A March bike ride

Posted on May 16, 2024 by dinajohnston

I was out in the northern tip of the Pinellas Trail for a bike ride in early March. I saw a bald eagle sitting on the first utility tower I passed. Then a few towers down there were 2 sitting on a nest. I didn’t see any babies here. I have recently heard they didn’t have any this year. The eagle watchers didn’t see any signs of any babies so no one is sure what happened.

The eastern meadowlarks were out being visible this morning. One was on the cow pasture fence and several were in the brush along the trail.

There were a lot of sandhill cranes but it was too early for babies.

Why did the crane cross the road??? I’m glad I stopped cause he just walked right in front of me.

This is a castor oil plant. It was all along the trail. It’s an invasive plant so I wonder why it’s here.

Other things growing along the trail.

A new owl family

Posted on May 4, 2024 by dinajohnston

After the loss of both great horned owl parents (and babies) in 2022 in a nearby park from rat poison I was hesitant to stop by when I heard a new couple had moved into the nest tree. New owls met and paired up last year and hung around the nest for several months but did not have babies. I never did make it over there because I was still heart broken after the loss of the family the year before. The locals named them Odie and Dory (named after Odet Philippe and his wife Dorothy who were the first settlers in Safety Harbor and brought grapefruit to the area). This year I heard they were back and on a nest so I stopped by in late January to see Dory up on the nest.

Odie was nearby napping in the moss.

In early February I made another stop and Dory was still on the nest but there was a rumor that someone had seen a tiny baby on the nest. She was acting like something was going on but we didn’t see any feeding yet. Maybe the baby was still too small to see and the nest was much higher up and harder to see.

Two weeks later we could see the baby. This was right before sunset and we waited until dark hoping to catch a feeding but Dad didn’t come in with food until it was too dark to shoot anything.

A week later I took my sister over to see the owls while she was visiting. Odie was moving around and being cute. It looked like he was eating a bug on the branch.

The baby was sitting up on a branch a few feet away from Mom where it was very visible. It mostly slept while we were there and we didn’t stay long. This was the last I saw of it. I heard a few days later the baby was seen injured and then disappeared. People think another raptor must have gotten the baby. The non-expert owl watchers were thinking since Dory was a new Mom she wasn’t sure how to take care of it. Either way it was sad again. We’ll have to wait until next winter to see if they nest again.

Tiny baby owl and sunset

Posted on April 1, 2024 by dinajohnston

It was the middle of January and it was blasting windy and cold but I still made it down to Fort Desoto to see the new baby great horned owls. They had nested right on the top of a dead palm tree. This was a late day shoot so you weren’t shooting right into the sun so I was there late in the afternoon. Not long after I arrived Mom was sitting on the nest with feathers sticking to her beak. What was she eating?

The little baby had been hiding under Mom’s wing but it made a brief appearance and Mom gave it a few bites. I hated that big branch that was in Mom’s face but if I moved over to the right then the baby was hidden by Mom’s wing. There was another baby hiding under the back of Mom but since it was so cold and windy it stayed there.

Mom continued to eat and we realized it was a laughing gull. Some photographers that had been there earlier said Dad flew in with a laughing gull and left it.

What a look!

There’s an osprey nest right by the owl’s nest. Dad flew right over my head with a fish and landed on the nest platform. He dropped the fish and took off. Mom must be sitting on eggs. There are currently 34 osprey nests in the park so it’s going to be a busy baby osprey season.

The nest was near the boat ramp parking lot so I walked over to the water. There wasn’t a single boat out this late afternoon. This is what I love about the cold weather here, the quiet stillness at the parks.

After the Mom owl finished eating I headed over for a quick walk on the north beach. The tide was super low and the sand went on for miles. I didn’t stay long since it was hard standing up straight in the wind.

The Venice rookery

Posted on March 23, 2024 by dinajohnston

While Brett and I were on our staycation in Manasota Key we spent a day in nearby Venice (just south of Sarasota). Our first stop in Venice was the Audubon rookery. This was my first visit but I had heard a lot about it during bird nesting season. I knew we would be too early to see any babies but I still wanted to stop by and see if it’s worth another trip down. The rookery is smaller than the one in north Tampa but great blue herons nest here and not in Tampa. There were only a few of them on the morning we were here but I was able to catch some flirting going on.

This was the only couple that had started a nest. They were both just hanging out together. It looked like the one in the back was napping. A few minutes later he woke up and quickly took off.

He flew right by me and over to the other end of the little island.

He pecked around at several branches and picked one out and flew back to the nest with the big branch.

He flew back to the nest and gave the branch to his lady. She took the branch and put it in the best place that she could find. I was hoping they would mate and we waited around for a while but they both started napping again so it was time to go.

I saw another one fly over to the back of the rookery, just out of sight but the below could see it and started doing his mating dance.

I’m not sure if he was showing off for the one that just flew in or he was staking his territory.

There were several kildeer in the field across the street.

We saw several bat boxes near the rookery. Brett never believes that actual bats are in them so I cranked up my ISO and put on the spot meter and took a shot with my camera. This box was full of them sleeping. I wouldn’t want to wake them up.

A crushing blow to the eagle world

Posted on March 9, 2024 by dinajohnston

In early January the eagles in my neighborhood were sticking close to the nest. Louise (the Project Eagle Watch coordinator for Pinellas County) and I were both keeping close tabs on the nest. We were thinking the eggs had hatched at this point but the babies were too small to see yet.

Mom was always on the nest while Dad was flying back and forth. I still hadn’t been able to catch him with food but I hadn’t made it over to the nest early in the mornings. It looks like Mom is looking down at something.

By mid-January I could just make out some fuzz between the sticks. Louise could see 2 babies through her scope from across the field.

