A gulf frit, a green heron, a cormorant, an anhinga and other critters

There was a real mixture of interesting critters that appeared in the backyard today.  One of the ones that I don't see very often was a gulf fritillary butterfly, sometimes called a gulf frit by butterfly afficionados who probably have as much trouble spelling its full name as I do.  It has the colors of a Monarch ,but its color pattern is different.  This guy landed on some underbrush presumably for a rest as there were no flowers there to eat.

Pretty gulf frit resting on some twigs

Across the canal a green heron walked around but not near the water's edge which was a little unusual.  Maybe he was looking for a bug as a snack for a change from the usual seafood.  A great blue heron also landed across the canal but didn't stay long enough for a photo.

Posing in the grass

The fishing must have been pretty good in the canal today as a cormorant dove under repeatedly.  An anhinga was drying himself off after his fishing expedition, so the canal was definitely a popular fishing spot. 

 

Cormorant catching a breath between dives

 

Anhinga drying off on the dock post

Today I found three Monarch caterpillars eating heartily on milkweed plants inside the enclosure so we should have a few butterflies on the way.

A mossy turtle was sharing the canal with the water birds and kept popping up to check what was going on in the backyard.  He needs a good scrub to clean up his shell.

What's happening out there?

It looks like the apple snails are still at it when it comes to laying their eggs.  This time they chose an odd place, though.  There were several egg sacs clinging to the shoots growing out of the coconuts that have gathered along the canal bank across the water from the backyard.  I hope it works out for them, but it's not the most reliable spot.  The coconuts could go off floating at any time if it gets really windy.

Egg sacs on floating coconut shoots is a precarious spot.

 

Finally, a scarlet skimmer dragonfly found himself a nice twig to stop at along the bank of the canal.  His wing looks pretty ragged so he must be near the end of his life.

This scarlet skimmer has had a tough life.