A Coati showed up at the dive shop. At first I thought it was a cat but then I saw the pointed nose. It had stolen a tortilla from a diver and scrambled over the fence and up a tree to eat it. I only had my dive camera but at least I got a record of it.
We're in Akumel, south of Cancun. Most of our time we're spending diving and I've got lots of underwater photos. I don't have as many dry land photos so I'll share some of them first.
Great-tailed grackles are super common here. They are the local scroungers.
There is a Golden-fronted Woodpecker around the place where we're staying. We also saw them in Belize.
And a Yucatan squirrel that was collecting material from a thatched roof, presumably for a nest.
There are also lots of little lizards. I think they're Brown Anoles. This one was on a metal sculpture.
First thing in the morning sometimes we spot the Agoutis (related to guinea pigs). There was also a Coati one morning but I didn't get a photo.
Even here a lot of the flowers are imported. I think this is a Jungle Flame from Asia.
Halfway through our diving we took a day off and hired a guide and car to take us to Otoch Ma'ax Yetel Kooh - a nature reserve with Spider and Howler monkeys.
There was lots of evidence of leaf cutter ants - bare dirt trails and ant "cities" but apparently these ones are only active at night.
I did find a few other insects.
Driving back, we stopped at the lake in Coba and spotted a few more birds.
We even spotted a crocodile (barely visible)
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We're on our way to Mexico to do some scuba diving. Most of the flight all there was to see was solid cloud, but the mountains poked through a few times. And it cleared a bit over the flat farmland.
A few photos from a damp cloudy day. I didn't take my big telephoto because I wasn't expecting any wildlife. But we actually saw a few things. A kingfisher. Five river otters. A bald eagle that swooped low above our heads and then proceeded to dive bomb the otters. They disappeared underwater when it got close, but otherwise didn't seem too concerned about it. I suspect the bald eagle was more interested in the fish they were catching than in tangling with a fierce otter. We also saw (and heard) Ruby Crowned Kinglets - cute little birds.
According to the forecast there was 0% chance of rain but that didn't stop the mist and drizzle from soaking everything. (Including me when I was out for my long run.)
I always like the colors and patterns of the fallen leaves.
These fallen floating pine needles made interesting patterns.
Beautyberry are such an outrageous color.
I even found some reflections.
Anyone know what kind of fungus this is? iNaturalist struggles with identifying this kind of thing.
I found this interesting moth on the wall beside our door. iNaturalist thinks it's a Geranium Plume Moth.
Towards the end of July we start to see the Harbor Seal mothers hauling out on the island near us. By the end of August they're mostly gone. Sometimes we see a mother on the shore and then soon after, a mother and a pup. Presumably she's just given birth. The pups can swim within hours of birth but they tend to hang around on shore a lot at first. Harbor Seals have a single pup that the mother cares for. The males don't help.
Here is one of the first pregnant ones this year.
And a mother and young pup.
Harbor Seals vary a lot in color, darkness, and pattern. They tend to look darker colored when wet, and lighter when dry. The younger pups have loose skin which they rapidly grow into feeding on their rich mother's milk.
I think this is another pregnant one
visited by a mother and pup. Harbor Seals are normally solitary but at this time the mothers and pups are often seen together.
By the end of August the pups are getting almost as big as the adults.
Note: It might look like I'm getting very close to the seals, but I'm not. These photos were all taken from the mainland which is about 200 feet from the island. I just have a big telephoto lens. If the pups are approached too closely the mother can abandon them. The worst offenders are kayakers and paddle boarders getting within a few feet to get cell phone photos. These seals are accustomed to humans but they are still wild animals. In a recent incident, one tourist kicked a seal pup off a dock and a second tourist jumped into the water to "rescue" it. Craziness. Just keep your distance and let them be.
All the diamonds in this world
That mean anything to me
Are conjured up by wind and sunlight
Sparkling on the sea
- Bruce Cockburn
It seems like there have been more birds around lately. Maybe fall migration is starting. Normally I only see Killdeer on the islands when I'm kayaking but this one was on the shore beside the walkway. Maybe because it was early morning before there were many people around.
Lots of ducks around, and a chance to photograph them with some reflections.
I usually don't bother taking any more heron photos since I've got so many. But this pose struck me as interesting.
In Saskatoon I used to see Red-breasted Nuthatches quite often, but they don't seem as common in Victoria. This one actually cooperated a bit with being photographed.
I don't seem Brown Creepers around much either.
This female House Finch was busy eating blackberries and pretty much ignored me.
