And this eastern towhee. I don’t see these very often.
Catbirds are very common here.
It’s common to see a kestrel high up in a tree.
The eagle is on the nest. I’ve heard that the rangers have reported there are eggs. I could just barely see her head sticking up. I did not see the other parent that morning.
A downy woodpecker hanging around.
I saw this juvenile bald eagle way out in the lagoon across from the nature center. The tide was very low and the oyster beds were exposed.
It’s not fun to go on a hike in early December and getting eaten alive by mosquitoes. I had two coats of bug repellant on with high DEET content. I still came home with 15 bug bites. They were biting my hands, my ears, my face. I stopped and sprayed my hair since they were dive bombing my head. Usually if I keep moving they don’t bother me too much but they were chasing after me as I walked very quickly down the trail. We need a good cold spell to get rid of these guys (like days with a high under 50). It was 85 degrees.
What a great variety of birds to see! I agree-we need a freeze to knock back the mosquitoes!
Uh — I agree with you on hating those dive-bombing mosquitoes. But you were fibbing a bit when you say you got ‘nothin but skeeters’ …. cuz those birds are great. It’s pretty chilly here right now for Florida — about the same temp as we’d have if we were in Oregon and just about as gray. But the gray won’t last as long here (at least I hope not).
Welcome to the impacts of global warming, as you walk through the forests you see a lot of pest populations that are expanding because it does not get cold enough to control them.
Wonderful bird captures! Thanks for braving the mosquitoes to get out there and take these!!
remind me NOT to go there iinDecember!