Baby birds growing up

On July 28, 2020July 28, 2020 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

I made it to the rookery in north Tampa in early June for my last trip of the nesting season. I wasn’t sure if there would still be any babies at this point or would they all be grown up by now. The first thing I saw at the edge of the pond was this tiny gator trying to hide in the vegetation. Even though he was small I still kept my eye on him while I was there.

This cattle egret looks like he has a boo boo on his face. Hopefully it’s just superficial and heals. Maybe he got it in a fight with another egret?

The baby anhingas were already fully grown.

There were still a few little blue herons flirting so there may still be some babies later.

A baby night heron emerged from deep in the bushes.

These flowers were growing all over the rookery as well as along the woods next to street. The ants seemed to be enjoying them.

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Lots of birds at the rookery.

On June 30, 2020June 30, 2020 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

There’s something comical about baby anhingas. They were yelling for Mom to feed them and I could hear them from far across the pond.

A great egret waiting for her offspring to arrive.

A little blue heron was still flirting, trying to attract a mate.

Snowy egrets showing off.

Crazy antics at the bird rookery in north Tampa in May.

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Flirting at the local watering hole

On May 11, 2020April 27, 2020 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography9 Comments

The snowy egrets were showing off and flirting.

The little blue herons were doing the same thing.

Some of the other birds were also showing off with their breeding faces.

The turtles were watching all of the action.

Even the cormorants were flirting and chasing each other high up in the trees.

Unlikely pair in the same tree, a wood stork and an osprey.

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Two parks in the morning.

On April 9, 2020March 30, 2020 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

Birds on a wire. Crazy black hooded parakeets staring down at me.

Although we have butterflies all year round here in central Florida, they are rare to find in the winter. Now more are showing up since it was warming up in late February.

Skimming the surface, looking for snacks on the water.

I rarely see Cooper’s hawks. This one was hiding off the trail.

Always fun to see the turtles. People feed them here so they are not shy.

A northern parula signing his heart out.

Limpkin with a snack.

Off the boardwalk, taken with my phone.

After leaving Largo Nature Preserve in late February I stopped by Kapok Park on the way home. It was quiet and not many birds around. I had not been here in a long time. The small lake here is lined with cypress trees which turn orange in the fall. I always forget to come here to get pictures of them. By now all of the cypress trees are fully green again but I won’t be seeing them for a while.

Up close with some beauties.

On March 14, 2020February 27, 2020 By dinajohnstonIn zoo animals1 Comment

Spoonbills going about their day in the big aviary at Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park.

A few other birds in the aviary includes a little blue heron and green herons.

The backyard in October

On December 19, 2019December 4, 2019 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

I caught this woodpecker eating my neighbor’s plant.

This little squirrel was eating something. Taken through the bedroom window.

A little blue heron on our fence.

A frog on the garage door.

Color in the backyard.

Sunsets in the back yard in October.

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Backyard visitors this spring.

On August 25, 2018August 6, 2018 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

In late spring, I heard some birds screaming in the backyard. I peeked out the bedroom window and saw the above, baby starlings being fed by the parents. I ran and grabbed my camera and took the above through the window. I didn’t want to go outside and spook them. These almost fully grown babies were very aggressive, almost attacking the parents to be fed. This went on for 20 minutes. They must have wiped out all of the worms, bugs and caterpillars we had in the backyard. Maybe I should have scared them off.

This was the last I saw of my neighborhood kingfisher back in late April, sitting on our dock. Hopefully she’ll show back up in late October again.

Now we get a lot of house sparrows on our dock.

A little blue heron walking through our yard.

Blondie and her babies came by the house recently. This beautiful cream colored mallard lives in our neighborhood. She usually has 2 sets of babies each year.

In my backyard

On August 20, 2018August 21, 2018 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

Taken through the bedroom window, I caught this little blue heron eating worms.

Out on our dock, this green heron was creeping around the channel at low tide.

Some type of moth on our wall.

I saw this guy through the kitchen window when was cleaning up one afternoon. I grabbed my camera and quietly went out to the back to snap this. I hadn’t seen a black racer in a while. It was a tiny one. Good for eating bugs and mosquitoes.

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Rainbow of birds

On May 21, 2018May 22, 2018 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography8 Comments

I finally got some shots of the painted buntings that have hanging around the nature center at Circle B Bar Reserve.

A lady painted bunting was also present.

A juvenile indigo bunting was eating on the ground.

Other usual birds were the gnatcatcher and the yellow rumped warbler.

Sandhill cranes were around, digging in the dirt for bugs.

Lots of birds flying around.

Across the lake, an eagle sits in a bald cypress tree.

Just a few pretty things at Circle B Bar Reserve in mid-March.

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Lots of little birds in late March

On May 5, 2018April 9, 2018 By dinajohnstonIn bird photographyLeave a comment

This little titmouse seemed to be showing me his snack.

So many little birds at Lettuce Lake Park in late March including that little spotted Hermit thrush in the last 2 pictures (or so I was told by the bird experts at the park that morning). This was a first sighting of a hermit for me.