A Full-time Life

BIRD ROOKERY

For WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY hosted by STEWART.  

Peace river boat trip w UR feb 20131
It is a mystery to me why birds choose one area for their roosts instead of another.  Sometimes you'll see a mangrove island with so many nesting birds that there's almost no space for the birds to move around (or so it seems to my eye)   — while just down the river there's another islet that looks exactly the same except that it is completely empty of bird life.  



Rookery3

 

They must have a good reason because it seems to be working for them.

 


Roseate spoonbill and storks

We passed several woodstork rookeries on a recent trip down part of the Peace River.  There were a few roseate spoonbills sharing the same mangroves.

 


Roseate spoonbill

I  remember how amazing it was to see these pink birds for the first time.  They still amaze me!

 


Stork wing display
Just a little bit of woodstork courting ritual caught on camera.

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41 responses to “BIRD ROOKERY”

  1. Mary Howell Cromer

    Wow what wonderful and fascinating birds you shared!

  2. Amanda

    Lovely! the colour of the spoonbill is great, would love to see one one day.

  3. pat

    Great photos! I agree about the Spoonbill. It’s a beauty…

  4. Annie

    They are like us, living more and more in “towns” ! I like too the so funny spoonbills !

  5. Lindy

    Wow, that Roseate Spoonbill is gorgeous! I’ve never seen one of those before.
    You’re right – it does look kind of crowded in there. 😉

  6. bettyl

    Wow! What a variety of birds and color! Your photos are always amazing!

  7. Pam

    I love those Roseate Spoonbills pink feathers. Great captures Sallie.

  8. Pam

    I love those Roseate Spoonbills pink feathers. Great captures Sallie

  9. Lavender Dreams

    I love getting out and seeing the birds here in Florida! Fantastic photos!

  10. Pia, Sweden

    Hi Sallie!
    Oh, I understand that you like the pink bird. I do to!
    Lovely to see how different our bird paradises are!
    Have a nice rest of the week! Greetings Pia

  11. ken schneider

    Interesting boat trip! So nice to see the Wood Storks setting up households. They have practically disappeared as breeding birds in South Florida, notably in Corkscrew Swamp. A few are now nesting in Palm Beach County. Like you, I wonder why our Yellow-crowned Night-Herons selected their rookery at a particular spot in our neighborhood, and why there are no other species nesting there except for a few Green Herons.

  12. dianne7777

    they’re so big and awkward yet beautiful

  13. Boom & Gary

    Great post!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

  14. Ramakant Pradhan

    Beautiful collection of bird pictures. Love the image the way 2 different pictures have been put together to create an interesting collage.

  15. Anni @ I'd Rather B Birdin'

    Great images of the wood storks…I’ve only seen ONE here in the wild…on the banks of a bay inlet. And you…lucky you see a whole lot of them!! Great spoonbill image too.

  16. Emille

    Great captures, Sallie -have never seen woodstorks, let alone, pink ones:)

  17. Phil

    It’s a good question you pose at the beginning Sallie and I guess the birds know precisely what they want and if its not quite right, they won’t use it. Good to see your rookery – the nearest we get here in the UK is Heronries of Grey Herons, although Little Egrets are doing well in a few still kept fairly secret localities.

  18. Arti

    Wow! So many beautiful pictures and lovely birds there. I love the pinky one, she has given a nice pose 🙂

  19. Neil

    Interesting looking spoonbill you have.

  20. Jenn Jilks

    You have magical photos and magical travels!!!

  21. islandrambles

    I think the pink spoonbill is really magical.

  22. Karen

    I have never seen these birds before, they are amazing especially the pink bird, love it.

  23. NatureFootstep Photo

    gorgeous shots. I saw both species when I was in CostaRica but I never came that close. Your spoonbill has got a very strong color. 🙂

  24. Eileen

    Wow,cool sighting of the storks and spoonbills roosting. Do you see the nest there too? Great shots!

  25. Mick

    Great photos of all the birds. I wonder also why one tree is preferred over another. Might it just be habit?

  26. Gattina

    They are such beautiful birds !

  27. Karen

    Oh Wow! Those storks are marvellous, and that spoonbill, awesome. You get to see so many wonderful birds.

  28. Carver

    Fantastic shots. I envy you the birds you get a chance to photograph.

  29. Hazel

    I share your wondering about why birds roost where they roost. I read that in those holocaust camps, you would never find a single bird or if there was you’d never hear any singing. But that’s probably understandable.
    I think I’ll be amazed too if I saw that pink bird for the first time. She looks like such a beauty!

  30. Carletta's Captures

    I’ve never seen a woodstork. You have so many places to explore and search out these wonderful birds.
    Love the spoonbill – it’s the pink! 🙂

  31. TexWisGirl

    SO cool! i’d love to see even one nest of a heron or egret here, much less a rookery. although i know that some suburbs have dealt with an egret rookery with horrible toxic smells, bird waste, etc. and because they’re protected, once they began nesting, they couldn’t chase them out and had to live with it for months. much more cool in the wild. 🙂

  32. Gail

    It is weird how the birds will all congregate in a one area to nest. I saw my first roseate spoonbill last spring at a rookery in Louisiana. I’m smitten with the color of their feathers. I’ve never seen a woodstork in person. I’ll have to look and see if they live or migrate here. Wonderful shots, Sallie!

  33. Ebie

    Hahaha, they want their privacy too!

  34. EG CameraGirl , Canada

    It amazes me when several birds roost in the same tree!

  35. Emily

    I so enjoyed looking at your photos this morning. So interesting how the birds choose where to roosts. I’m sure mother nature knows best. Great snaps!
    Enjoy your day.
    ~Emily
    The French Hutch

  36. Rainfield (雨田 Malaysia）

    This maybe a good place to pose for you.
    They know you.

  37. diane

    It seems funny to see such big birds balancing on flimsy mangrove trees. The pink one is beautiful. Great capture of them dancing.

  38. HAZEL

    It must be magical to see these birds locally-the photos are super, Sallie!

  39. Colin Huggins

    I agree with Stewart M of Melbourne.
    Not the most attractive of the bird variety and no doubt if you got close to this colony the stench would knock you out.
    Just like the Suburban Iris colonies here – STENCH!
    Colin (Brisbane. Australia)
    Weather: No change still coming down in bucket loads in intervals – on one minute for 30 minutes, then off, and back again. Ah “Mother Nature” – at least we can’t blame politicans for this – ha ha! They are saved from one thing.
    RAIN!!!! and when it comes.

  40. Stewart M

    Woodstorks are not the prettiest of birds are they?
    I must admit, I don’t mind have those little read-heads of mine around!!
    Cheers – Stewart M – Melbourne

  41. Denise

    Fabulous photos Sallie. These remind me of our trip to Sebastian when we took a boat ride over to Pelican Island. What a thrill it was to see not only pelicans but storks settling down for the night.

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