the wild side of life

Michaela, sleepless in Brownsville ...

I cannot sleep. It is hot in here despite the air conditioning, and a mosquito is bugging me . Once I hear them, I can forget about sleeping.

I could watch TV, but I am not in the mood. While I am sitting here I can blog. Wanted to do it anyway.

Last weekend Volker and I visited Laguna Atascosa Wildlife Refuge again. It has become our Paines Prairie of Texas. It does not change as much, but the wildflowers and cacti are in bloom and that is always worth a look.

Some pictures of the park.

I love the purple sea of flowers

It is fun to walk the trails (on a moderate day)

Yukka
Prickly pear and other cacti
Lantanas - here they grow wild, I had to pay for it at Lowe's
Verbena?
I think this is a thistle
no idea
wild hibiscus?
Once in a while someone or -thing is crossing the way

the coyote was on the hunt

and the Peccary (Javelina) thought: it is greener on the other side

take a look around

Rio Grande Valley is famous for a huge variety of birds
pretty common: the roadrunner

Green Jays

I had not seen them before, it is a oriole

another strange bird
it is a Crested CaracaraOne could believe Easter is still here, we saw many little rabbits

and almost missed this little guy: a Mexican ground squirrel

Back at home we witnessed a battle between those two

and one morning I encountered wildlife almost a little too close for my taste

this tarantula was about 3 1/2 inches in length

I don't like spiders too much, but this one is a beauty

Well, I am getting tired again. Maybe I can sleep now. If everything fails, I will count sheep.