Visitors to the yard in early August

On December 13, 2025January 3, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

The summer storms in early August brought out the tiny baby frogs. After a shower they showed up on the windows and cactus plant.

Bigger ones show up also but they come all the time. One afternoon I found one on the side of the house and one was in the bird house hanging on the wall outside.

The squirrels were getting frisky. I took the above through the window. I didn’t want to go out and interrupt their fun on our patio.

Bluebirds in the backyard.

The ibis missing a foot came back to visit. He walked up on the patio when he saw me through the window. I threw out some bird seed for him. He seems to be doing okay though.

My first 5-lined skink in the backyard. He was resting on Brett’s flip flop that was right outside the back door. He eventually ran under some leaves and was gone.

I think this blue jay was letting me know they needed more seed in the feeder.

Dark skies in the backyard.

Around the yard in early July

On November 8, 2025October 28, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

The little hummy was still visiting the backyard in early July.

The bunny too. It’s always fun to catch him with a mouthful.

I looked out the back and saw 2 black bellied whistling ducks walking around. I’ve seen them many times on the other side of the lake across the street but this was the first time seeing them in the backyard.

They started taking a bath in the small newly formed pond that appears after a heavy storm.

One afternoon I looked out the back and saw a turkey lurking around near the bird feeder and bath. I shot this through the window. Later I didn’t see her and walked outside with my camera.

Looking around I saw her standing in between 2 trees in back of my neighbor’s. I sat down on my patio chair and watched her for a few minutes.

She plopped down and fell asleep while I was sitting there. After a while I quietly got up and went back instead. She was gone a little later after her quick nap.

A brown thrasher showed up while I was watching the turkey sleep.

Sunsets in July from the pond across the street. Note the alligator in the middle of the pond in the first shot. He’s a small one and I don’t see him often.

Summer skies in the yard

On November 3, 2025October 24, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography6 Comments

The best thing about the quick late day summer showers are the rainbows that follow. I saw the sun peeking out after a storm and ran out the back door to catch the above.

The clouds were swirling over our driveway one afternoon in late June.

I was able to catch lightning through the upstairs bathroom window.

Sunset over the pond across the street.

The juvenile bluebirds (with the white spots on their wings) were growing up fast. There were two families that were feeding at the dried mealworm feeder most of the summer.

Bunnies were still coming by to eat the grass late in the day. One day I saw a one near the patio and then later I looked out the window for him and didn’t see him. At first I thought he left and then I saw movement right below the window. He ate through most of that spider plant.

The hummingbird was feeding on the shrimp plant.

I was keeping my eye on her as she left the shrimp plant and flew up near the top of the oak tree. I was able to run upstairs and catch her through the bedroom window. She sat up there several days in a row after feeding.

This young Carolina wren was taking a break on the patio (which has since been cleaned) and was eating bugs from the patio but I think he thought that leaf was something yummy to eat as well.

Someone in the neighborhood is feeding the ibis. This one saw me standing in the door and walked right up to it looking for a snack. I took the above with my phone.

I was out doing yardwork at the end of June and heard what I thought was a swallow tail kite calling. I ran inside and grabbed my camera and was back out right as this one was sailing overhead along the golf course. Luckily there wasn’t anyone on the course and I was standing on the tee getting shots. There were 3 of them cruising over the trees and circling back over the back yard.

I realized that one of them had a frog in his talons.

A juvenile landed in the pine tree in our backyard and was screaming at the parent. He wanted the parent to bring him the frog and the parent wanted him to come after the frog and learn to feed himself. The parent with the frog made several passes over the pine tree, yelling at the young one. The juvenile finally flew off and followed the parents over the trees and they were gone.

Storms moving through the front yard as the sun peeks out right before sunset.

Linking to Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) at Image-In-Ing.

Foggy season was starting

On February 10, 2025March 7, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Tampa bay sights4 Comments

I woke up early one morning on Thanksgiving weekend and it was super foggy outside. I got ready and headed out for a walk hoping to get some fog shots. It was a slow drive through the fog but when I got to the Dunedin marina there was hardly any fog.

The sun had broken through and I could just see a little fog across the water over towards Clearwater beach.

I was driving home after my walk and 10 minutes later I hit the fog again so I stopped at the Oldsmar pier. I could barely see the end of the pier.

The fog on land was starting to lift but it still looked creepy with the crows flying towards me.

White ibis were busy feeding in the grass along the water.

