Fun morning at the zoo

On March 14, 2026March 14, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn zoo animals2 Comments

In early December Brett and I made another trip to the zoo. The weather was too nice to be indoors and we had so much fun on our last trip. The gibbons are always a hit at the zoo and the young one was having fun swinging while the parents watched from the ground.

A quick video of the penguins swimming right in front of us.

Brett had never taken the buggy ride and since we were there early we hopped right on. The Marabou storks were walking around and kept stopping in front of the buggy so we were stuck there for a few minutes.

A type of gazelle in the elephant area.

That was one big fat lazy gator. I’m sure he’s popular with kids.

The mallard thought this manatee was just a big floating pillow.

Watching a manatee and mallard eat their breakfast.

The zoo was decorated for the holidays. This certainly said “Florida Christmas”.

The big critters were out playing.

I think I could fall asleep watching these giant tortoises eat their breakfast. It must take them all day.

Critters around the neighborhood

On October 4, 2025September 6, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

We had rain all morning in the neighborhood in early June. Once it stopped I was ready to get out of the house so I headed out on my bike for a quick spin.

Since it had just stopped raining I took a quick detour on the golf course behind our house thinking there wouldn’t be any golfers coming through for a while. I ran into a limpkin and a great egret.

The sun was out by the time I made it around the neighborhood and I slowed down when I saw a head pop out of the pond. He climbed onto the bank but didn’t go any farther. There were several people walking their dogs and they all saw it before getting too close.

Early one morning I was going to the grocery store and saw 2 figures from far away on the left side of the road. I slowed down and realized it was 2 coyotes. One was black. I had heard about a black coyote in the neighborhood but this was the first time seeing one. Black coyotes are not rare but are uncommon in Florida. They get their color from a genetic mutation known as melanism. The black one crossed first, right in front of me. I was glad no one was behind me because they would have been honking to hurry up.

The brown one crossed next and stopped in front of me and had to scratch an itch. I didn’t have my camera which was just as well since I wouldn’t have been able to get it out quick enough but my phone was right there.

They both sauntered across the golf course and disappeared behind some bushes.

Not yet “purple” kids

On September 27, 2025September 27, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

In late May I was back at Chesnut Park hoping to see the almost grown raccoon families hanging around the boardwalks. All I saw was the above. Someone was sleeping in with his foot hanging out of the hole.

This turtle was laying eggs just off the trail. Unfortunately those eggs are going to be an easy meal for the raccoons to find, if not the crows.

I had heard there were purple gallinule babies along the lake but at first all I saw was one adult just off the dock.

I came off the dock and walked around the lake near the edge and saw the above almost hidden in the shade near some trees. This baby was almost as big as the parent. He was a little skittish so I hid in the bushes for a while.

Mom showed up with a spadderdock bloom and started feeding it to her young one.

She grabbed another bloom and that’s when I realized she had 2 kids to feed. She stayed busy for a while although the older one might have already been feeding himself. He was off by himself looking for food most of the time. Luckily we were off in a hidden corner of the lake and no one came around to scare them off while I was there.

An almost hidden alligator. I could just barely make out his black back through the ferns. I was on the raised boardwalk so I wasn’t too concerned if he woke up.

A neighborhood spin on my bike

On September 10, 2025October 15, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn Florida animals5 Comments

I was out on my bike early one morning in May with just my phone, hoping not to get rained on but the skies cleared up quickly. As I turned the corner off our street I could see deer running across the golf course.

The goldenrod was blooming along the street.

A limpkin crossing the dam on one of the ponds.

A quick video of a big alligator going into hiding.

A swallow tail kite cruising high over the trees.

There were lots of turtles on the banks once the sun was out.

A juvenile little blue heron creeping around the pickerelweed along the edge.

A yellow crowned night heron out in the day.

One of the smaller alligators that hangs out behind the club house parking lot. He got a little too close and I kept backing up in the grass. This shot was cropped up.

One of the other bigger ones heading into the water. This one seems to live in this spot where there aren’t any houses on both sides of the pond. There’s a small bridge so I was up high.

There are a lot of alligators in the neighborhood since there are so many ponds. Most are pretty small and the 2 big ones aren’t near the golf course. I’m sure if they start hanging out on the course they end up “gone” or “disappear”.

Baby critter season was in full swing.

On September 6, 2025October 15, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

I made it back to the ruby throated hummingbird nest at Chesnut Park just in time to catch Mom feeding the little babies in early May. Zooming in with my 600mm lens I could see 2 tiny beaks peeking out over the top of the nest. Mom was feeding the one on the left in the 2nd shot.

This is an uncropped shot with my camera. The nest is across the river and up in a tree. I’m not sure who the first person was that found this nest. Talk about a needle in a haystack. I guess the hummingbird buzzed by them on the trail and they followed it with their eyes to the other side and saw it land.

