Dolphins in the Backyard!

These photos are taken right in my piece of paradise and not more than thirty feet away from our wondering eyes.

A mother and child pair of Dolphins decided to drop by and liven up our morning, splashing and chasing food fish around and having a grand time.

I missed the biggest splashes running for the camera, which really should have been sitting on the table next to my coffee, but I wasn't that awake and coherent until they began forcing me to interact with their antics.

The best photo, with more than a fin showing, is of the mother. A careful look at the photos will show the little ones fin in at least one of the pictures as we watched them cavort and feed.

Rays have been jumping around down there; they shoot out of the water flapping their "wings" wildly like a prehistoric bird, sometimes straight up a foot or two before gravity denies their flight and pulls them back to a wetter environment. It is hard to tell, but I think they are Manta Rays, judging by their dark color and shape... it happens so fast that if you aren't looking right at them you will miss it. If they are Manta Rays, they are young ones, as they are only two foot or less across compared to their much larger brethren out in the gulf which can span upwards of twenty feet.

Sharks make an occasional appearance as well, including two very large ones, a twelve to fourteen foot Bull Shark, and a possibly even larger Hammerhead shark that cruised in to look around. There have been many smaller sharks in the four to eight foot range, cruising in during the early morning or late evening hours, trying to scare the other inhabitants into growing legs and walking on land.

Even an occasional alligator will pop up in there, last year it was a six footer though my neighbor has told me of seeing a ten footer gracing the water in years past. Gators never stay long as salt water disagrees with them over the long term and they are usually passing through looking for a nesting site.

Fiddler crabs, and Blue crabs are abundant and one can always count on them during the warmer months to provide an experience with nature when the larger neighbors are not in residence.

I have even seen what I thought may have been a tarpon a few years ago leaping around and hunting in our piece of the bayou, he was about four feet in length and very energetic!

When ever I hear splashing you can find me near the water, trying to identify the critter or critters invading our sanctum. The bigger the splash the better, you never know when it may be a Dolphins in the back yard!