The sun was starting to peak through and the tide was far out. I love foggy mornings in the winter. It makes it feel like winter here. I like going for walks in the fog but driving around on a busy street in heavy fog is not fun.

Linking to A Stroll Thru Life.

Rescue transports in late April

On July 6, 2024June 29, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

In mid-April I got a call to transport some little birds to Owl’s Nest Sanctuary from the Raptor Center of Tampa Bay. These little guys were headed to someone who specializes in smaller birds so the juvenile downy woodpecker and a baby grackle got the ride.

While I was there dropping of the birds I got to go inside and see some of the baby screech owls that were growing up here. These were all orphans that had fallen out of nests and couldn’t be renested. Sometimes the nest gets destroyed in storms, sometimes people find the baby owl and dropped it off at a vet and don’t leave where they found it so the nest can’t be relocated.

Chris was moving the new baby grackle to it’s new home.

There were a lot of volunteers busy in the kitchen chopping up food for the intakes to eat during the week. It’s takes a lot of volunteers to keep these rehab centers going.

A few days later I got a call that a baby vulture had been found and the nest couldn’t be relocated. This was the first time I’ve had a baby vulture in my car. He was so cute with that brown fuzz. Nancy took this of me dropping him off wearing my old crazy bird tshirt.

The next week an ibis was found caught between 2 fences with a torn wing. I drove him from the Raptor Center to the Seabird Seabird Sanctuary on the beach.

They have a lot of exhibits with permanently injured birds. I always like to take a few minutes and walk around and check them out before heading home. I was having a moment with this white pelican who was sitting close to the fence. Most of these birds are missing a wing or eye.

I wasn’t really in a hurry to get home. I mean, look at that view. They have a deck that looks over the beach.

This was the welcoming committee when I walked in. Lots of wild birds hang out here thinking they might be able to get a handout.

The first week in May brought a lot of baby birds. I drove these little ones from the Raptor Center to Mary in south St. Pete. She rehabs baby birds. The older bird in the top shot is a baby crow. The other one is a red bellied woodpecker, maybe 2 days old. I think it’s the tiniest bird I have transported.

The one with the big mouth is a baby mockingbird and the last is a baby dove.

Not one but two baby duck families!

On February 24, 2024February 16, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

I got to Lettuce Lake Park right when they opened at 8am. The moon was still up and I could see vultures circling near the moon. I hadn’t been to this park in a long time since I moved farther away. It was mid-November and I wasn’t expecting to find anything new but I had heard there were black bellied whistling ducks babies and thought that would be fun to see them if I could find them in this big park.

I didn’t see a lot of birds when I first started walking but then I found this great blue heron in one corner of the boardwalk. As I was taking his picture I saw something floating farther behind him that looked like ducks.

I found a black bellied whistling duck family with older babies. They were dabbling around in the water and one of the young babies was trying to nap but eventually he joined his siblings.

I walked a little farther down the boardwalk and found some younger babies. These guys were young enough to still look a little like floating bumble bees. They were all sitting on a big stump in the water but looked like they were going in for a swim.

Once the other parent got in the water they all started jumping in after her. They were pretty far back in the swamp and looked like they were heading farther back so I walked back to the other family.

The older babies were closer to the boardwalk and they were so busy feeding.

And I was back to the little babies. They were climbing back up on the stump but didn’t stay there long. I spent quite a while running back and forth between the two families. The younger babies eventually swam farther back in the swamp so it was time to head home.

Across the swamp I could see a tall cypress tree that had turned into an ibis tree. I guess they were going to take a mid-morning nap up there.

September in the yard

On December 7, 2023November 25, 2023 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Florida animals10 Comments

I looked out the back window one morning and saw deer on our patio. One was so close. I took these with my camera through the window. I knew they would take off if I opened the door but I think they still saw me.

One walked over to my Christmas cactus (that wasn’t blooming at the time) and started eating it. I took a video of if and above is one of the stills. She demolished it. It was a small one and wasn’t doing very well so I didn’t try and stop her. I replanted the pot with petunias.

Bluebirds taking a bath.

Across the fairway I could see a spoonbill sleeping under a tree. I went outside and snapped the above from our little yard. A little later I saw it feeding in the newly formed pond from the much needed rain we had. I didn’t see anyone on the course so I snuck across to get a little closer.

I sat down under a nearby tree and watched as the spoonbill was feeding. A juvenile little blue heron and a few white ibis were also there.

