Another walk on Alligator Alley

On June 1, 2017June 1, 2017 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

All lush and green, this was taken in early April before the drought started taking a toll on the marsh.

I did not change the color on this glossy ibis. They were in their breeding feathers and the colors were so deep. When the sun hits them you can really see the patterns.

So many purple gallinules lately. They are so much fun to watch.

One lone baby limpkin. Mom was close by looking for food.

Far out in the marsh, this great egret caught a stick with his fish.

Mom moorhen feeding the baby.

Now that’s lunch! He caught the fish but then moved locations. I caught him right as he was swallowing it.

Early April at Circle B Bar Reserve.

SkyWatch Friday

Same Ole, Same Ole

On April 24, 2017April 25, 2017 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography11 Comments

The barred owls have been hanging out next to the parking lot for a while now.

The reserve is full of green herons. They are now a usual suspect.

Along with male anhingas showing off.

And the glossy ibis sparkling in the sun are a dime a dozen.

The cute pied grebes aren’t as skittish as they use to be.

There’s always snowy egrets in a body of water.

Now I see purple gallinules every time I walk Alligator Alley trail.

Even a great blue heron baby in the nest during spring is common here.

Seeing a bald eagle somewhere in the park is pretty common, even if its way up high half hidden in a cypress tree.

But I still love walking the trails at Circle B Bar Reserve and seeing all of the above every time I’m here. Even when it gets crowded on the weekends. I just get there a little earlier and leave before lunch when the crowd starts coming in.

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Busy birds at Circle B Bar Reserve

On February 20, 2017February 21, 2017 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography6 Comments

Seen out in the marsh: black crowned night heron, pied grebe, American bittern, glossy ibis and an anhinga.

Saw the above Carolina wren hiding in a bush.

A great egret playing with his meal.

I saw this hawk on a branch right over the trail. I realized he was eating something. I think it was a praying mantis.

Lots of birds on the trails at Circle B Bar Reserve in early January.

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So many birds….

On January 30, 2017January 31, 2017 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography7 Comments

Black bellied whistling ducks are a rare sight to see up close. Years ago they would hang out right on the trail and the trees right on the trail would be full of them. Now you can only hear them whistling off in the distance.

A great blue heron with a snack.

The marsh has been overrun with glossy ibis.

A few Wilson’s Snipes have been seen here. This one was on Alligator Alley Trail.

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It’s always fun to see the little purple clowns (gallinules).

Green herons have taken over.

Come of the birds on my recent trip to Circle B Bar Reserve.

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A typical morning in central Florida.

On April 25, 2016April 26, 2016 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Florida animals10 Comments

I still haven’t seen any news on this great blue heron nest. A while ago there was a great blue heron always sitting on the nest for weeks. Then it was abandoned. Weeks later when I was there, I saw this great blue heron looking around. So are they trying again? They’ve had babies in this nest for several years now.

I found the limpkin family again on this trip but they were further away from the trail. The babies were growing up so fast. They now look like the parent, only smaller.

Northern Parulas were all along the trail but they stayed high up in the trees.

A green heron prowling around in the muck.

A glossy ibis doing the same thing.

The dragonflies were out.

A few crawling critters were out on the trail.

Just a few things I saw on my walk in mid-March at Circle B Bar Reserve.

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The lazy hike at Lake Apopka

On January 25, 2016January 26, 2016 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography13 Comments

Pied grebes were floating everywhere.

There were a handful of glossy ibis.

The lake was full of coots down from the north for the winter.

This guy was right over my car. I took this hanging out the window.

“Stop lady, don’t drive into the lake” said the great blue heron.

The black bellied whistlers near the end of the drive stayed far out in the marsh.

This lady anhinga had a big gulp.

These big guys were all along the drive. I stopped the car and got out to take these but they were actually across the water.

There’s a lake north of Orlando that has a driving trail along the north shore. I decided to take my sister up there when she was here over the holidays. It was a good way to get out with doing a lot of walking. She had foot surgery recently so she wasn’t up for a long walk. We drove an hour and a half on the Saturday after Christmas to get there early that morning. At first there wasn’t too many cars there but the closer to lunch it got, the more cars were on the drive. I did see a few more birds than the ones above but only got distant blurry shots of a northern harrier, several bald eagles, a merlin and lots of tiny birds far out in the marsh.

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The usual suspects at Circle B Bar Reserve

On January 4, 2016January 5, 2016 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography7 Comments

You do not want to have that beak coming at you!

Green herons doing the “stretch”.

Looking for snacks.

The Wilson’s snipe was trying to sleep.

The glossy ibis was glowing in the sun.

Cute little palm warblers showing off.

A pileated woodpecker high up in the tree.

An anhinga drying off in the sun after a swim.

Pretty in yellow.

These were all taken in late November when the yellow flowers were still in bloom at Circle B Bar Reserve.

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It’s getting hot out there

On June 1, 2015June 2, 2015 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography6 Comments

Beautiful glossy ibis with the sun shining on his breeding feathers.

A grackle staring at something in the water.

Woody in the woods.

A common yellowthroat warbler hiding in the bushes. Most of the warblers are gone now and are up north for the summer.

Moth or butterfly?

Dragonfly on a stick shot.

Cattails were everywhere. My dad loved cattails. I think they look like poop on a stick.

The gators were growling.

“Don’t give me that innocent look.” I said to the gator.

It’s June 1st. It’s going to be a long hot summer. It’s been hot since early April. These were taken in early May and it was stifling hot already at Circle B Bar Reserve. It’s time to hit the coast for the summer breezes and let the gators nap in peace for a few months.

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No mall shopping for me this month.

On December 22, 2014December 23, 2014 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography12 Comments

A glossy ibis glowing in the sun.

Another cute gnatcatcher.

“Hey, where are you going?”

Moorhen in the swamp.

Candy corn beak.

A tiny gator snoozing in the sun.

Soon the trail will be full of these bushes blowing in the wind. The ends sprout and blow off and it almost looks like it snowing when they are blowing around.

Christmas is coming fast. I did all of my shopping on-line so I could spend what little free time I have right now out at the parks. The weather is perfect in December. High of 65 and sunny. Why would I want to be at a mall when I could see all of the above? My sister is coming to Tampa this week and we’ll be out playing tourist all week.

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