A morning of usual critters

On April 18, 2026April 18, 2026 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

I was at Roosevelt Wetlands in late December hoping to find some great winter ducks but only the usuals were there. Above a pied grebe was watching me take his picture.

Ring-necked ducks are usually here during the winter.

And coots are easy to find in the winter.

A year round bird but not that common is a Cooper’s Hawk. He was hiding in the shadows.

Eastern phoebes and savannah sparrows are plentiful here in the winter.

Boring ole mallards were trying to sleep on the main trail.

Since things were slow at the wetlands I left early and stopped at Philippe Park on the way home. The great horned owls nest here in the winter. Dad was sitting high up in the tree and was easy to find.

Mom was still sitting on the nest. They sat on the nest for a month and abandoned it twice this winter. Something wasn’t working for them. Maybe the eggs weren’t hatching? Everyone thought they would have left the park by now for the season but I’ve recently heard that she’s back nesting on a different tree in the same park. Maybe third time’s a charm?

It was low tide along the sea wall and ibis and a few laughing gulls were feeding in the muck.

The usual suspects.

On December 11, 2024January 21, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

It was not that early in the morning at the start of October when I went for a walk at the Roosevelt Wetlands. The sun was already high in the sky over the marsh.

All of the usual birds were there including a green heron and two tricolored herons.

Another usual bird, a female anhinga, was drying off her wings.

I was hoping to see some winter ducks but it was still a little early and most of the ducks were mallards.

There was a lone blue winged teal. Hopefully more will show up soon.

A loggerhead shrike in his element, sitting on a wire.

A male anhinga (on the far right) was crashing this tricolored heron convention.

Another usual thing here is a white peacock.

Most of the parks along the coast were closed due to flooding from Hurricane Helene and Roosevelt Wetlands was one of the few open in early October. The water levels were high but the trail was still dry. I was hoping to find some fall migraters or early winter birds but only the usual suspects were here.

A ride through the neighborhood

On September 14, 2024September 14, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

At the end of May I took a spin on my bike around the neighborhood. I had been seeing the swallow tail kites flying high around the golf course and as soon as I took off one came cruising over my head.

Down the street I found a pair of black bellied whistling ducks in the pond. Last year there were babies in the area so I was hoping that would happen again this summer.

There were 2 turkeys in the utility field.

I stopped at another pond and found a bunch of mallards. An alligator was sun bathing a little farther down.

I never noticed this carrotwood tree before. Maybe I hadn’t seen it blooming. I stopped because I had seen a woodpecker fly into it but when I stopped and got off my bike the woodpecker took off. I wonder if they eat the fruit. Of course it’s not native to Florida and is considered invasive. It was probably planted many years ago when the golf course was put in.

Another turkey farther down the road. This one was not skittish. I got off my bike and took the above with my phone.

Deer feeding along the cart path.

This was the last time I saw an eagle in the neighborhood. They usually leave some time in May (most of the ones in the area are now showing up for the winter season),

The butterfly garden

On October 22, 2022October 1, 2022 By dinajohnstonIn flowers and plants3 Comments

In early September I went for a walk at Wall Springs Park near Tarpon Springs. I found some mallards swimming around the natural springs area but not many other birds.

The small butterfly garden that’s near the playground was in full bloom, almost overgrown from the summer rains. I keep saying there are less and less butterflies around but I did manage to find a few flying around the bright colored blooms.

Largo Nature Preserve in early April

On May 12, 2022May 9, 2022 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography6 Comments

It’s always fun to see baby mallards (although with that yellow beak on the Mom, these may be mottled ducks). There were two families at Largo Nature Preserve in early April. One was feeding in the water and the other was walking around on the walking path. They eventually made it down to the water.

The two northern shovelers were still there. They are probably up north for the summer by now.

Looking up in the utility tower I saw a young eagle. I often see adult eagles sitting here but today it was a younger one. Maybe 4 years old? They don’t get a full white head until their 5th year. This one still had a little brown on his. Maybe he was born in the area.

While watching the eagle, a Canadian goose flies by. They hang out on the golf course along the park so it’s not a surprise.

Across the canal a cattle egret had a dragonfly in his beak.

Brown thrashers are common here. This one was singing away.

Night herons can usually be found napping along the boardwalk.

A monk parakeet coming down to the ground to get a snack.

One last walk

On October 21, 2021October 7, 2021 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography7 Comments

I got up early one morning in late September to take my last walk around the neighborhood. It wasn’t my last walk anywhere, just around this neighborhood. After living here for 17 years, we moved about 20 minutes away so Brett could be closer to work and it was time to downsize. It was before the sun came up and a faint rainbow was visible as the ducks flew by. I said goodby to Blondie and her grown babies. I’ll miss those creme colored mallards.

