Beach photo essay - this one's for the birds

My husband, when he was very young, watched the movie The Birds and to this day, large flocks of birds make him a little nervous. I wouldn't say he's afraid of them, but he does have a healthy respect for them.  Whatever. Chicken, say chicken.    haha

I happen to be a bird lover. Yep, I said it Ina, I'm a bird lover.  Especially when I'm on the Gulf Coast where there are so many beautiful creatures to be seen. 

The first few photos are not of the best quality, but it was 5:30 in the morning, I was the only person on the beach, didn't take a towel with me and the camera lenses kept fogging. But this one lovely, long legged creature and I danced around one another as I snapped photo after photo before he finally grew tired of me and tossed me aside for a sleek, wet mullet (the fish not the haircut) playing in the surf.

 This fellow decided to geocache with me. 

We didn't find the geocache.....

But we did find this scary fellow hanging out where the cache should have been!

There were birds everywhere we went, which is a good thing, in my opinion.  I love watching them dive from sky to water and back lightning quick as they scoop a tasty morsel up for snacking!

This photo was taken just after we boarded the ferry at Fort Morgan to cross over to Dauphin Island - one of my favorite things to do when in the area.

I named this fellow The Negotiator.  We had a picnic lunch under the trees on this public beach, and he stood nearby the entire time, as if waiting for us to finish our lunch so he could negotiate for the leftovers. He was a comical fellow.

And these were his friends who gathered for the leftover feast.....

These lovely creatures were guarding the playground...

And these greeted me in various places along my travels, from resting on the hotel balcony to searching for another geocache.

In mid_October is the annual Gulf Goast birdfest. (www.alabamacoastalbirdfest.com)

I just hope I get to go this year. Maybe I'll see you there.