A week later I could make out one big baby from far down the field. Louise had seen 2 babies a few days earlier but we could only find one this morning. We were hoping the other one was sleeping.

A few days later I got a good sighting of one of the babies. His all black head was just sticking up over the sticks. Still no sign of the other one.

The next day I found both parents on top of the nest tower.

For several days after this was all we saw. Only the Mom was now on the nest tower and spent all day crying for her mate. Dad was missing and we could not see any sign of life from the babies. We found out that someone in the area was spreading rat poison pellets all over the condos. I spent several days walking around picking up dead squirrels and talking to all of the people living in the area, asking if they knew about the poison pellets and talking to them about what happens if a raptor eats a squirrel (or rat) that has died from rat poison.

It has taken me a while to write this. I am crushed. Both babies and the Dad are missing, presumed dead from rat poison. Their main diet here in the area are squirrels. The Dad had been nesting here since 2007. The original Mom died in 2015 from rat poison and the Dad got a new mate the next year. He would not just abandon the nest. The Mom stayed on the nest tower for a week crying out. It was so sad.

A week later I was heading to the grocery store not expecting to see the Mom still up on the nest tower but she was still there. I saw another eagle on a light post nearby. At first I got excited thinking the Dad had come back but when I got my camera out I realized this was a sub-adult eagle (maybe a 4th year based on the brown still in his head and tail). Eagles don’t get their all white head until their 5th year. We think this was a new young male that heard the Mom crying and came to see what was going on. I hope next year he doesn’t come back to nest with her. The stakes are too high with all of the residents nearby using rat poison pellets and boxes. Guess what he’s eating. Yep, a squirrel. I am heading up a campaign in the neighborhood and areas nearby to stop the use of rat poison. There are other options.

Empty nester

Posted on July 31, 2023 by dinajohnston

It was almost the end of April and the lone baby eagle in my neighborhood was all grown up. I stopped by the nest early one morning and found a couple of does wandering around under the nest tower.

The baby eagle was climbing up the tower to reach Mom. I think he was screaming at her to go get breakfast.

The other parent flew in and started eating a fish on the utility pole right next to the nest tower. I was waiting a while to see if he would bring the rest of the fish to the nest like he usually did after a few bites but this time I think the parents are trying to get Baby to go get his own food. Or at least follow them to hunt.

Baby was circling around the parent that was eating, screaming.

Mom flew over to the other tower and Baby followed her. They sat for a few minutes and then both took off.

Several times at the end of April I stopped by and the nest tower was empty. I guess Baby finally started following his parents to learn how to hunt. A few times I caught Baby flying back to the nest. The above were the last few shots I got at the end of April. By early May I didn’t see them anymore. I’m hoping I’ll see the parents again in September.

Fly free Baby and I hope you see your sister that fell off the nest in your travels. She was released in central Florida.

Another look at the rookery

Posted on July 29, 2023 by dinajohnston

The wood storks were coming over to the bank to get a drink of water. In late April the water was really low.

This wood stork was collecting a stick. Were they still nesting at this point or maybe he was replenishing the one he has.

The babies are always hungry.

A snowy egret showing off.

There were several cattle egrets in full breeding colors. They were just starting to nest.

The little blue herons were also starting to nest.

The fully grown baby cormorants were still being fed by the parents. This one was reaching deep down to get that regurgitated fish.

A boat tailed grackle showing his blue and purple feathers.

Another bike ride past the cows

Posted on July 13, 2023 by dinajohnston

AAnother bike ride in mid-April on my favorite trail that runs through the cow pastures. The sun had just come up when I got out there.

I stopped when I saw 2 sandhill cranes walking across the pasture. As I stood there they both went under the fence and onto the trail right in front of me. I had to quickly back up to fit the first one in the shot. I was trying to keep my distance but they kept walking closer. I hope people aren’t feeding them here.

Some of the usual birds along the trail. A great crested flycatcher and a meadowlark. Both with distinct calls so I heard them before I saw them.

When I first got to the eagle’s nest the almost grown babies were eating and a parent was sitting up there with them. Then the parent took off.

Cruising right past me.

As I was standing there watching the eagle flying around I saw the juvenile eagle fly down to the almost dry pond just under the nest. It seemed to be trying to catch something small but I don’t think he succeeded. It might have been a lizard.

The above is not a good shot and I almost didn’t take it thinking it was a red shoulder hawk but when I got home and cropped it up I realized it was a merlin. I have not seen one of those in a long time.

I think this calf now has his own personal cattle egret to follow him around and eat his bugs. They were staring at each other for a while.

This cow had his cattle egret close by but the colors on the cattle egret’s face looks like he was ready to start nesting.

Taken with my phone on the trail, the utility tower on the right is where the eagles have their nest.

More from the bird rookery in late March

Posted on June 17, 2023 by dinajohnston

There were several glossy ibis flying over the rookery in late March. I’m not sure if they were nesting yet since they nest in the far back hidden part of the rookery. The color of their feathers really popped against the sun as they flew by.

Tricolored herons were still flirting. They nest later than the great egrets and wood storks.

A great egret showing off.

Yes, that’s an almost grown cormorant with his entire face down his Dad’s throat. He was trying to get the fish that Dad was regurgitating for him. I think he still wanted more.

A wood stork showing off his underneath green feathers.

There were so many wood stork babies here.

That fish was way to big for the baby to swallow. The parent realized that pretty quickly and didn’t want it to go to waste so down the hatch it went.

The rookery was hopping in late March

Posted on June 3, 2023 by dinajohnston

I made a road trip back to the bird rookery in north Tampa in late March. The noise was so loud from all of the baby birds screaming to be feed. The little spoil island in the pond was full of babies. Although this great egret above looks like he’s still flirting.