The ducks stopped by the yard days before we moved. It was the last of the bird seed so they were going to have to scrounge somewhere else.

Backyard skies on our last week here. I’ll miss the open sky but we are moving to a heavily wooded area and it will be nice to be in the shade now and see different wildlife. I’ll be posting pictures of the critters near our new home soon.

Things in the backyard

On October 12, 2021September 30, 2021 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

I was out in the backyard in early September and noticed this mallard trying to eat something that was bobbing in the water. I ran and got my camera and headed down to the dock and realized it was a mango. He was chowing down on it.

After 17 years in our house, we finally had a dragonfly come in. He was flying around for a while. We opened the doors and was waving around a broom and mop and was finally able to shoo him out into the screened in porch. I then opened the porch door and eventually he flew out but not before I was able to get this close up of him. He had a beautiful green color on his head.

Later in the week it was raining. We had a wet green heron hanging out on our dock in the rain and the mallards have been visiting for a while.

Squirrels like to hang out on the top of our down spout when it’s raining to stay dry. I took this through the sliding door and the screen.

We’ve been getting regular visits from 2 female mallards lately. They scrounge around under the bird feeder for fallen seed. One morning I looked out the window and realized they had brought friends. We also get ibis on a regular basis.

Looking out the side window from my desk, I see a dove sitting on the fence. Later a little blue heron was on our neighbor’s shed.

Taken through the window, this lizard had the cutest toes.

Sunset from the backyard.

Almost grown duckies

On September 14, 2021September 10, 2021 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

I went out for a quick walk around the neighborhood pond early one morning before work in July. There wasn’t many ducks in the pond and I was thinking “Where did they go?” when I turned around and saw Blondie walking across the street with her babies and heading for the pond.

I was excited to see all 6 of her babies were doing well and were almost grown up. They hopped in the pond and swam around looking for food and preening.

I also saw another creme colored duck that was a little darker. I have to wonder if she’s one of Blondie’s babies from previous years.

Working from home

On September 13, 2021March 13, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

More storms were coming in mid-July. It had been raining for days and Thunderstorm Elsa was about to hit the Tampa bay area in the middle of the night. Earlier in the afternoon, it had been upgraded to a Hurricane 1 but we got lucky and the storm fell apart right before it hit and we only got rain. Two days before, the city was getting ready for the storms and moved all of the cranes working along the Howard Frankland bridge closer into the bay. They tied them all together to create one big crane raft. It was weird to see driving across the bridge. I crossed this bridge everyday for 18 years going to work but now I rarely do since I’ve been working from home.

With all of the rain we had, mushrooms were popping up everywhere around the neighborhood. The orange ones were in our mulch.

This guy was squirming his way across the driveway.

One morning before work I went for a quick walk in the neighborhood. I saw this muscovy duck sitting high up in a tree. I’ve seen them in trees before but not usually that high up. Then I saw the egg sitting right where the branches split off. Sadly it probably fell at some point.

Back at my house, we had 4 ducks hanging out in our backyard for several days. I think they were looking for fallen bird seed. The doves usually eat that pretty quick so there isn’t much left for the ducks.

While sitting at my desk in the bedroom I had been seeing this lizard walking across the screen almost every day for a week. She has that same short tail so I knew it was the same one. She kept me company for a while. Of course one day I had to stand up and snap a picture.

Then one day I saw this. I guess she found a boyfriend. After this I didn’t see her again. I miss that short tailed lizard.

At lunch I can usually catch squirrels chasing each other across our screened porch. While it’s cute, long term they can do damage to the screens so I try and chase them off but it doesn’t always work.

I’m still working from home. We were suppose to go back in the office, at least part time, in the middle of this month but it has been pushed out to early 2022. I don’t miss sitting in traffic, especially crossing that bridge for 45 minutes every night. If it was crawling, I would look for dolphins or count the osprey eating fish on the light posts (22 was the highest count several years ago). I don’t miss seeing my co-workers since we have video calls on Teams several times a day.

Blondie and her babies

On August 7, 2021July 10, 2021 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

My favorite neighborhood duck came by our dock for a visit in mid-June. I call her Blondie (thinking she is a light colored hybrid mallard) and she been hanging around the neighborhood for several years. I saw her with the babies one afternoon and ran out to the dock with my camera.

Her babies were so cute, swimming around our dock. I wonder if the lighter color ones will keep their creme color or turn dark brown once they grow up. The all yellow muscovy babies turn black once they grow up but I’m not sure if these mallard will. There’s a light brown colored duck that hangs out in a neighborhood pond that could be one of Blondie’s grown babies.