So, these were taken this past week in the Mandalay Wildlife Refuge while working on the PROW project. Just a few photos of interesting things I encountered. Enjoy!
Until next time, enjoy this spring weather! Get outside and do something exciting, and then let me know all about it!
BW
Chaoui is a teencoon now and doesn’t think it’s cool to spend a lot of time with Mommy and the family. She is spending more and more time exploring the great outdoors—even staying out all night at times. She has broken curfew and just refuses to accept being “grounded”!!! Here are the rare indoor photos…
Well, I do believe it is a raccoon!!! And a youngun at that! Can it be? Are we once again blessed with a baby coon to replace our precious Chaoui? It would be so grand to be an animal mother. They don’t have to wait years to get another chance to “raise a child”. Chaoui…
Yesterday morning, the power went out, and I found myself out on the porch, bird watching again. Earlier that morning, I had noticed a drab olive green bird and thought it might be a painted female bunting. After validating that in my trusty Sibley Bird Guide, I went to get my camera out of the truck and noticed this little guy sitting in the back yard, not a care in the world . . .
Once in a while I have the great opportunity of fishing with my friend, Jackie. We take her boat, she lets me drive this beauty, and I get to play “Fishing Guide”! No matter what, we always have a blast–even if we don’t catch fish. We headed to Lake Decade to see if we might…
Are there any birders out there? One of the many great things about living down the bayou is the fact that we are part of the Mississippi Flyway for the neo-tropical birds. I will be the first to admit what a bad case of spring fever I have this year. I have a restlessness that…
Would anyone in their right mind take a toddler coon on vacation? I don’t know if we have right minds, but we did. Chaoui accompanied us to Grand Isle, Louisiana. We bought her a pet taxi to travel in and a doggie cage to stay in once we arrived. With no time to waste, Chaoui…
Are fresh water clams edible? I love clams but have never cooked fresh ones.
As BB and I were leaving the tax office a couple weeks ago, I saw a shadow of a bird fly out from under the awning and glanced up. There was a nest made from mud and straw. It was about 6-8″ tall. I told my husband I thought it was a swallows nest.
They are edible, but it’s debatable whether they are tasty or not! I’m not sure this particular species was eaten much, but as evidenced by the still remaining “shell middens”, native Americans ate freshwater mussels many years ago, but these freshwater clams were much smaller in size than the one in the photo!
I did not know that snail eggs looked like that! Have the apple snails always been in south Louisiana? If not,how did they work their way over from FL? Do they lay their eggs on boats too or just vegetation? Sorry if I’ve missed the answer to this somewhere else in something you’ve written.
I have an article about all of this coming out in Country Roads Magazine May issue! No, they have not always been here. The type we have here came from the aquarium trade via people dumping them in ditches and waterways and also in the bilges of ships coming from South America, which is where this species originated. Not to be confused with the native apple snail that thrives in Florida, eaten by limpkins and snail kites there. These did not come from Florida. They lay their eggs on ANYTHING stationary, like pilings, trees, plants, marine debris, etc.
Thank you for all that info! Very interesting! I hope to see the article in Country Roads.
It’s here: http://countryroadsmagazine.com/outdoors/knowing-nature/bad-apples/
After taking a paddle to the eggs, how are they destroyed? Did you have to recover them and dispose of them in a certain way?
They pretty much liquefy when we scrape them off. Ewww! Plus, they only drop into the water as snails once they reach maturity on a dry strata. So, by doing what we do, they don’t get to reach maturity and drop off as baby snails!!!