Sunday afternoon, we went for a walk at the park to check on the baby cygnets, among other things. It's amazing how fast they are growing. While at the park, not only did I take photos of yet more birds, I experimented with my camera's video recording capabilities, trying to capture some of the interesting bird behavior I saw.

( Bird pictures and videos, and cuteness )

I promised Chinese snuff bottles, didn't I?

Snuff bottles were originally made as portable containers for finely ground tobacco mixed with aromatic herbs and spices, known as snuff. Chinese snuff was intended to be inhaled, which caused not only a nicotine 'rush', but also sneezing and a clearing of the nasal passages. The Chinese believed snuff could cure headaches, lockjaw, stomach disorders, coughs, asthma and many other illnesses. Originally brought from the New World by European traders, snuff, and all the accoutrements necessary for 'snuffing' became extremely popular during the Qing dynasty (1644-1911). European missionaries, particularly the Jesuits, used snuff, and presented it as gifts and as part of their tribute to the early Qing emperors. The emperors, in turn, had their workshops fashion snuff bottles out of precious materials both for their own use and to be given as tokens of imperial favor....

quote from NOMA placard on the collection of Chinese snuff bottles
( Snuff bottles )

This last Saturday, Becky and I went visiting the New Orleans Museum of Art. (NOMA) As usual, I ran out of steam before seeing everything, so I'll have to get the Egyptian glasses and the medieval Italian paintings some other time.

( Faberge, Orientalist paintings, Japonisme and Snuff Bottles )

Yesterday, Becky and I visited the New Orleans Museum of Art. (I will be posting pictures later). I took pictures of things that interested me, and some stuff that Becky wanted reference images of. Among the things I took pictures of were two paintings by the French Orientalist Jean-Léon Gérôme.

Though many of Gérôme's paintings are on the web, I was surprised to find out that the two Gérômes held by the New Orleans Museum of Art were not--in fact they weren't mentioned at all as even existing, so I uploaded them to Wikimedia Commons.

• Turkish Bashi Bazouk Mercenaries Playing Chess in a Market Place
  
• The Snake Charmer (Not the famous one that is all over the internet, but a different painting of the same name).
  

Yesterday was a very nice day, so we went for a walk in LaFreniere Park. We brought stale bread and were looking for a swan and her little cygnets that we saw grazing at the edge of the canals last time.

This time, it took us quite some time to find the swan with the cygnets, as she was 3/4 of the way around the lake in the opposite direction that we started walking. On the way, we saw (and fed) lots of other interesting critters.

( Nutria and cygnets ahoy! )

New Zoo trip, part 1
New Zoo trip, part 2
New Zoo trip, part 3
New Zoo trip, part 4
New Zoo trip, part 5
New Zoo trip, part 6
New Zoo trip, part 7

This is the last of the zoo pictures.

( We haz foxes! )

New Zoo trip, part 1
New Zoo trip, part 2
New Zoo trip, part 3
New Zoo trip, part 4
New Zoo trip, part 5

Some of the Audubon Nature Institute's more unusual exhibits are the white alligators. The nest was found over twenty years ago in the swamp with the baby white alligators just hatching out. We have no idea if they breed true, because all the hatchlings found were male--and these are the only white alligators that have ever been seen. They are leucistic, not albinos.

( No, they are not plastic )

New Zoo trip, part 1
New Zoo trip, part 2
New Zoo trip, part 3
New Zoo trip, part 4

On my previous zoo trip, I managed to get a few pictures of otters. This time I got quite a few more.

( Otterses! )

New Zoo trip, part 1
New Zoo trip, part 2
New Zoo trip, part 3

Swamp houseboat



Today's episode is about wild black bears (American Black Bear, Ursus americanus). Yes, we have them in Louisiana, particularly Honey Island Swamp. Yes, we have them in the Louisiana Swamp section of the Audubon Zoo.

( On to the bears! )

New Zoo trip, part 1
New Zoo trip, part 2

First, have some fungus:



That log was laying on the ground outside the wild dog pen. I thought it looked interesting.

( Off to the wild dogs )

A couple of weeks ago (Aug 16), we went to the zoo again, and I took lots more pictures.

( First, the birds )

Well, I was going to post zoo pictures from this last weekend tonight, but when I got to processing photos from my camera's directory, I found some photos from back in April that I completely forgot to post. So Lafreniere Park instead of Audubon Zoo, this time.

( Did I say chickens? )

On May 15, 2009, my daughter graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Louisiana State University.

( Of course we have pictures! )

This morning, it snowed in southern Louisiana, dropping inches of snow all across the state. Alas, I did not get a picture, since I wasn't where the snow was sticking.

But still. Snow. In New Orleans.

The other day two weekends ago I was returning to my home when I noticed a rather large white bird standing in the front yard eyeing the blackberry thicket around the oak tree. Its neck was coiled, poised to strike like a snake--

--and it did! Head and beak stabbed out, grabbing something off the vines (probably a lizard), which the egret gobbled down.

Not wanting to scare the bird by getting out of my car, I phoned the family in the house to tell them about the visitor in the front yard. Mi Esposo grabbed my camera and took pictures of the bird through the front door; I believe The Daughter did as well.

( Not a lawn flamingo )

Audubon Zoo trip, part 1
Audubon Zoo trip, part 2
Audubon Zoo trip, part 3
Audubon Zoo trip, part 4
Audubon Zoo trip, part 5

And now, more turtles, the petting zoo, and other characters in the hands-on section.

( Hands-on critters! )

Audubon Zoo trip, part 1
Audubon Zoo trip, part 2
Audubon Zoo trip, part 3
Audubon Zoo trip, part 4

Now, the monkeys! These pictures were taken back during the March 2008.

( Monkeys! )

Audubon Zoo trip, part 1
Audubon Zoo trip, part 2
Audubon Zoo trip, part 3

In my raw pictures folder, I found some more bird & otter pics I forgot to export and upload.
Next time, we'll move on to the monkeys.

( Addenda to previous birds and things )