Breakfast in the Backyard

Following this paragraph are four of the coolest pictures I've ever taken. I won't lie - the morning sun reflecting off the pond sucks. That means these are by no means the best pictures I've ever taken. But if you sort of squint, you should be able to follow along with the story without words. If the pictures really are that unclear, a) I'll be heart-broken because I think they're awesome and b) there's another paragraph at the end. I'm sorry that the entry is more graphic-heavy than I would usually prefer.

Ever wake up super hungry? Eyes bigger than your stomach? You're not the only one!

This morning I peeked out my blinds before getting in the shower and scanned the shoreline. I saw the snake bird, but already have pictures of one so wasn't inclined to run for the camera. To the right a little was a white ibis. Since I haven't gotten any ibis pictures yet, I got the camera and ran downstairs. It wasn't until I looked out the sliding glass door that I realized the snake bird had a fish. A big fish. (A catfish?) So I snapped a dozen or so pictures. The first two are the "before" pictures. I couldn't decide between the two, because the first one is such a cool action shot, and the second one really shows the scale of fish-to-beak. How does he hold on? The third picture is the one that gets captioned, "gulp!" And you can actually see the fish in the bottom half of the throat in the fourth picture.

Usually, all you see of a snake bird is its neck and head sticking out of the water. When they are on shore, I'm taken aback by their big goose-like proportions.

I really hope you liked these pictures. I'm still excited about them!

(as for the ibis, you'll see it tomorrow. stay tuned!)