A Full-time Life

Category: Florida birding

  • PAIR-a-DUCKS

     

    Last week I posted City Ducks.  Here are a few duck couples that are (I think anyway) luckier in their living quarters.

     

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     Tufted duck couple in a country pond — North Fort Myers.

     

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     This Mallard Couple hangs out near Fort Myers Yacht Basin.  They greet us every time we stop.  But they're off and away as soon as they see there are no handouts. 

     

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     Mismatched couple in the same pond area as the tufted ducks above.  I can't ID either.

       

    MALLARDS

     

     Another Mallard Couple — an old photo, not sure where this was taken.  

    We are away on a boat trip, and have limited computer time and access … will catch up with all comments and blogs when we get home.

     

     

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    And that's the end — that's all I've got this week.

     

    Linked to:   Annie's RATHER B-BIRDING;  Stewart's WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY;  and Eileen's SATURDAY CRITTERS.

    Thank you all for hosting!!!

  • CHASING WOODPECKERS

     

    For a couple of weeks earlier this month my morning walks were all about chasing Woodpeckers.  We had at least three different kinds right here in the Park.    

     

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    Red-headed Woodpecker

     

     The red-heads are my favorites.

    All of these birds are pretty camera shy.  I felt really lucky to get a few halfway decent shots.  Mostly they fly as soon as I aim the camera.

     

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    Pileated Woodpecker

     

    I hear the Pileated oftener than I see it.  I'm not great at bird songs (or calls) but this one is unmistakable.  These were taken at a distance (from our yard across the canal actually).  This model for the cartoon Woody Woodpecker is much larger than the other two types here.  (My bird book says 17" for this one, and 10" for the other two.)

         

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    Red-bellied Woodpecker

     The Red-bellied like to drum on the light posts.  This post is on another street in the Park, but   one year we had one who loved the post near us on the street side of the cottage.   It certainly was a noisier morning alarm than the soft mockingbird song we're used to.   I worried that the bird had some mental problems thinking he could get bugs from a metal post.  But then I read that the more noise they make the more attractive they are to the female of the species.  

       

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    Red-headed Woodpecker

     

     It took quite a while to record my favorite red-head's progress up this electric pole.  (I don't necessarily get an hour's worth of exercise when I walk for an hour before breakfast.)  He just seemed to be climbing for the joy of it.  I never really saw him pecking at the post at all. 

     

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    He seemed happy that he made it to the top of the pole.  

    Maybe he just wanted to be king of the castle.

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  • BIRDS ON SPRING MORNINGS

    Scroll for SIGNS and FENCES. They are down there.

    Because it is spring — and because it is quieter in the park now — I'm seeing many more birds on morning walks.

    It was a great start for the day when I caught this Blue Jay contemplating   a bounty of acorns fallen from some of the live oak trees around the park.

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     Although a typical bird for many in the US, this Jay is very different from those we see in Oregon and I have wanted to get a picture of one for a long time.   

    While the Jay was a first time sighting (here in the RV park), mockingbirds are much more common.  They are everywhere…   

         

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     On fences ….

      

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     … on lamp posts …   

     

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    And on signs*.     (And, sometimes, even in trees.)

     

    They are such a cheerful little bird.  I don't get tired of seeing (and hearing) them. Lately, fledglings have been testing their wings and learning to navigate.  Some mornings I see what are probably the parent birds chasing crows and grackles away from the little ones.  

     

    * That sign is one of our most (UN)favorite kinds.   We call them CYA signs — in this case it is there so that if any of us residents get hit by a car if we venture outside of the park, the management will be able to say 'we warned you.'      We live dangerously and often dare to walk past it!  

     

     

    LINKING THIS POST to:   MOSAIC MONDAY (thank you Judith);  NATURE NOTES (thank you Michelle); WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY (thank you Stewart);  GOOD FENCES (thank you Theresa);  and SIGNS SIGNS (thanks to Lesley).  

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • (Meanwhile) UNDER THE BOARDWALK

     

    While still focusing on the Osprey (here) UP above the boardwalk,  I heard a splashy disturbance below. 

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    By the time I was able to focus  DOWN,  I'd missed the moment of the catch, but here's the splashing Anhinga — now balancing his prey rather precariously.  

     

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     He jumped around on the pilings some and tossed the fish this way and that.  I thought sure it would get away.   But no such luck (for the fish).

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    It's a stretch!

     

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    But he's going to get it all.

