I was heading home from Bot Tower Gardens in Lake Wales and stopped for a quick walk around a nearby lake. I’ve seen sandhill cranes here before and was hoping to find a family on my walk. Last year I found 2 families on this lake. Half way around I saw the parents feeding a older baby. They were pretty far out in the marsh so these are extremely cropped up. Both parents stayed close to the baby and were feeding him.
On my way back to my car I noticed a bunch of loggerhead shrikes sitting on a trash can. After a few minutes I realized they must be almost grown babies because they were still begging to be fed. I think that’s the parent in the back on the right.
I stood behind a tree and watched them for a few minutes. They were bouncing around on the ground and then flying to a nearby small tree. That tiny bit of yellow at the end of the beak identifies them as juveniles. Adults would be all black. They were still screaming to be fed when I was walking away but it looks like they are starting to feed themselves.
Also linking to Tuesdays With A Twist