Looking for some anis.

On April 25, 2026April 12, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

I was watching the pelicans diving for fish in late December. I got to Fort Desoto Park right at sunrise and stopped at the beach before heading to the woods to look for some birds.

Two rare birds had been hanging out here for several weeks. The above is not one of them. Starlings are common here but he looked pretty shining in the sun.

A grooved-billed ani and a smooth-billed ani were hanging out together near the bay pier wooded area. I saw them both briefly but was only able to get shots of the smooth-billed one before they both took off over the trees. They aren’t very attractive but they are cool birds anyway. Both were not new birds. The only time I saw a grooved-bill was in 2011 and there was a smooth-billed one here back in 2017.

After seeing the anis I went for a walk on the beach to look for shorebirds.

Plovers were plentiful including the black bellied plover and piping plover above. The piping plover was missing his feet and I’ve seen him several times at the park so he must be doing okay.

Looking across the lagoon, reddish egrets were feeding when a fish jumped out and made a big splash. They were both like “Where did it go?”.

As I was leaving the park I saw something black flying across the road so I pulled over and realized it was the anis in the berry bushes. The smooth-billed one was out in the open and I though he was going to eat the berries but he was just fanning himself.

This was the only shot I got of them both (one in the top left and one in the far right bottom). The grooved-billed ani seemed really shy compared to the other one. They are still at the park, several months later.

I made a quick stop at Crescent Lake Park on the way home to see if the white pelicans were there. Only a handful were hiding in the shade under the big banyan tree.

The only winter ducks that had showed up so far were a few lesser scaup. I checked back here weeks later and there were tons of white pelicans so more on those later.

Dancing cranes on the bike trail

On April 22, 2026April 18, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography7 Comments

I had another sighting of the elusive fox squirrel on the Pinellas County bike trail near Brooker Creek Preserve at the end of December. There were two but one stayed hidden high up in the tree.

I don’t see deer often on this trail so this was a treat to see her looking at me.

Three sandhill cranes walking along the trail.

A kildeer flies by.

This mockingbird had an overgrown beak. This was the first time I had seen this.

A pair of kestrels were in the cow pasture. One was on the utility wire and one took off from a dead snag right when I saw him.

On my way back to the car I saw the three sandhill cranes again. This time they were starting to dance around. They usually do this to flirt but there was three of them and they seemed to be agitated over something on the ground.

One kept picking up what looked like a hollow dead branch and danced around with it. Maybe it was two males trying to impress the female? They did this for quite a while then just stopped and started walking away. What a funny thing to watch.

Grazing near the trail. Is this a miniature horse or a pony?

Heading home I took a less traveled back road and slowed down when I saw a doe on the shoulder. She crossed right in front of me.

Lots of ladies in the park

On April 20, 2026April 4, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Florida animals5 Comments

The welcoming committee at Chesnut Park in early January. I was driving in and saw them and pulled over to take a few pictures before heading to the back of the park for a walk. They looked over at me for a second and then went on feeding.

“Get out of the road, Lady. I got a walk to do.”

Out on the dock a purple gallinule was looking for food in the spadderdock leaves.

Gingerbread (named by the regular walkers at the park) is a domesticated duck that was probably someone’s pet and was dumped in the park. She seemed to be doing okay for a while and rescuers were trying to get her so I’m not sure what her status is.

Birds in the bushes above are a red bellied woodpecker and a yellow-rumped warbler.

I found a ruby-crowned kinglet hopping around with the other birds. I don’t see these birds often. The last time I saw one was in 2015. What a cute tiny bird.

A red shoulder hawk looking back at me.

An anhinga posing (actually drying off her wings) on top of the shelter roof.

A lady watching me from the dry swamp. She was so close I took this with my phone.

Lots of ladies as I was pulling out of my parking spot. No males around this morning.

A morning of usual critters

On April 18, 2026April 18, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

I was at Roosevelt Wetlands in late December hoping to find some great winter ducks but only the usuals were there. Above a pied grebe was watching me take his picture.

Ring-necked ducks are usually here during the winter.

And coots are easy to find in the winter.

A year round bird but not that common is a Cooper’s Hawk. He was hiding in the shadows.

Eastern phoebes and savannah sparrows are plentiful here in the winter.

Boring ole mallards were trying to sleep on the main trail.

Since things were slow at the wetlands I left early and stopped at Philippe Park on the way home. The great horned owls nest here in the winter. Dad was sitting high up in the tree and was easy to find.

Mom was still sitting on the nest. They sat on the nest for a month and abandoned it twice this winter. Something wasn’t working for them. Maybe the eggs weren’t hatching? Everyone thought they would have left the park by now for the season but I’ve recently heard that she’s back nesting on a different tree in the same park. Maybe third time’s a charm?

It was low tide along the sea wall and ibis and a few laughing gulls were feeding in the muck.

Around the yard in December

On April 15, 2026March 29, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography8 Comments

The squirrels were getting frisky in the backyard in mid-December. Don’t they know it’s not mating season? Actually early December is the start of their winter mating season so I may be seeing some tiny ones soon. Just what we need, more squirrels digging up the backyard.

It was good to see that the neighborhood turkeys survived Thanksgiving as they cruised through our backyard. There is almost no turkey hunting in Pinellas county due to the density and urban nature of the area and there are no public hunting areas so these turkeys are generally safe in our neighborhood with the exception of being hit by a car.

A juvenile little blue heron looking for a snack (lizard) along the sidewalk to our front door.

I hate it when the grackles come to the feeder (which isn’t often) but they are pretty.

Black bellied whistling ducks in the rain. I was standing outside with a big golf umbrella watching them as they found a little puddle to drink from.

