Monthly Archives: May 2014

Rainy Day Raccoon

Posted on by
3

Tuesday, May 27, 2014,

Prepare yourselves for some major cuteness. It’s been a while since we’ve featured anything of that ilk here at Joe Kayaker so maybe we’re due. Besides, I think you’ll like these shots. I certainly enjoyed taking them.

I captured these shots about three weeks ago. I was gazing out my back window, as I am wont to do, when I spied this guy ambling across the back yard. He was working the lawn for grubs and worms. It was just after 10 AM but we had just experienced a major downpour and the skies were still fairly dark so it was not entirely unusual to find this guy out and about. I went around back to see if I could get any decent shots. I tried to be as stealthy as possible but stealth is easier for younger folks than me. This first pic is the moment that he realizes that I’m doing my paparazzi bit.

20140426110651 (2)-5x7wAfter spotting me he sidled over to a nearby tree. Being a youngster – I estimate this guy is about a year old – he was just as interested in me as I was in him. He checked me out from both sides of the tree before climbing to a safer perch. This youngster’s curiosity gave me about six minutes of shooting time. These three shots were my favorites. I hope they pass muster.

20140426110803-5x7wJK

Veiled Chameleon At Sweetbriar

Posted on by
3

Monday, May 12, 2014,

And now for something completely different. Kudos to any of you Monty Python fans that actually understand that reference. As for the rest of you, it’s okay. We can still be friends. On that note, I invite everyone to click on these individual pics. In many cases here at Joe Kayaker clicking on a pic brings up a  larger (and hopefully) better shot for you to observe and enjoy. These two pics are prime examples of exactly that. This is one good looking lizard and you should see him in all his glory.

This handsome beast is a Veiled Chameleon. These guys hail from Yemen, which is just below Saudi Arabia. (I had to look that up). This is obviously a personal failing but whenever I think of the Middle East, my brain conjures up desert sands and oil. However, Yemen’s borders include just about as much waterline as it does dry land. Not to mention some mondo good looking reptiles.    

20140425111611 (2)-5x7aw

I came across this guy at Sweetbriar Nature Center in Smithtown, NY. He’s a pet that was ‘donated’ to Sweetbriar after its former owner decided he was more trouble than was expected. This happens all too often in the pet trade. Folks see a sexy, exotic animal and start thinking how cool it might be to have that particular piece of eye candy around. Thoughts concerning the care and requirements of said animal are often secondary. And so it goes. Word is that this particular lizard, as handsome as he is, has a very nasty disposition. That may be why he was discarded. I mean donated. At any rate, he makes for another wonderful critter to see at Sweetbriar. Go check him out if you’re in town. JK