     

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    Poor fish!  Hard luck being the bottom of the food chain.

    ***

    Sharing the story by linking to OUR WORLD TUESDAY (thank you to Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy, Gattina, Arija, and Jennifer) and to WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY (thank you to Stewart).

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • WATCHING THE WATCHER

     

    This Osprey (also known as a Fish Hawk) was waiting  for an opportunity to snag some lunch in a small pond below.

     

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     He was intent on watching for fish — and completely oblivious to his audience.

     

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    Already quite close when I spotted him above the boardwalk,  I just kept inching a little closer while looking up.  These pictures are not cropped.

     

     

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     He's really not seeing anything at all down there worth diving for.

     

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    Moving on.

    (This last one is cropped of course — I cut out a whole bunch of cloudy sky.)

     

     

    Pictures taken May 5  in North Fort Myers.

     

    Sharing with:  SATURDAY CRITTERS (thanks to Eileen); THE BIRD D'POT (thank you Annie);  and  NATURE NOTES (thank you to Michelle)

     

  • MORE FROM MERRITT

    These are some more of our sightings from Merritt Island the first of this month.

     

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     We were not lucky enough to meet any expert birders on this trip, so I studied our books and Internet pictures for those birds we couldn't immediately identify.    Self-education does not always work though, so suggestions and corrections are always welcome.

     

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    Because of the pink  legs, I think the bird in the first picture and in the collage above is a Tri-Colored Heron in Adult Breeding mode.  It is the only heron I could find that has pink legs. 

    I'm pretty sure that the bird below is a Glossy Ibis.

          

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     But only pretty sure.  

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    And below, finally, one I am finally absolutely 100 percent sure of.  Because nobody who has ever seen one  could be confused about the  Roseate Spoonbill.   

     

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    The spoonbill has to be my favorite Florida bird!  It's fun to watch them forage as they fish by sweeping  that spatula-shaped bill from side-to-side through the shallow water.   One of my photo hopes is to someday get a decent flight-shot of these birds.   They are lovely to see against the blue sky.

     

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    This post is linked to Eileen's SATURDAY CRITTERS; to Annie's BIRD D'POT;  to Judith's MOSAIC MONDAY; and to Stewart's WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY.    Thank you to each of these hosts for providing these sharing opportunities.  

     

     

  • THE PELICAN CHORUS

     

    "The Pelican Chorus" is an old poem by Edward Lear — who was obviously inspired to write his deepest and most beautiful thoughts  utter nonsense when he looked at these crazy-looking birds.

     I apologize in advance to all readers for whom English is not their first language.    It's a silly poem with made-up words that my Dad read to us when we were kids and we read to our kids.  And I like it.  And I like pelicans.  But they really are kind of silly. 

     

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    "King and Queen of the Pelicans we;

    No other birds so grand we see!

     

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    None but we have feet like fins!

    With lovely leathery throats and chins!

     

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    Ploffskin, Pluffskin, Pelican jee!  We think no Birds so happy as we! 

     

     

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    Plumpskin, Ploshkin, Pelican Jill!

     We think so then, and we thought so still!"

     

    The (whole) Pelican Chorus by Edward Lear is here.  (I notice that Mr Lear used even more exclamation points than I usually do.  Gotta' love him for that.)

    All photos taken last week at Lover's Key (Florida) State Park.

     

    This post is linked to OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY (thanks to Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy, Gattina, and Arija); NATURE NOTES (thank you Michelle); and WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY (thank you Stewart).

     

     

  • BIRDING ON A FLORIDA ROADTRIP

     

    We went on a short road-trip last week — mostly to go birding.   I posted a little about the trip and some of our sightings a couple of days ago (here).   Here are  a few more.  

     

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    Northern Shoveler

     

    We might have seen Northern Shovelers before, but I didn't used to even try to ID ducks.   So it's officially a first-time sighting.

     

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     "Rear views" certainly don't make the best pictures, but I think it's kind of cute to see them "duck" for dinner. And besides my only pictures of the female have at least one of the pair with tails up.

     

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     We saw several Common Gallinules  …

     

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    … and a few pie-billed grebes and about a zillion coots.  

     

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    I have more Merritt Island birds to show later and probably should even have parceled yesterday's and today's pictures over a few more weeks for linking to the birding memes.    

     

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    Redwing blackbird on Merritt Island

    Since we don't have backyard birds here* it can sometimes be a while between bird photo-ops.  

