Baby turtle

This little guy was just about the size of a silver dollar.  He's an alligator snapping turtle.  

He seemed unhappy on the trail, so we put him back down near the water.  Hopefully he'll swim away.

Moonrise, high tide

The full moon was rising above the clouds.

After the storm

The wind and waves persisted long after the rain.

Before the storm

A big storm blew in our last night at the beach.  

The waves and wind picked up long before the thunderstorm.

Shore birds

We spent a few days with friends at the beach - Emerald Isle, NC.

The shore birds were busy running in and out of the waves.

Solitary sandpiper.

Willet

Laughing Gulls

And of course Brown Pelicans.

King of the river

This heron was perched high above the Neuse River overlooking his kingdom.

Mayapples are blooming

This strange little flower is a mayapple.  In this picture it looks normal, but...

here's where it flowers, close to the ground, underneath an umbrella-like leaf.

Yolk, no yolk.

My 5 year old granddaughter was trying to describe her favorite  flower, and said it had many yellow things and no yolk.  Hmmm.  After thinking about it I figured out it was a dandelion.  Many yellow petals and no center.

This Fleabane does have a yolk.

Black Rat Snake

This large black rat snake crawled across our trail, out into the forest floor.  He stopped, raised his head like he was looking at something, and then lowered his head and moved on.  I watched the trail for crawling things the rest of the hike!

Camo Lizard

This lizard was really well camouflaged.

He blended right in with the vine he was climbing on.

Black Vulture

We watched a very big black bird fly through the trees.  Too big for a crow, and even too big for a raven.

It landed on an old tree and watched us pass.  A black vulture.  Amazingly ugly.

Wisteria

The vines on this old silo turned purple with wisteria flowers!

The dogwoods are out!

Dogwoods look so graceful when they bloom.

Pollen in the lake

The wind pushed pollen that fell into swirly patterns on the edge of Falls Lake.  

The air was smokey with pollen.

Red head

The Red Headed Woodpeckers are busy now too.  

Making lots of noise

Making a new home.  This tree doesn't seem big enough for a nest.

Mrs. Woodpecker checks it out

A female woodpecker has been stopping by to check out Mr. Red Belly's work.

She peeks inside

And lets him know that she likes the new home.

Pollen season

Every spring, the sidewalks, cars, and everything outside gets a layer of yellow pollen.  The trees each have a week or two when they send out clouds of yellow pollen.  Maples, Birch, Hickory (above) and most of all Loblolly Pines make the ground turn yellow.

Mr. Woodpecker finishes up

Mr. Woodpecker has been very busy.  He's hollowed out the sweetgum enough that he fits in the hole.  Now he goes in, digs, and then comes out and spits out wood shavings.

He's acquired a female friend, and sometimes she helps.  But mostly she just watches and inspects his work.

Camouflage

Even when I saw him, it was hard to see this Hermit Thrush.  He was perfectly colored to disappear in the leaf litter.

Gasman

I've seen this car driving around, and finally found it in a parking lot where I could get a picture.

Why would Gasman drive a Prius???

Silhouette

This robin was standing on the shadow of a tree, and looked like a sheet metal cut-out.

Spring watercolor

The redbud trees are blooming, adding their purple pink to the forest and gardens.

Mr. Woodpecker is busy

I appears we're going to have a red bellied woodpecker family.  

Mr. Woodpecker has been busy making a hole in our sweetgum tree.

His wife must be close, he's calling to her constantly.

Sneaky Heron

The heron seemed to think that he could escape notice if he tiptoed around the lake.  

He went past ducks

And turtles

A very elegant sneak.

Kingfisher again

Now that I've found him, the kingfisher seems to be easier to spot.  He was fishing in the lake, and stopped to eat his catch on a turtle log.

New leaves

Tender new leaves on an understory bush.

Abundant Spring

Spring is here, and the trees are blooming!

Good Morning

A curdled morning sky.

Here comes the sun

It looks spookier than it was.  The sun was just coming out after a cloudy morning.