I didn’t stay long at the nest. Walking along the boardwalk I spotted the usual birds, a limpkin and a male anhinga drying off his wings.

There’s always a lot of baby moorhens in the spring.

I was able to find the green frogs again since they were spending time near the small dock. An alligator was close by the frogs.

I ran into some friends on the back boardwalk and we were talking about how the 2nd raccoon family had moved from their original tree. I had not seen them yet and thought I would miss them. As we were looking around for the owl we saw this baby raccoon stick his head out of a hole. I took the above with my phone.

The Mom had moved her 3 babies to a tree farther down the boardwalk. We only got a look at the one baby but could hear some noises coming from the tree. I heard a few weeks later the family was seen moving around the area, the babies all grown up.

A doe was watching us take pictures of the raccoon.

Looking up at the trees I could see the sun was up high and it was time to go home.

When I got back to my car the above were feeding right in front of the parking area.

A pretty red tree and a big alligator

On August 30, 2025September 6, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography6 Comments

I made another trip to the bird rookery in north Tampa in early May. The royal poinciana tree near the little park area was blooming and the wood storks were hanging out in it while taking a break from feeding the little ones.

A wood stork flew right in front of me and got a drink of water.

The baby great egrets were screaming to be fed.

A young black crowned night heron was also screaming for Mom to feed him.

A young moorhen gets a snack from Mom.

There were a lot of glossy ibis but they stayed in the far back and it’s hard to see their babies until they are flying.

A female anhinga panting in the heat.

I’ve seen tiny alligators in the pond but this was the first big one I’ve seen here. He climbed right up on the bank and plopped down for a while.

He walked around the bank and into the street, then turned around and headed back down in the pond and under the water. I had my 600mm lens with me so these are pretty far away and cropped up.

A two nest morning

On August 23, 2025September 6, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Florida animals5 Comments

I did not find this ruby throated hummingbird nest on my own. It became a well known nest once it was spotted and at first I heard there were tons of people there to get shots of it so I waited several weeks before going.

I took the above with my phone. The nest was off the trail and across the wide creek. It’s in the red star area. I brought my heavy 600mm lens and the first shot is heavily cropped. There had been several hummingbirds buzzing around the area and I guess some people watched them fly across the creek to the nest.

Just down from the hummingbird nest was a raccoon nest. This nest was easy to spot. The tree was almost up against the boardwalk and Mom would sleep hanging out of the hole as her babies got bigger.

I heard there were 3 babies in that hole but after waiting over an hour I only got a quick glimpse of one baby when Mom was moving around.

Mom came back outside the hole and entertained us for a few minutes before going back to sleep.

I made a quick lap around the park before leaving and saw one of the eagles in the usual spots.

Wading critters near the dock.

Little fuzzy quackers in the pond

On August 18, 2025September 6, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

This spring has been a banner Cape May warbler year. I was at Possum Branch Preserve at the end of April which doesn’t get a lot of migrating birds but this morning there were several.

A black throated blue was also there, feeding in the mulberry tree.

Smaller flying critters along the path around the pond.

A purple gallinule was in the middle of the pond, standing on the spatterdock.

I think this bunny noticed me. He didn’t run though.

An osprey flies by with breakfast.

It was fun to see a big mallard family on the edge of the pond.

I plopped down on the grass for a while and watched them feed. Mom seemed proud of her babies.

Momma duck had better keep an eye out for this guy at the other end of the pond.

An early morning bike ride

On June 30, 2025July 10, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography8 Comments

I was out on my bike in early April watching the sun come up on the Pinellas County bike trail. It was a little too early to see any migrating birds but I might see something else fun.

I had just started out and up ahead I saw an alligator crossing the trail. This is the first time I’ve seen one on the trail here but since there are ponds on both sides I wasn’t too surprised to see him crossing. I was afraid I wouldn’t have time to take my camera out of the backpack so I took the above with my phone.

A quick video of him strutting across. After this I pedaled over to where he went in on the other side.

I was able to catch him down in the ditch as he crawled under a hole in the fence and went into the pond.

Farther down the sun was coming up over the horse pasture.

Evening primrose was blooming along the fence.

The sun far up across the field. The lake in the back is Lake Dan.

The pattern on this juvenile bald eagle is striking. I saw him across the cow pasture and at first I thought it was a red-tailed hawk but when he turned around I could see his eagle beak. I was hoping he would fly off but after 15 minutes he looked like he wasn’t going to move so I continued on the trail.

A red headed woodpecker was in the same big dead tree.

This not-quite adult eagle was sitting high up in the tower right on the trail. Based on the coloring in his head he must be around 3 years old. See chart below for age identification.