Butterfly And Wildlife Gardening And Photography» Jesse H. Jones Park

Long And Winding Road

texdr — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 06:46:12 +0000

Decided to take a little field trip today to Jesse H. Jones Park in Humble, Texas. It was the first time we have ever visited and there were lots of picture taking opportunities. We spent 4 hours at this park taking pictures and hiking the trails. At the end of the day I was exhausted, not from the difficulty in hiking the trails, rather it was because I was hauling around 30 lbs of camera equipment and it was another 100 degree weather day.

Long And Winding Road

Bubba The Green Dragonfly

texdr — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 06:41:13 +0000

This has to be the most hilarious picture I have ever taken of a Dragonfly. Let’s call him Bubba. He appears to have two buck teeth.

Click on the picture for the full sized view and to really see his “teeth.”

Bubba Dragonfly

Finally Some Butterflies

texdr — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 06:36:44 +0000

Once we finished walking along the creek (or river), we hiked along a trail that had lots of vines, low grasses, and in one case, a tasty roof (I’ll explain shortly). Some of these Butterflies I have never seen in my backyard, so it was refreshing to witness something new.

Here’s a Gray Hairstreak. I actually do see these guys in the backyard occasionally, but I’ve never been able to get a picture.

Gray Hairstreak

Then there was a Pipevine. I must have tried to take over 50 photos of this Butterfly while it was in flight and none were in focus. Fortunately for me, he decided to take a break along the trail and I snapped away.

Pipevine Swallowtail Resting

Here’s a Butterfly I’ve never seen before. It’s a Variegated Fritillary

Variegated Fritillary

Is the Butterfly below a Monarch? Nope, it’s a Viceroy.

Viceroy Butterfly

The differences between a Viceroy and a Monarch are Viceroy’s don’t host on Milkweed, and they have a thick black line loops across their lower wing.

Viceroy Butterfly Wings Open

Last but not least is the Question Mark Butterfly. These Butterflies prefer to get nectar from tree sap, rotting fruit, animal droppings, and roofing?

For some unknown reason, this Butterfly was sipping at something on this roof. No idea why unless the roofing contained some type of sap.

Question Mark Butterfly

Sweatin' Like A Pig

texdr — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 06:15:21 +0000

Taking pictures of birds is exhausting, at least if you’re standing on white sand, it’s 100 degrees outside, and you’ve been waiting forever for an Egret to catch a fish. Fortunately for me, there were some less active creatures who were more than happy to have their picture taken.

Turtles On Log

This Turtle needs a manicure

Turtle With Long Nails

Down By The Creek

texdr — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 06:08:21 +0000

I think this was called Spring Creek, but it looked like a small river to me. Whatever it was, there was lots of wildlife around. First thing I noticed was this small bird, a Killdeer, running along the shore. He just finished taking a drink when I snapped this picture.

Killdeer On Shore

Further along the shore, we spot some large white birds, Egrets. I’ll be the first to admit that taking pictures of birds is not my specialty, but this one Egret looked so determined to catch something I decided to be patient.

Look at the intensity on this Egret hunting fish.

Egret Catching Fish 1

Suddenly, he dives head first into the water

Egret Catching Fish 2

He got a fish!

Egret Catching Fish 3

Then down the throat it goes

Egret Catching Fish 4

Banana Spider

texdr — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 05:52:43 +0000

How would you like to walk into this web while hiking through the woods? This is a Banana Spider or the Golden Silk Orb Weaver. I thought I was taking a picture of a large spider, but if you look at the full size photo you’ll see there’s another Spider at the top of the web, and towards the bottom, previously caught prey.

Banana Spider

Pileated Woodpecker

texdr — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 05:52:27 +0000

Knock, knock, knock. Two huge Woodpeckers are pecking away on a tree. These birds are really big! They look like they have some kind of cut on their face, but if you look closely it’s really just feathers.

Pileated Woodpecker

Eyed Click Beetle

texdr — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 05:52:07 +0000

One thing about Jesse H. Jones Park, there are lots of insects and many of these insects have no problem flying smack dab into the human visitors. It was bad enough I’m carrying around 30 lbs of camera equipment when this “Beetle” flies right into my face! Once he bounced off of my face, he proceeded to land on a tree limb.

Eyed Click Beetle

Rabbit Hiding In Woods

texdr — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 05:51:52 +0000

Nothing is safe from my camera. Granted, the pictures may not always turn out that great, but I will at least try to get a snapshot. For example, check out this Rabbit. He thought he was hiding.

Hidden Rabbit

Nine Banded Armadillo

texdr — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 05:51:29 +0000

Cruising down the trail, not two feet from Leecy, stands a small Nine Banded Armadillo. Somehow Leecy didn’t notice this creature as I guess she was looking up, not down. I whisper, STOP, LOOK! This Armadillo then slowly walks back into the woods. I start taking pictures, neither of us saying a word. This small Armadillo then goes about his business looking for insects.

Nine Banded Armadillo

Slowly, this little guy starts walking back towards us. He nearly walks right across Leecy’s toes (seriously). Apparently these guys don’t have such great eyesight nor care too much about nail trimming:-)

Armadillo Crossing Road

Armadillo walking right by Leecy’s foot

Baby Armadillo