Smallest butterfly of North America plays big role

Tiny Western Pygmy-Blues were the stars of Baytown Nature Center's October butterfly count.

The butterflies with a wingspan of about half an inch love the glasswort and purslane along the road near the pavilion on the hill.

During that Saturday afternoon 146 were recorded for the count.

Here's a list of the butterflies submitted to the North America Butterfly Association.

Pipevine Swallowtail 3, Giant Sw. 1, Spicebush Sw. 5, Cloudless Sulphur 2, Little Yellow 25, Dainty Su. 7, Gray Hairstreak 5, Red-banded Ha. 2, 1W. Pygmy-Blue 146, Ceraunus Bl. 1, Gulf Fritillary 25, Phaon Crescent 4, Pearl Cr. 1, Question Mark 1, Red Admiral 1, Com. Buckeye 26, Goatweed Leafwing 1, Tawny Emperor 3, Monarch 4, White-striped Longtail 3, Horace's Duskywing 1, Com. Checkered-Skipper 9, Tropical Checkered-Sk. 8, Clouded Sk. 7, S. Skipperling 7, Fiery Sk. 8, Whirlabout 1, Dun Sk. 1, Salt Marsh Sk. 1, Obscure Sk. 1. Total 30 species, 310 individuals. Immatures: Giant Sw. 1 egg on Myer Lemon Tree; Gulf Fr. 27 eggs 39 caterpillars 2 pupas on Purple Passion Vine ; Monarch 5 caterpillars on Mexican Milkweed. Field Notes: 1The numbers of Western Pygmy-Blues in the saltmarshes of the Baytown Nature Center is a sight to behold!

Frogs and snakes at the potting shed

Today's guests at the potting shed at Sheldon Lake State Park.

I took several pics of the ribbon snake with my iPhone, but wasn't able to catch a shot of his red tongue flicking.

A little bullfrog. There were lots of frogs hopping around. I guess they appreciated the rain we had gotten the day before to end three weeks of dryness.

Shore birds wading around

Walking a trail at Baytown Nature Center I noticed that the alligator was still in its pond. (see below). Not much was happening around the alligator's outpost.

However two ponds down the trail a bird party was in full swing. No gators allowed.

Great Egret leaves behind its birdbrain buddies.

Roseate Spoonbill, often called a flamingo by school kids.

A White-faced Ibis joins his White Ibis cousins for some foraging.

Butterflies in the tree

Tawny Emperor looks down on its subjects from the limbs of a hackberry tree.

Tawny Emperor

Praying mantis: brown or green?

When a praying mantis turns its head, you've been seen.

The tan praying mantis was almost stepped on. The green praying mantis was easily spotted on the fender of black truck and given a hand to a greener spot.

Is that an alligator? Yep

Could be a log but it's not.

We were looking for butterflies along the trails at Baytown Nature Center when someone noticed an alligator.

It was my first gator sighting out there. The water on the peninsula is mostly brackish, and the point is surrounded by three bays that lead to the Gulf.

This gator was in a pond along the Crystal Bay side.

It surfaced to take a look at us.

Not a big one. Maybe 4 feet long.

Hey, gator, have you seen any interesting butterflies? Nevermind. See you later.

First butterfly count

Marcus gets an up-close look at a Gulf Fritillary caterpillar.

I wasn't the only one tagging along on my first butterfly count. Three-year-old Marcus came with his parents.

Dad: "What's your favorite butterfly, Marcus?"
Marcus just stares at me.
Me trying to help: "Is it orange? Is it yellow?"
Marcus: "Viceroy."

What the what?

Marcus was a ringer. It seems he is a butterfly fan and likes to pore over butterfly books. This kid knew more than me.

Marcus' mother says his favorite changes every 5 minutes depending on trivia he discovers about a butterfly. 

Too bad we didn't see a viceroy during this outing.

Gulf Fritillary

Patrol dog sniffs out toad and lizard

Freddie looking for trouble.

The temp on this Oct. 2 morning was a delicious 68 degrees and Freddie the dog was looking for something to chase.

Then in one spot she found a lizard and a toad. What luck!

However there was no chasing because the reptiles just ignored the dog. So the dog just stared at them.

Generally Freddie's dog brain thinks one of her humans should inspect intruders she finds. 

So I got up, documented the suspicious characters and told Freddie she was a good dog.

Then when I reached down to pet her, I realized the hair around her neck was stiff and smelly because she had been rolling in something nasty. Ick! Bath time.

Watchful anole isn't in a hurry to jump to the next plant.

This Gulf Coast toad was not impressed by a sniffing dog.