Rescues in March

On May 18, 2024May 14, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

In early March I picked up a bald eagle that had an injured wing from the Raptor Center of Tampa Bay in Brandon and drove it down to a vet in south Sarasota that was going to reset the wing and bandage it up. Luckily his wing was broken in a place that was easy to fix.

A wood stork also came on the trip and after dropping off the eagle I drove out to the beach in Sarasota and took him to Save Our Seabirds. He had an injured leg.

Before heading back to the Tampa area I stopped by the Audubon Celery Fields in south Sarasota. I don’t get down here often since it’s so far away but had my camera in the car and stopped for a quick walk. There is a huge purple martin nest house in the parking lot and it was full of martins.

It was the middle of the day and I didn’t expect to see much but they have bird feeders near the nature center and there were some brown headed cowbirds feeding on the ground under the feeders. I don’t see them often.

There were plenty of grackles as well. It was getting hot so I didn’t stay long.

A few days later I took 2 squirrels to Penny in St. Pete. A baby squirrel and a very shy adult squirrel that had several bot fly bites on him. He would not come out from under the towel and I’m assuming he didn’t feel good. All I could see was his little nose. Penny was able to get the bot fly larva out of him and nurse him back to health.

A sick crow also made the trip.

The next week I drove 9 baby possums from the Raptor Center to Penny in St. Pete. The Mom had been hit by a car and these 9 babies were in her pouch. A good samaritan saw the dead possum, stopped and checked the pouch and brought the babies to the Center.

This young hawk was rescued not too far from my house. I met the rescuer and picked up the hawk and drove it out to the Center. Nancy took his hood off and was checking to see how skinny he was.

A drizzly morning walk

On February 26, 2024April 19, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography8 Comments

I don’t hate foggy dreary days. It’s the only time it feels like winter here in central Florida. I’d rather it not drizzle though when I’m out walking around with my camera. I got to the Roosevelt Wetlands in late November when it was foggy but as I started walking down the trail it starting to drizzle (or spit as my Dad used to say). I just put my hood over my head and kept walking.

I could see a bunny up ahead on the trail in the middle of the goldenrod. Most of the goldenrod was starting to fade here.

There was a redhead duck couple swimming away from the usual mallards, coots and moorhens. They stayed on the other side of the pond.

In the middle of the pond a coot was being chased away by some moorhens.

The grackles were keeping the anhingas company on the dead snag.

Even without the sun shining on him the grackle was showing off his pretty colors.

A female grackle also looking pretty on the alligator flag (thalia) plants.

I can’t ignore the blue gray gnatcatchers.

A sora rail was hiding in the reeds along the bank.

It drizzled on and off while I was there. The sun was trying to peek through the clouds when I was leaving.

A loggerhead shrike was sitting close to the trail. He was a little wet.

The sun was about to come out on the way home so I stopped at Possum Branch Preserve for a quick walk. It was pretty quiet but there was a lone redhead floating in the main pond.