Looking for sparrows

On April 3, 2023March 23, 2023 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

I was out on my bike cruising my new favorite trail through the cow pastures in late February. I had to wait until the sun was up a little since it was a little chilly this morning.

This time the cows were on the far end of the first pasture.

This meadowlark didn’t move from the fence as I rode by so I stopped and got a quick shot of him.

This sandhill couple were right on the trail. By now they should be having babies so hopefully I can catch some little crane colts.

The eagle’s nest far across the pasture was busy with 2 babies almost fully grown. They are way ahead of the ones in my neighborhood.

There are holes along the fence that I usually don’t pay attention to but this one caught my eye. The gopher tortoise had come out of his hole and was sitting close to the trail. They are state-listed as Threatened in Florida so we have to keep our distance.

It was a busy sparrow day along the trail. I found three all feeding nearby. The first is a Savannah with that bit of yellow above the eye. The second is a Swamp (he was hiding in the bushes so it was hard to get him) with that dark brown streak over his head and orange tinted wings. The last two are grasshopper sparrows. There is a Florida subspecies which I thought this one was based on the white tips on the feathers and darker back feathers but after researching their habitat I don’t think it is. They are only found in the middle of the state and are very rare and endangered.

This one is the reason I was taking so many pictures of sparrows. It’s a vesper sparrow and my first one. It’s not rare for him to be here in central Florida but this was the first I’ve heard of one being in the Tampa bay area and he’s been hanging out at the cow pasture for a few weeks.

A phone shot of the cow pasture and one of the many ponds. These are the perfect Florida winter days, sunny and 70 degrees.

Cruising past cow pastures

On February 23, 2023February 20, 2023 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Florida animals6 Comments

I’ve been out on my bike quite a bit now that the weather is warmer. It’s an easy way to get around with my foot still hurting. There’s not a lot of places to ride with a lot of nature instead of traffic but there’s a bike trail just north of me that goes through cow pastures. As soon as I got on the trail I heard the sandhill cranes. Flying across the pasture. They were pretty far away and I had only brought my shorter lens but it was cool to see them flying by.

A kildeer was far out in the pasture.

And of course lots of cows. And lots of babies! There were a lot of cream colored babies out there and a lot of them were nursing. Next year I need to get out here much sooner when they are tiny.

I saw this sandhill crane by himself standing near the fence.

Another eagle nest up in a utility tower. One of the parents was feeding a little one.

The other parent took off across the trail.

This morning started out sunny but dark clouds started to move in as I got half way down the trail so I didn’t stay too long. Thanks for all of the comments and suggestions on my foot issues. I have seen a podiatrist and gotten a painful shot. Keeping off my feet a few more weeks and hoping for the best (along with the stretches, exercises, icing, etc).

Riding by the cows

On July 26, 2022July 27, 2022 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

Scenes from my bike ride in late May. Pedaling past cow pastures.

I had my camera in my backpack and had to stop for a shot of the cattle egret with the cow. This is where they get their name. Egrets hanging out with the cattle, trying to eat the bugs that the cows stir up as they eat the grass.

I found the meadowlarks again.

~~I found several juvenile tree swallows sitting on the fence. I think it’s the first time I’ve seen them actually sitting down. They spend most of their time cruising around catching bugs.~~ EDIT: Thanks to Lea’s Menagerie for a correct ID. The above is an eastern kingbird. I’m still learning a lot of the migrating birds. This was late May so it makes sense he could still be hanging around. I think that Florida sun is starting to get to me.

A pond along the cow pasture fence was a busy watering hole.

There are several gopher tortoise holes along the fences but this was the first time I have seen one out of his hole. They are listed as Threatened in Florida and both the tortoise and their burrows are protected by law.

Going home in the fog.

On April 8, 2021March 19, 2021 By dinajohnstonIn Florida animals4 Comments

After walking around Lake Dan Preserve in north Tampa, it started to get foggy on the drive home. It wasn’t foggy on the way up so it was weird driving back in the fog. I always love stopping on a quiet rode and taking pictures of the cows (one day I will get that shot of the cattle egret sitting on top of the cow) and I wasn’t in a big hurry to get home.

Just a long quiet drive along back roads.