The young turkey showed up with Mom again. I went outside and took these. They didn’t seem to mind me sitting in the grass nearby. They stayed for a while, pecking around the yard.

I saw another lone turkey taking a nap (or a dirt bath) nearby.

I finally saw the twins in my neighborhood. I was coming home from running errands and had my camera in the car. I pulled over right before my house and snapped them heading into the woods at the end of our street.

The view from across the street in mid-September.

I took these with my phone from the upstairs bathroom window. This was the only night we had a good lightning storm this summer.

Looking for a pink bird

On November 9, 2023October 29, 2023 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography8 Comments

I had heard there was a pink bird near the Safety Harbor boardwalk so one late afternoon in September I hopped in the car and headed over. After a quick glance by the boardwalk and not seeing the bird I was looking for I started to check out what else was there. I found the above ibis with a young horseshoe crab in his beak. He didn’t swallow it whole but took it over to the exposed sand and started picking at the insides. I don’t think it was much of a meal.

The water was calm and I could see parts of downtown Tampa far across the bay.

There were a lot of birds out on the sandbar area. Mostly laughing gulls and pelicans but there were a few terns in the mix.

A belted kingfisher flew by.

This was not the pink bird I was looking for but the roseate spoonbill is still pretty. She was feeding with several ibis. The reflections were clear since the water was not moving.

Here is the pink bird I was looking for, an American flamingo. One of the wild ones that got blown up to the Tampa bay area during Hurricane Idalia. She was first seen here just past mid-September so she wasn’t one of the first ones to be seen in the area. She is banded and the only info we have been able to find is that she (or he) was banded in the Yucatan (eastern most part of Mexico). The locals that live in Safety Harbor have named her HarborRita (like a Margarita from the Harbor!). She’s been the most consistent one to see but she’s not there most of the day. She usually shows up early in the morning and is gone by 8:30am and then is sometimes there late in the day.

A few mornings later I stopped by to see if she was there. It was pretty cloudy and I thought that would help since the sun would not be behind her. She was not there this morning and you can barely see Tampa across the bay.

I did find some roseate spoonbills taking a bath.

I took a short walk around the marina and the sun was starting to come out. At this point the spoonbills were preening and starting to settle in for a nap.

The usual visitors in July

On October 21, 2023October 19, 2023 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

I looked out the window and saw a Carolina wren sitting on the outdoor chair in the backyard. Later I saw one singing on the hanging plant holder. I wondered if it was the same one.

The cardinal was not happy when the dove flew in and got a drink of water while he was taking a bath. He stopped and moved over the the rim to let the dove drink.

I got another look at the molting cardinal. What a scruffy looking bird.

The ruby throated hummingbird was feeding on the flowers in the backyard. I still had the hummer feeder out but it was good to see her feeding on the plants.

We occasionally have white ibis coming through the backyard. They are usually in groups and pick through the bugs but one day I saw one picking around near our pavers alone. I realized it was missing a foot. I cracked open the back door to take the first shot above and it came up to the door. I broke my hard fast rule of never feeding the wildlife other than the smaller birds and ran in and got a few raw green beans and some of the Nutriberry balls I feed my cockatiels. I threw them on the pavers and closed the door and the ibis ate all of it. I always keep an eye out for it when the many ibis come through the area. I have yet to see it again.

A great egret eating a lizard in front of the window.

I heard Harley (my youngest cockatiel) screaming his “There’s something scary in the backyard” scream and I ran over and saw the above red shoulder hawk taking a bath in the bird bath. I grabbed my camera and started snapping. He saw me and took off quickly. I’m surprised he didn’t knock over the bath.

Other critters in the backyard, taken through the window. We haven’t had a lot of deer come through lately but I did see the lone doe stop by.

Getting some air

On July 3, 2023April 4, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography7 Comments

It was early April and I was still keeping an eye on the lone baby eagle in the neighborhood. He was still doing quite a bit of flapping. Our neighborhood is in the Coast Guard flight path but I rarely see them. This morning I caught one flying low past the nest. The eaglet didn’t seem to notice.

Mom was yelling at an osprey that had gotten too close to the nest and then chased him away. The osprey nest is just down the field in the next tower so there’s going to be some territory overlap.

The intruder.

The baby was getting some serious air.

The baby hopped over to the edge of the tower and started flapping. I was worried he was going to take off and not make it back up to the nest but he didn’t jump off.