Tag Archives: caracara

A January morning at Homosassa Springs

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It was just starting to look like fall at the end of January. Some of the trees at the Homosassa Springs Wildlife park were really pretty in red and orange.

A few of the resident flamingoes.  Is it me or is that 2nd one a little grumpy? I think he might have been rolling his eyes at me.

The resident whooping cranes were napping.

We don’t get caracaras in the Tampa Bay area so many people have never seen this bird before. I’ve only seen one in central Florida once on the way to Miami.

One of the otters was out playing and came close to the boardwalk.

I caught some ibis taking baths in the main pond. These guys are wild and hang out hoping for a stolen snack.

The water was so clear, you could see the fish swimming around.

An interesting morning at Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park

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It’s always fun to see lots of robins in the trees. We only see them here briefly in the winter. The trees were full of them at Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park in late December.

A few of the resident birds. The caracara in the bottom picture is a not a bird you see in this area. They are mostly in south central Florida so it’s interesting to see them here. This one had some type of injury. Possibly missing wing or vision.

The otters were being so cute this morning, although seeing those teeth makes you realize they can be pretty tough. They were feeding in the pond right up against the boardwalk. I love watching them eating while swimming on their backs. That’s a real talent.

I’m sure this happens more than we see out in the wild. The alligator was not fed this bird by the staff. I missed the early action but people saw him grabbing this bird. Based on the pink legs and white wings with a little black, thinking it’s a white ibis that got too close. The alligator was all the way across the pond in the first shot but was swimming fast away from the other alligators who were chasing him trying to steal his snack. He then heading into the far corner right in front of me. Sad but circle of life.

Save Our Seabirds

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When my sister was here visiting over Thanksgiving weekend we headed down to Sarasota for the day. After spending the morning at Selby Gardens and having lunch nearby we stopped in at Save Our Seabirds to walk around for a while before heading back to Tampa. SOS is a non-profit bird sanctuary and rehabilitation facility. They rescue, rehab and release injured birds. Many of the birds that can’t be released have found a permanent home here.

Many of the birds had missing wings, eyes or legs. It was late in the afternoon when we stopped in so it was quiet and most of the birds were napping.

They do a lot of work with injured sandhill cranes including ones that lose a leg after being hit by a car. They fit them with prosthetic legs so they are able to move around easily but are still not able to be released.

Linking to Wednesday Around the World

Birds up close at Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park

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You could hear this sandhill crane calling from all over the park. He was yelling all morning. Maybe he was calling for his mate.

An injured whooping crane. One of these days I’m going to head to central Florida to look for the wild whooping cranes that winter there.

This very young spoonbill was not afraid of the tourist. He was right over the boardwalk.

 

Flamingos having a disagreement.

Are they a couple?  The caracara on the left is missing a wing and two of his right toes.

Barred owls make the cutest faces.

This fulvous whistling duck had a bad right leg. He was limping around.

My first American wigeon.

Wood ducks were hanging around all over the park.

There’s a huge variety of birds at the Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park. Birds that you would see in the wild from all over Florida. Most of these birds are injured in some way and have found a home here.  We went up there to see the manatees that hang out in the river that runs through the park but there are so many great birds there as well.  I might have to get back up there later in the springs to check out the sandhill crane, swan and duck babies.

Check out more pictures at Our World Tuesday

Also, check out more birds at Paying Ready Attention for