I decided to get a load of water and then check out Rio Grande Village in Big Bend National Park. I hadn't been there all year and was curious how it looked after February's freeze and the summer's unbearable heat / drought. Remember, RGV is my second favorite place on earth. Last November the rare Tufted Flycatcher showed up there.
At the lodge I, the "queen of water," photographed my "water wand" (all this terminology per the office personnel), and loaded up my water wagon.
In my eagerness to get unloaded and packed for RGV, then Alpine, I forgot to empty the 35 gallon tank. So it made the long circuit with me, full of water. Duh! Now I can't fill it with free water in Alpine because it's already full!
RGV looked great!
And I loved the new state-of-the-art boardwalk..
But the day's highlight for me was watching an American Bittern trying to swallow a fish.... a very serenzipitous sighting. (My newly coined word means zippity-serendipity, ie. not a long enough look at an awesome unexpected sighting.)
It seemed that the bittern would get tired and droop its head, then try again, then droop, then repeat the process over and over. Since it's the first time I've witnessed this event, I'm not sure if that was the case, or if the bittern was somehow using the ground for leverage. Or maybe trying to dislodge the stuck fish. Any comments?
It was a long way off, and when I tried to get closer, the bird waddled into the underbrush and disappeared, fish and all. Since the bird was about ten feet away from any water, this process may have been ongoing for quite some time. Any idea how long that lasts? I've watched snakes take as long as 30 minutes to dispatch a large frog, but that's my only experience in that area.
What is so surprising is that the huge fish can get down that skinny neck. I recently recollected to my son the wonderful sight of a bittern, surprised by me, freezing into invisibility with its beak pointed skyward, next to a tuft of dry grasses. (That was about 60 years ago, but still vivid in memory.)
ReplyDeleteI suspect the process of swallowing was a bit like a stout lady getting her leg into a stocking, a little bit at a time.
I've been lurking on your site since John Wells mentioned it, but I've never commented before. Please keep up the great work, but take good care of yourself and your hubby. Good people are a treasure.
Thank you for the kind words, Anonymous. I tried researching the swallowing process and was dismayed to learn that sometimes the bird gives up and sometimes it can even choke to death. I don't think this bittern was in distress, however.
ReplyDeleteThat's a fairly large Black Crappie the Bittern is trying to swallow. The rays of their fins are soft so I would bet this Bittern either got it down or was able to spit it out no problem. I have found dead birds with fish and even birds that got caught in their throats...mostly Great Blue Herons.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reassurance. It's good to know that the bittern probably got it down or out, but shocking that you've found herons that weren't so lucky. Yikes!
ReplyDeleteWe saw an American Bittern fly over our heads at that same spot today, Carolyn!
ReplyDeleteGreat photos!
Wow, Matt, that means he survived the fish swallowing episode. That's great to know.
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