Little Blue Heron
We went to Harns Marsh Nature Preserve one day last week. It's a good place to walk but definitely not to do the"Forest Bathing" that I mentioned in last week's post. Harns is flat land that the County has reclaimed for flood control. It is marshy during the rainy season, but here in SW Florida, that is during the summer. Trails this time of year are easily accessible.
A Snowy Egret (Yellow Slippers) waited patiently for a fish to show up. The middle picture is the same Little Blue as above, not zoomed or cropped. And showing the odd place it perched — nowhere near the water. The bird is perched on some of the flood control equipment.
Great Egret
A Great Egret amidst blooming Bidens Alba. We didn't see as many birds at Harns as we have on previous visits. Last time, we watched Limpkins eating their meals of apple snails (pretty much their entire diet). The pictures below are from that visit.
Limpkins
All we saw this time was empty snail shells (like in the middle picture). So we know the Limpkins had been there, but on this day they were somewhere else.
Bald Eagles
These two are also from our last visit to the Marsh — these are not the ones that live down the street from us who have their own webcam. It's been a bit sad at that nest this year and so I haven't stopped by to take pictures. (Update in a future post I hope.)
It was a pretty day for a walk even if we didn't see a great many birds. I definitely think the concept of "Forest Bathing" should be re-titled to something that includes Marshes, Sloughs, River Banks, and Deserts. The important thing is to get outside and enjoy nature.
I'm grateful to be able to do exactly that wherever we are.
LINKING this week to the following sharing opportunities. Thank you to the hosts.
MOSAIC MONDAY; ALL SEASONS; THROUGH MY LENS; OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY; SAY CHEESE; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; WILD BIRD Wednesday; THANKFUL THURSDAY; SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY BLISS; SATURDAY CRITTERS; and RATHER B' BIRDING
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