We live in New Orleans, just a half-block from the Mississippi River, and right now the river is completely wild. The water is higher than usual, and all sorts of creatures are appearing along the levee. Last week, on a bike ride, I spotted:
Dozens of egrets and turtles
Five alligators (!)
Three rabbits
One beaver
In 2024, I made the above animation, inspired by winter on the levee. But I saw more wildlife in one springtime outing than I had all winter—so for the past few days, I’ve been biking up and down River Road with my camera, capturing the things I see.
Honestly, while reviewing the footage, I could hardly believe that these shots were taken just blocks from our house.
I’ve come to love the batture (the land between the river and levee). It’s an odd mix of industrial sprawl and pristine nature. And it attracts odd people: like the folks who’ve built their houses on the “wrong” side of the levee and keep pygmy goats as pets. It attracted us too (albeit on the “right” side).
Anyway, all this wildlife has been blowing my mind, and I wanted to share it with you. That’s it for now. We’ll return to our regularly scheduled art broadcast next week.
Later gator
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