    *It isn't that there are no backyard birds in this part of Florida — it is just that our own backyard is essentially a boat dock with a patio in front of it.  

    Our canal has no shoreline, so it doesn't invite birds.   

    But we love having our boat docked at our doorstep and we love day trips and road-trips  to go see birds so it's a perfect compromise for us.

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    This post is linked to OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY and to WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY.  (Thank you to Lady Fi, Arija, Gattina, Sandy, Sylvia and Jenn for OW and to Stewart for WBW).

     

     

     

     

  • REFLECTING ON THE BIRDS

    There was a lot of reflection going on when we visited Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge recently.

     

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    So many of my Florida pictures could be rotated and still look about the same.

    Sometimes it's hard to know which way is up.

    But at least here I have an excuse!

     

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    Roseate Spoonbills are always a joy to see.  And we saw a lot of them.

     

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    It's always fun to  see different species together.  Here's a Roseate with  a selection of egrets.  (Probably Snowy Egrets,  but I can't see their feet to know for sure.)

     

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    Great Egret with a tiny little sandpiper.

     

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    Tangled legs.  I think this is a Stilt Sandpiper.

     

     

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    More Egrets.   And it's a mirror image two different ways!  

     

    Linking birds and reflections with Eileen's  SATURDAY CRITTERS; with Anni's RATHER B'BIRDING; with Judith's  MOSAIC MONDAY; and Michelle's NATURE NOTES.   

     

    Thank you to all these wonderful hosts for providing these sharing opportunities.  Go visit!!!

     

     

     

  • NEWS FROM THE NEST — happy, sad, hopeful

    A few days after I wrote (in this post) about a visit to the nest, but a day before it was scheduled for publication, we drove past the pasture.  And even from the the car we were pretty sure we saw an eagle that did not have a white head perched on a branch above the nest.   We turned around and drove back.  

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     Yes — we saw correctly.  There was E-6,  proud as could be several feet above the nest.   Posing beautifully.   Happy news.

     But the  next day (the same day that earlier post was published), there was a report of an injured eagle  found dazed on a railroad track a few miles from the tree.  That eagle was rescued by a passerby who called Fish and Wildlife.  The eagle, later positively identified as Ozzie, was taken to a rescue facility on Sanibel Island called CROW (Clinic for Rehabilitation of Wildlife).  (Click the hypertext link to get to their website).  Veterinarians are treating him for a broken clavicle and they report that he is eating well and recovering (sad news but hopeful).

     

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    Meanwhile back at the nest, E-6 continues to progress.    The constant watchers reported on FaceBook Monday morning  that he had fledged  (he took a short flight away from the tree and came back for a fish breakfast).    Harriet of course continues to bring food.    Those watchers also report that sub-adult eagles have been flying near the nest with twigs and small pine branches,  apparently trying to intrude on the nest.   They must know there is only one adult there to defend the territory.   Harriet has chased them away successfully so far (but she still has to hunt and can't be near the tree all the time).  Bird watching  isn't always easy.  

    P1000613There are so many questions.  

    Without his father to urge him on, will E-6 fledge completely and fly off to succesfully begin his independent life?  Will Ozzie recover well?  Will he return to the nest?  Will Harriet be able to fend off the intruders?  Will she wait for Ozzie to return before flying off herself?

     (The adult pair has always left the nest for their summer 'residence' shortly after their eaglet(s) leave the nest permanently.  They are true snowbirds, with their time in Florida coinciding beautifully with the months we human snowbirds are here.)

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    I had decided at the beginning of this season that I wouldn't monitor the eagle- cam this year; I was pretty much 'over it' (not completely over the eagles, just the web-cam). Everybody has learned a lot about eagle behavior from the cam, but  … 

    … I was beginning to think that becoming so "familiar" with their behavior makes it too easy to for us to anthropomorphise  … to forget that these are wild birds who don't behave or "feel" like people do.

    Ozzie and harriet(Ozzie and Harriet from a previous — happier — year.)

     

    But I have to admit that with the latest chapter, it is hard not to sneak a peek at the website every so often.  I hate to miss an episode of this drama.

    I'd be seriously interested to hear what you think about bird-cams in general and would love it if you'd share your thoughts in a comment!

     

     

     I am sharing this post with Michelle's NATURE NOTES; with Stewart's WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY;  with Anni's  RATHER B' BIRDING, and  Eileen's SATURDAY CRITTERS.    Thank you to all the hosts.