A Little of This... Some of That....

There's certainly no central theme to today's blog...  

You're gonna get pretty much just what I see....

 A new life bird for us...  a Masked Tityra

At first we thought it was building that hanging nest below it...  it does have a piece of straw or something in its beak.  But we Googled it later...  nope... it builds its nest in a hollow of a tree, like a woodpecker.  We're wondering if was just "borrowing" some straw from this hanging oriole nest to build its own.

 Not a bird, but a guy taking down this tree.  We've been watching him the past couple of days...  he's taken off all the top limbs.  We'll see if he continues to take the trunk down.

 All good equipment operators grease and oil their machines after each use.  This guy had his grease gun out...  hitting all the fittings on that attachment.  We watch this guy repair old bicycles nearly every day...  looks like he's got it down just right!

 We haven't seen them often, but at least 1 Roseate Spoonbill was over on the lagoon yesterday morning.  He's fun to watch as he swings his head back and forth, using his bill like a sieve to forage for his breakfast.

 On the hike yesterday we saw some HUGE trees.  I think this is a Banyon tree....  look how massive it all is!

 Also on the hike we saw this structure way up on the hillside.  Being from SE Ohio where hunting season is popular, I wondered if it were a deer stand... or in this case, a blind to use as camouflage while hunting.  Nope...  our guide told us it's just a shelter for the guys who are looking after the cattle that range here.  

 Whoever planted this field has put in a dual crop...  corn and cacti.  The cacti, when harvested, are sold as "nopali" in the stores.  I've bought them, but pretty much use it as a filler...  kind of like zucchini or jicama.

 You'd be in pain if you fell against this tree...  it's just covered with thorns!

 Yes, it's a parasite, but this bromeliad is really an orchid and will be beautiful when in bloom.

 Citreoline Trogan

First one we've seen on this trip.

 These little boys were playing along the street.  Don't worry, there was no traffic, and their father wasn't far away.

We've seen lots of "Veggie Trucks" along the coastal RV parks in Mexico, but sometimes, even though there are lots of stores that sell veggies, we'll see one here in Lo de Marcos.  You can even see their scales balanced among the veggies.  While we're not lacking for fresh veggies and fruits here, I love seeing these vendors along the streets.

 A juvenile Magnificent Frigate

(okay...  same as immature...  just sayin')

I think this is a Monarch butterfly...  but since it never opened its wings and I didn't get a close look, it could have been a Viceroy.  I'm too lazy to look it up right now ;-)

 Another street vendor...  she's selling Sugar Cane

She's peeling off the outer covering...  the white inside is sweet and can be used in lots of ways.

There seems to be a new business in the neighborhood.

We've been seeing these 3-wheel motorcycles hauling these 5 gallon bottles of water through the streets.  What we don't know is where the water is coming from.  Might be a question we really don't want to know the answer to.

 One last photos...

We saw this umbrella on the beach this morning...  we really haven't had any strong winds, so I'm wondering what happened to the cloth that covered the stays?  Looks kind of lonely, doesn't it...  and looks so appropriate for the final photo of the day.

That's All For Today!