Chesnut Park in early January

On February 17, 2020January 31, 2020 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

All the usual birds.

There were several small alligators hanging out close to the dock. I didn’t see any big ones but I’m sure the mom was close by.

This deer was right off the boardwalk and I snapped this with my phone.

After walking around Chesnut Park in early January, I stopped by a small park along the water on the way home to see if there were any wintering ducks in the bay. No ducks to be found but this gull had found a piece of a fish in the low tide and was snacking. It was weird that there were several live conch shells on the dead fish.

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It’s starting to look like fall in mid- December.

On January 25, 2020January 9, 2020 By dinajohnstonIn bird photographyLeave a comment

The usual birds at Chesnut Park in mid-December.

A sleepy alligator.

Color from across the lake. It finally looks like fall as the cypress trees start to turn.

The sun peaking through along the trail. These were taken with my phone.

It’s not often I see two pileated woodpeckers on the same tree. I took this with my phone since I couldn’t fit both of them in with my 300mm lens and I couldn’t back up into the swamp.

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Fall migration at Chesnut Park

On December 7, 2019June 27, 2023 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

There were a few migrating birds at Chesnut Park in late October. I saw a lot of black and white warblers.

White eyed vireos hang around all winter.

A lone pine warbler was busy feeding in the moss.

A female magnolia warbler is not very common here.

By the dock at Chesnut Park

On October 28, 2019October 29, 2019 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

It’s fairly rare to see purple gallinules in Pinellas county. Occasionally one pops up in a weird spot but doesn’t stay long. I usually only see them in central Florida, at Circle B Bar Reserve or Lake Parker. Now there seems to be several families living near the dock over the lake at Chesnut Park. They’ve been reported there for several weeks and they have a juvenile with them. They were really close to the dock.

The juvenile doesn’t quite have his bright colors yet.

This squirrel was missing his tail.

Little critters along the dock.

These dogs at the end of the dock looked at me like “We don’t know what they are staring at. Would you play with us?”

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Summer with the deer

On October 15, 2019October 15, 2019 By dinajohnstonIn Florida animals3 Comments

Driving into Chesnut Park in late September, the deer were right at the front gate. When I drove around to the back there were more in the parking area. No babies though.

When I got out of the car and headed to the back boardwalk I saw the babies. The twins were growing up quickly. I stood and watched for a few minutes as they grazed by. For some reason I love seeing deer out in the woods. Deer and dolphins seem to calm me not sure why.

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A very quiet early September

On October 14, 2019October 15, 2019 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography8 Comments

Little titmouse looking for snacks. I get there at 8am and someone has already been there and left birdseed on the boardwalk. These guys are not shy.

I’ve never seen a prothonotary warbler at Chesnut park. Both were very skittish.

Other usual birds were parulas and cardinals. The cardinal was a juvenile that was just getting his red feathers. He looked rough.

It was very quiet at Chesnut Park so I left and stopped by Possum Branch Preserve before heading home. It was even more quiet at the preserve. I couldn’t even find a gator in all that muck.

A Bambi convention

On October 5, 2019September 25, 2019 By dinajohnstonIn bird photographyLeave a comment

After several stops by Chesnut Park on the way home from work, I finally saw a few fawns in late August. The rain had just stopped so the park was empty of people. The deer were all at the front of the park.

This one was taking a break while Mom kept eating.

These two were very curious about the lady hiding in the trees with the big black box in front of her face. They were hanging out with Mom near the ranger station. I was pretty far back so I could fit them in with my 300mm lens but they kept an eye on me.

Hot morning walk in August

On September 17, 2019September 17, 2019 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

I could barely make out this barred owl high above me in a tree. A few seconds later he flew off farther into the woods, chasing after Mom.

Later I was walking the back boardwalk and heard a weird howl. I was looking high up in the trees thinking it was an injured squirrel but couldn’t find anything. Then I looked straight out into the swamp and the juvenile owl was sitting right in front of me. He’s still got baby fuzz around his head. I couldn’t find Mom but I’m sure she was somewhere close by.

Nearby was a squirrel with a snack.

Not many birds around in early August.

I had heard there were twin fawns at the park. After looking all morning I saw them for a second deep in woods.

A doe resting near the boardwalk.

Pink and green on the trees after the rain.

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Seeing the big boys

On September 3, 2019September 3, 2019 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

I stopped by Chesnut Park on the way home from work in late July just after it had stopped raining. I was hoping to see baby deer. It’s rare to see them on a Saturday morning when the park is busy but they usually come out from hiding and play in the rain during the week. I didn’t see any babies on this trip.

A very young buck with some pine straw hanging out of his mouth.

I did get to see 2 bucks with bigger antlers which is a rare thing to see at the park. A park ranger once told me the park is mostly full of does and the bucks come down from Brooker Creek Preserve in the spring and summer to mate but don’t hang around Chesnut Park long. These 2 were hanging out on the baseball field by themselves. When I walked up to the edge of the field they stopped and glanced at me for a few seconds then ignored me. This guy was trying to be cool but little did he know that he had some grass stuck between his ear and antler.