Wide open spaces

On February 9, 2021March 5, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

More shots from my trip to Bok Tower Gardens in November. I had a weekday off and Brett had never been so he took off and went with me. He was surprised at how big the koi fish were in the moat around the bell tower. You can feed them here so they are huge.

We took some time to just hang out and breathe with the wide open spaces here. It was quiet this morning and the oak trees were great shade.

Color on the path in the children’s garden.

We felt like we were on a farm for a few minutes.

Just outside the gardens in the parking lot, I stopped to look at the plants and noticed several caterpillars. I had already put my camera up so I snapped these with my phone.

After leaving the gardens, we stopped to check out some cows.

We really were just looking to see if the whooping cranes that hang out in a cow pasture were still around.

The cranes were still there but they were napping all the way across the pasture. This was with my 400mm and super cropped. It’s good to see them still there though. It was good to be out of the house and we had a nice day trip. We need to do more of these.

A beautiful sight.

On January 12, 2021March 4, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

The first time I went out to find the rare whooping cranes last winter they were so far away they looked like tiny white dots across a cow pasture. I stopped by again while I was over in the area and this time they were closer to the fence (although still pretty far out, these were all with my 400mm lens and cropped). They are the tallest bird in north America and one of the rarest birds. We have a couple that hide out in central Florida during the winter. They were hanging out with the cows this morning.

It was a warm morning and the cows were sitting under the shade just chilling out.

One of the cranes started slowly walking across the pasture towards a pond near the road. The other crane just stood there for a while.

Finally he took off across the field and joined the other one. I was so excited as he started to fly by, not caring that I was shooting straight into the sun. He landed and the couple started walking towards the orange trees and farther away. It was great to see them moving around as I stood by my car on the dirt road.

Pretty things at a quiet place

On August 31, 2020February 22, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography9 Comments

Pretty things at Bok Tower Gardens in June.

Boring birds at the feeder but not lacking in color!

A quiet place to reflect.

Heading home from Bok Tower Gardens in June, I stopped on a dirt road to get some shots of the swallow tail kite that was cruising over a cow pasture. I’m sure those cows were thinking “What is that girl doing?”.

Our World Tuesday Graphic

Funny Faces at the petting zoo

On March 12, 2016March 12, 2016 By dinajohnstonIn zoo animals5 Comments

What is it about having chickens and roosters running around that make me want to go live on a farm? Maybe it’s a case of wanting what you don’t have (or didn’t grow up with).

Faces only a mother could love. The first turkey looks like she has a crocheted scarf over her head.

None of the animals were really paying attention to me which is fine.

I spent a recent morning at my favorite neighborhood petting zoo/horse farm. Not much has changed since I was there last spring. No early spring babies there yet. HorsePower for Kids, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization who provides a farm and petting zoo for people who would benefit from interaction with animals and horses. They are a wildlife/rehabilitation farm and most of the animals were rescued.

In the middle of nowhere

On August 22, 2015August 22, 2015 By dinajohnstonIn Florida animals6 Comments

Surrounded by cows and horses in central Florida.

Mailbox on a county road.

Cowbird in cow field.

I think these are eastern kingbirds.

I don’t normally hang out on the side of the road watching cows. I was taking pictures of the swallow-tail kites flying over the cow fields in central Florida and started snapping pictures of things you don’t normally see in the city of Tampa.

Saturday's Critters

On the side of the road

On September 27, 2014September 27, 2014 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Florida animals, Tampa bay sights6 Comments

I had heard there were a few avocets in a field near Cockroach Bay. Since I still haven’t seen these birds, I figured I would drive the almost hour trip to try to find them. The field was covered with thousands of birds. There was only access to view the field on one side which faces directly into the sun. The rest of the field was fenced off. I looked for an hour and did not find the avocets. Most of the birds were least terns with a few sanderlings, plovers and starlings thrown in. Oh well, maybe one day.

I did see a belted kingfisher flying over a lake off in the distance.

This guy was sitting on the side of the road. I’m not sure if he was checking out a snack. He eventually flew off. I think this is a juvenile red shoulder hawk.

I was leaving the area to head back to town and saw a pair of sandhill cranes on the side of the road. Of course, I pull over and snapped a few pictures.