I was adding some red lights to the back along the roof when this guy fell down. I’m glad he didn’t land on me because neighbors from many streets over would have heard me scream. I know they are out there but he caught me by surprise.

Blooming in the front yard in December.

Brett and I took the long way around the neighborhood after dinner out to see some lights. We saw a lot of deer out feeding.

This is not a great video since it took Brett a while to stop and I was filming from the moving car but the coyote couple passed by us on the sidewalk. The green eyes glowing belongs to the black coyote that almost blends in. It was really cool to see them in the dark but they kept moving fast.

Watching the birds catch bait fish

On April 11, 2026April 14, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

On Christmas eve I made my usual trip down to south St. Pete to the Bay Pines National Cemetery to visit my parents. I didn’t stay long and it was such a beautiful day that I decided to swing by the beach on the way home to stop at one of my Dad’s favorite places, the Seaside Seabird Sanctuary.

This rescue, rehabilitate and release sanctuary sits right on Indian Shores Beach. They also house many permanently injured birds. It looks like it was feeding time.

A couple of quick videos of them feeding. It was funny to watch the white pelican stick his whole head in to get the fish. Then the snowy egrets said “Hey, I can do that too!”.

They were catching live bait fish in the tubs.

Pretty faces. Most of the pelicans are missing a wing or eye.

A wild night heron hangs out hoping for a free snack.

A shot of the view from the deck on the way to the beach.

Early December walks

On April 6, 2026March 18, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

Love locks on the Safety Harbor waterfront boardwalk. This trend that started in Paris has made it’s way here. The problem here is that too many locks weigh the wires down and cause them to bend and pull out of the wood so unfortunately they get cut off and thrown out periodically.

I stopped by Kapok Park in mid-December and almost missed the fall colors on the bald cypress trees. The small lake is surrounded by them and it’s pretty when the leaves change.

One of my favorite trees at this park is a large oak tree that was pulled up during a bad storm many years ago. The tree still thrives and has adapted it’s shape to grow along the ground.

I was out at the Dunedin marina on a foggy morning. Kingfishers are common here in the winter and this was my first sighting this season of one. He was hovering for a long time looking for fish to catch.

Another foggy morning I walked on the causeway. Above is the view from the top of the bridge.

An osprey was watching me.

On a sunny morning on the causeway I saw a fisherman trying to keep the birds away from his bait fish that he had just pulled up. I noticed the snowy egret (in the bottom shot) was missing a foot. He could still fly so he was getting around well.

Willets and dowitchers were feeding along the shoreline.

A herring gull with a tasty snack.

Critters and blooms in late November

On April 4, 2026March 17, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

By mid-November the wintering birds were paying regular visits to the feeders including the pine warbler (top shot) and the palm warbler (bottom shot).

A Tufted titmouse with a snack.

Bluebirds were still coming for the dried worms and the birdbath.

Squirrels being cute in the backyard. I think that first one was eating a mushroom.

Thanksgiving weekend I put up some red lights along with the bistro lights in the backyard and a house finch was checking them out. He posed for me while I took the above through the window.

The leopard plants that we planted in the back in early July were blooming. These were the last of the blooms. The squirrels ate most of them.

The camelia bush in the front was covered with blooms.

A few poinsettia plants near the front door.

The Christmas cactus was already blooming.

Fighting bucks

On March 28, 2026April 10, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Florida animals3 Comments

I have only gotten a few fleeting glimpses of this big guy at Chesnut Park recently. I was there early one morning in early December and saw him running through the woods off the back boardwalk.

I came off the boardwalk and was on the dirt trail when I heard a commotion in the woods. I went in a little ways and hid behind a tree and caught him and a slightly younger buck going at it. I couldn’t get any closer (not that I would have wanted to) so all I got are a few blurry shots of them locking antlers. They fought for just a minute and then the younger buck ran off and the older one went deeper into the woods.

A lady standing in front of the boardwalk.

The usual birds were a titmouse and a chickadee.

Spatterdock in the lake.

This cute pied grebe would flap her wings when coming up after a dive to get the excess water off.

I passed another lady on the trail.

This guy was not shy. I think this is the one fighting the bigger buck.

We were still in drought mode and the swamp was dry and full of the dead cypress leaves.

Flying up high and swimming underneath

On March 25, 2026April 10, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Florida animals5 Comments

A few days before Christmas Brett and I went for a long walk along the water at the St. Pete Pier. As we drove into the parking lot I noticed the orchid trees were still blooming (although they were past the peak). I got out of the car and saw a flock of nanday parakeets flying into the tree right in front of our car. It was another one of those “I wish I had my camera” moments. Even though the parakeets blend into the leaves they were easy to spot because they were so LOUD.

The tide is usually super low in the winter.

We passed a party going on in the street. There was a DJ and they were playing music. They were dressed so colorfully and looked like they were having fun.

The entrance to the pier was decorated for the holidays.

We saw a lot of dolphins this morning.

These guys were cast netting for mullet. It’s hard to catch mullet with a fishing pole so most people use the nets. There were several boats along the pier pulling up the fish and the ones who had just arrived had the empty boats. The “mullet run” season runs September through November but they must have still been swimming around by the thousands in late December. I’m assuming there was going to be a lot of local restaurants with smoked mullet on the menu after this morning.

The dolphins were also doing some fishing in the same spot.

Climbing up the stairs of the pier to the top level, I could see Tampa far behind the sailing class.

Looking towards St. Pete.

On our walk back to the car I could hear more parakeets screaming as they fly by me under the sun.

They flew into a nearby palm tree and hung around for a few minutes before taking off again. These parakeets are wild here but not native to Florida. They were brought here from central America and have been growing in population since the 60’s.