Mailbox Monday: Perched Pelican

Wings in the Sky

The winged seeds on our native maple are putting on quite a show now.

Possum Trot

We passed a road recently named Possum Trot. It is memorable, whimsical. I like it!

This possum was on the side of the road near the lighthouse.

Look how long the whiskers are!

Possums are our only marsupial: the females have a pouch like a kangaroo. They give birth to large litters, but then the babies, also called joeys, are on their own to find their way into the pouch to suckle. Most do not, though she is equipped  to nurse up to thirteen babies. I suspect they are weaned as those teeth start coming in, as they end up with an impressive mouth-full of fifty teeth. Possums only live two to four years and though they may not be thought  of as bright, they test well in labs---in some cases out-performing cats and rats. Another interesting thing I read is that possums are naturally protected against snake venom and to a great extent, rabies.  I sure hope some grad students are working on how that might help out humans.

Gorgeous Glossies

Glossy ibises are not as common here as the white ones. When the sunlight hits these just right, they are just brilliant.

The  one below is a juvenile white ibis. The sun was shining through its beak; so it was brilliant in its own way.

Mailbox Monday: Leftover Parts

Recent Visitors

These two shots show recent visitors to our yard: a goldfinch and a catbird. Neither are common in our yard, so it is a treat when we spot one. 

Humming Hornets

This hornets' nest is perched high above the road we take to the lighthouse when it is too wet to take the dirt road. It is, as you can see, on the power line. Maybe they are trying to become fireflies?

In the zoomed in shot below, you can seen the little hole that serves as the entrance and exit. There was no activity when we took the pictures.

The question begs:

Why to hornets hum?

Maybe it is the electrical current.
Or  have they just forgotten the lyrics?

Maybe the Lawyer is Honest

Our daughter-in-law noticed this in a small town in Georgia. 

We were amused to see that the scale was tipped.