Critters and blooms in late November

On April 4, 2026May 7, 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.

All of the usual winter critters

On March 21, 2026April 10, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

I wasn’t expecting to find anything new at the Largo Nature Preserve in early December. I did find some usual wintering birds including a blue-gray gnatcatcher and a yellow rumped warbler.

Yellow crowned night herons hang out along the boardwalk that circles the small lake. Years ago they nested here but I haven’t seen any nests in a long time.

A female blue winged teal is common here in the winter.

Northern shovelers are occasionally seen here in the winter. There were several males and females on this morning.

A pied grebe was running away.

I found some tiny critters trying to hide on the leaves.

The bald cypress trees were starting to show their fall colors.

Foggy season has started

On March 16, 2026April 10, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

It was late November and foggy season had arrived. I love cool foggy morning walks so I headed to the Dunedin causeway. As I drove up this crow posed in front of my car. The fog wasn’t super thick but it was just enough to cast that weird winter spell.

The sun tried to peek through a few times as I walked over the bridge.

White pelicans were flying over my head. I really had wished I had my camera.

The tide was low and I could see the coral under the bridge.

The fog didn’t let up through my entire walk.

An osprey takes off after landing for a few minutes in the low tide.

A lone roseate spoonbill was feeding along the sea wall under the bridge. Even in the fog his bright pink feathers popped out.

An osprey eating a fish on the drawbridge gate. It would have been funny to see the gate start to go down while the osprey was on it but at least he got to eat his meal in peace. Not many tall boats out this morning.

Critters on my November walks

On March 7, 2026April 10, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

In early November I was out walking along the Safety Harbor waterfront. The fishing pier that was destroyed by the hurricanes (in late 2024) was getting close to being finished. On this morning they still had to put the rails up and finish the end but the birds were enjoying the pilings.

This anhinga was trying to chill on the boardwalk so I took a quick video from far away and left.

Another morning I was out at Philippe Park, climbing the stairs. Those rock piles in the top picture (just above the railing) are man-made oyster beds that were installed to help the oysters grow here and help with erosion. Oysters are natural water filters and will help keep the water in the top of the bay clean.

I’m finding these little shells all over the place.

Another morning I was out on the Dunedin causeway and stopped to watch the shorebirds flying back and forth. It looks like these are sanderlings.

I was able to catch some of them landing. These are mostly ruddy turnstones and short billed dowitchers.

Another morning and I’m out at the Dunedin marina. I walked north towards the Weaver Park fishing pier. The pier is still closed due to damage from the hurricanes (the end was torn off). It is slated to be rebuilt in 2027.

Walking back to my car I could see an immature eagle (he still had a lot of brown on his head). He was chasing an osprey with a fish. I was wishing I had my camera.

The eagle and osprey went behind some trees and somehow the fish was taken from the osprey. The eagle landed in a nearby tree and was trying to eat his prize.

Both the osprey and crows were diving at the eagle. It’s not like either or going to get that fish from the eagle. The eagle moved farther into the tree and started to eat.

My last view of the eagle before heading back to my car. I don’t see this often.

Shots from the yard in early November

On February 28, 2026March 6, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography6 Comments

We had the usual visitors to the yard in early November (with one new one). The cute yellow pine warblers were visiting the suet feeder. They would line up on the oak tree and the feeder stand waiting their turn.

Bluebirds were still coming through because I had the dried mealworm feeder up for the first week in November.

Yellow throated warblers are winter visitors. They eat from the suet feeder and stop for a drink from the bird bath. They like to look for bugs under the palm fronds.

A new visitor to the backyard was a yellow bellied sapsucker. He only stayed for a few minutes. I’ve seen this type of woodpecker in the parks but not often.

A pileated woodpecker also stopped by for a few minutes.

Brett yelled “There’s an eagle in the backyard”. I jumped up and grabbed my camera. He was on the other side of the fairway so I was able to sneak outside and catch him before he took off. I thought he had caught something but he didn’t have anything in his talons when he left.

A blue jay sits in front of the window. I think he was telling me the feeder was out of bird food.

Squirrels getting frisky on the patio chairs. I took this through the window.

We had heard that the Northern lights might be visible as far south as central Florida. We went out after 10pm and this is what I caught in the neighborhood. I’m not sure if they really count at as Northern lights but the sky looked different and had a little bit of color that night. People an hour north of us got some brighter pink and purple in their shots.

A stroll down my street.

On February 25, 2026March 6, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, flowers and plants5 Comments

In late October I was out for a walk in my neighborhood. The sun was just coming up over the trees. I had walked to the utility field hoping to see some critters hanging around.

Taken with my phone, I could see a bald eagle sitting high up on the tower.

Native bladderpod was going dormant for the winter but there was still a few green pods on the plant.

Rattlebox starts out with beautiful yellow flowers, then turns in bean pods that are highly toxic. Originally they were planted to help with erosion and they grow like crazy but were later found out that the beans were bad for critters to eat.

I’m not sure what these are but they were in the same area.

A red shoulder hawk was sitting on a light post, looking around for a snack.

A crawly critter on the sidewalk.

There are several bird of paradise plants along my walk.

When I got back home I could see a tiny alligator out in the middle of the pond across the street.

Hibiscus blooming in my front yard.

My favorite walking spots in October

On February 23, 2026March 6, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

The sun was trying to peak out when I went for a walk just after sunrise at the Safety Harbor Waterfront in Mid-October.

It had gotten even cloudier when I stopped by nearby Philippe Park to walk the stairs.

As I was heading for the stairs I caught a pair of little blue herons chasing each other. I’m not sure if they were fighting or flirting since they flew off together.

A night heron sits in the oyster bed.

A few days later I was walking at the Dunedin marina.

The water was low and clear along the seawall and I could see several horseshoe crabs along the rocks. I don’t remember seeing them here before.

I was walking through a neighborhood near the marina and noticed this cactus that was growing on a palm tree was blooming. I did some digging and found out it was dragon fruit. I’ve never eaten it but I see it at the grocery store. The plant was loaded with it. I hope the owner ate all of them.

A few days later and I was at the Dunedin causeway.

I was getting to the bottom of the bridge and noticed this great egret trying to eat a fish. There were several guys fishing along the seawall so I’m not sure if he stole it from them.

I noticed a laughing gull with a missing foot. I’ve seen him several times (at least I think it’s the same one).

Linking to Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) at Image-In-Ing.

An early morning walk

On February 21, 2026March 6, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

There was a mist over the wetlands as I walked out on the trail at the Roosevelt Wetlands. It was mid-November and a cold morning although it warmed up fast. The mist and dew made it easy to see the spiderwebs.