw puzzles again…
Look at those feathers! Amazing photo.
Thanks, Ally! It was quite a display. 🙂
Well, looking at your “water bird” pictures I cooled off a bit! I’ve made the mistake of walking for an hour on these hot and humid days this week (late morning), and my body collapses early early evening. It’s just too hot for us mere mortals. How I love these photos!
I’m so happy the pictures cooled you off a little, Pam! Walking for a whole hour in this awful heat and humidity is bound to take a toll on the body and the mind. Next time we go down we’ll probably bring our lawn chairs and just sit there in the shade with the other old folks. 😉
Sweet little sandpiper, they are so cute, running along the water line.
Staying inside in the summer is like a really cold day in winter, with not being able to be outside for long. I don’t recall it being like this in the past, but of course, here we are. I guess I better get used to it.
The little sandpiper was so adorable skittering about on the sand back and forth to the water. I almost missed seeing it as the gull’s amusing behavior held my attention. I heard on the news that July was the hottest month on record. Ever. It seems I get cabin fever more often in the summer than in the winter in recent years… Sigh…
I love your bathing gull. Great captures. The 3H’s have been residing here, too. I’ll be so glad when we get another break in the heat and humidity. I stepped outside this morning to do my yoga practice and ugh. Insta-sweat. It’s so difficult to breathe when the air is this thick.
Thank you, Robin! We’re supposed to get a break on Sunday and we’ll have to make the most of it until Wednesday when the muggies are due back again. You’re plucky to take your yoga outside in the middle of this. (I’ll just keep doing mine inside…) There was a group of about 10 people down at the beach practicing yoga that evening – the breathing must have been challenging.
You did a wonderful job of conveying the heat, heaviness and humidity in your words and photos, Barbara. I’m glad the gull had such a vigorous bath, and glad you have the puzzles to bring you ease and comfort. We do jigsaw puzzles too, I find it so calming. Cheers, my friend.
Thank you, Jet! 🙂 It’s so nice to know that you and Athena use the same strategy of doing jigsaw puzzles to calm down and find some peace and companionship. We just ordered a couple of new ones, even though we haven’t minded going through our collection a few times since the pandemic began. Cheers to you, too, my friend.
I’ll bet you were happy when you saw how well the gull splish-splashing away came out. I think it’s cooling off since you describe your horribly humid conditions. What better way to beat the heat? I like your gull on the rocks and the up-close gull. That sandpiper is a real cutie — it’s full of energy, but when we were little nippers, we were too come to think of it. 🙂
That splish-splashing was the only thing happening at the beach that evening! Everything else was eerily quiet and subdued. I wondered at the sandpiper being all by itself. Last year I saw a whole time-step of them! (“A group of Sandpipers can be described as a ‘bind’ a ‘contradiction’, a ‘fling’ a ‘hill’ and ‘time-step’ of sandpipers.” Who thinks of these things?) Ah, to be a little nipper again, to make this body do what it used to do! 🙂
That is eerie Barbara. I always am amused at the words used to describe a collection of critters/birds. Very interesting. Yes, those days are long gone – it seems like just yesterday sometimes.
It does seem like yesterday. I remember wondering what it was going to be like to be old!
The years have sped by too quickly and I’m older than you, having turned 65 this year. That was a milestone that was not welcome!
I’m catching up to you. I’ll be 65 in January. 😉 Hello Medicare…
Hi! Your sea bird photos will always engage me to your internet space. The rings of water captured in the gulls bathing was as much a pleasure to see as all the shapes the seagull was bathing into fulfilling its happiness!
At first I thought the other small bird was a plover. In your area perhaps the small beach bum birds at the sea waters edge are considered sandpipers. Either way I am loving going with you on your beach journeys.
I’m glad you noticed the rings circling out from the gull’s splashing, too. Otherwise the river was pretty calm that evening. I’m pretty sure the little bird is a least sandpiper. I examined and checked all my field guides and then submitted the picture with my guess to the *What’s this Bird? – American Birding Association (ABA)* Facebook group and they confirmed my identification. About a month ago I saw a spotted sandpiper. And a year ago at another beach I saw a semipalmated sandpiper and a semipalmated plover. Frequently I’ve been seeing killdeer, which I believe are a kind of plover. It’s tricky telling them all apart!
On the Gulf of Mexico, here in Corpus Christi, TX the Sandpipers have tall legs and are often found standing alone at the waters edge where as the plovers have short legs that run quickly up and down as the surf water flows back and forth. The plovers are most often seen in groups. Adorable as plovers look as if they are trying to avoid getting their legs wet. Although it’s more likely that is where and how they find food as the tide flows back into the gulf. Years ago plovers would be in large groups of 30-50, but this past decade I have noticed the groups dwindling to 3-15. Do you have curlews on the beach there? Curlews look similar to our sandpipers except curlews have a very long beak that curls downward.
I meant to comment on that lighthouse. It’s very interesting! I looked it up to read about later.
No curlews here, we’re way out of their range! I would have to go visit my son in Georgia in order to see one. 😉 You know, I’ve lived here most of my life and I still haven’t taken a boat tour to visit the lighthouse. Sigh…
We had that miserable heat and humidity, too — thank goodness, we sent it packing! We had a lovely cool front arrive, and I got to walk the dog while wearing a light jacket this morning — what a relief!!
We’ve had a brief respite, too, but the humidity is starting to creep back up today. That must have been so nice wearing a light jacket in the morning! 🙂 It was a treat sleeping with the air conditioning off and the windows open!
Beautiful shots, Barbara! Love your lighthouse and tiny sandpiper! Ugh on the humidity, I’m not looking forward to it when we get home in few days. Fingers crossed we’re pulling some cool temps back with us!
Thank you, Donna! Good luck bringing the cool weather with you — I can’t wait for autumn. That little sandpiper was so cute and worth enduring all the humidity to watch him skittering about for a few minutes. 🙂