Any direction was too hot to ride yesterday when the heat index was over 100 Degrees in Charleston, SC. There wasn’t a breath of air in this narrow street.
Click to enlarge.
A small patch of Bee Balm at the entrance to the Audubon Swamp Garden at Magnolia Plantation attracted this pair of Swallowtails.
They performed an intricate dance that included some rapid vertical maneuvers as well as these side to side moves.
One finally paused for a few moments before zooming away with the partner right behind.
We have moved to South Carolina just in time to see the end of the nesting season at the Magnolia Plantation rookeries. Little Blue Herons feed their young, which are nearly as big as the adults, in an awkward, wing flapping, spectacle.
These Great Egrets were resting quietly in the heat of the day. Their nest doesn’t look like it will hold them in as the alligators patrol in the swamp below.
I heard some jaw snapping but didn’t see this gator get a meal. They are moving much faster than when we visited this area over the winter.
A juvenile Heron watched warily from his perch.
It was not the “fire in the sky” sunrise I was hoping for, but just a warm glow for a few minutes before the sky turned dull.
The tide was in, which was good for the Double-crested Cormorants to swim and dive in the flooded marsh at the edge of the creek, but there were few wading birds around.
This Tricolored Heron made a few passes around the quiet sailboats.
The Pineapple Fountain at the Charleston, SC, Waterfront Park.