Rare birds and common ones

I hadn’t seen cedar waxwings in years. They are somewhat rare here and only a few come through during spring migration. I saw one hiding deep in the bushes and was a little bummed he was not visible. Later in my walk a flock of them quickly flew by and one stopped for a few second right in front of me. They are beautiful birds.

A rare western kingbird. I’ve only seen these once before in the area in the last 9 years. At first I thought it was a great crested flycatcher which are more common but realized later it was a kingbird.

All of the usual birds that are at Possum Branch Preserve.

Not sure what this little yellow bird it. I’m thinking it’s an immature palm warbler.

Other little critters along the lake (besides alligators).

These were all taken at Possum Branch Preserve, a small watershed, near my home in mid-April.

Our World Tuesday Graphicimage-in-ing: weekly photo linkup

Cute little birds at Circle B Bar Reserve

Lots of cute little birds around the nature center in mid February: palm wabler, blue gray gnatcatcher, female indigo bunting and several female painted buntings.

Of the course everyone wants the shot of the male painted bunting. We knew there was at least one there but after searching over an hour, I was about to give up when this guy above stopped for a second before taking off again. I snapped this quickly before he was gone only to get a blurry shot.

Red leaves in the winter.

Linking to Wednesday Around the World.

The Usual Suspects.

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The usual suspects along the trail: pied grebe, sparrow, palm warbler, cardinal, snowy egret and a hawk that looks half asleep.

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This very handsome common yellowthroat was posing nicely for me.

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An osprey bringing home padding for the nest.

The usual things at Circle B Bar Reserve in early January.

SkyWatch Friday

Hidden behind some trees

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Hiding behind trees at a very busy intersection in the Tampa Bay area is Possum Branch Preserve. There’s only a tiny sign on the fence and no real parking. You just pull onto the grass and park along the fence. There wasn’t a lot of birds the day I was there in early December but tons of plants along the ponds. If it wasn’t for all of the loud traffic close by I would have thought I was in the middle of nowhere.

Our World Tuesday Graphicimage-in-ing

They all look alike

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This one looks like a female common yellowthroat. Although, it also looks like a female hooded warbler.

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The above two looks more like a female hooded warbler.

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Possible pine warbler.

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Or these could be a pine warbler.

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This is an easy one. A yellow throated warbler.

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A palm warbler.

All of these little yellow guys look alike. Especially the females.  Pine, Palm, Prairie or Polka Dots???   I can’t keep them straight. Next spring I’m going to take the time to write down what they are as I am taking pictures if someone there knows. Sometimes I have different people telling me the same bird is something different so that’s even more confusing. These were all taken in mid-November at Chesnut Park. It was a busy day for little yellow birds.

The usual suspects at Circle B Bar Reserve

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You do not want to have that beak coming at you!

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Green herons doing the “stretch”.

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Looking for snacks.

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The Wilson’s snipe was trying to sleep.

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The glossy ibis was glowing in the sun.

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Cute little palm warblers showing off.

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A pileated woodpecker high up in the tree.

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An anhinga drying off in the sun after a swim.

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Pretty in yellow.

These were all taken in late November when the yellow flowers were still in bloom at Circle B Bar Reserve.

Our World Tuesday Graphicimage-in-ing

Birds and fish at Bok Tower

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I thought this bird was going to be something different but I think it’s a palm warbler in his non-breeding colors.

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I can’t tell what this warbler is. Unfortunately, I did not get any other pictures of him. I think this is a female black throated blue warbler.  The lady friend of the one below.

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This male black throated blue warbler was staying inside of the bushes and being very timid. I rarely see these guys.

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Female ruby throated hummingbirds were everywhere. I saw these at the bushes in front of the historic house.

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The big fish in the pond in front of the carillon tower were looking for a handout. You can pay 25 cents to get a handful of fish food.

More fun stuff from my trip to Bok Tower in early November.

Our World Tuesday Graphicimage-in-ing

Pretty birds doing everyday things.

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A purple gallinule shining through the reeds.

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A pretty common yellowthroat in the shade.

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A cute grebe floating around.

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A little blue heron taking a gulp.

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A red-eyed vireo being shy.

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A downy woodpecker high up in a tree.

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A limpkin looking down at me from up above.

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A palm warbler reaching for the stars.

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A white pelican all alone.

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Moorhens imitating each other.

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Tiny hummingbirds humming in the firebush.

Some of the birds on my recent walk around Circle B Bar Reserve.

Our World Tuesday Graphicimage-in-ing

Largo Nature Preserve

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Nesting is in full swing for the osprey in the area.  I don’t think they have eggs yet since they both left the nest at the same time for a while.

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It looks like they were working on getting it comfy.

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One of them kept bringing in more insulation.

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Night herons always sleep along the boardwalk at this park.

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Funny face. An anhinga staring at me.

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Northern shovelers were close to the bank.

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Flapping.

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Another funny face.

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The usual palm warbler. The trail was full of them.

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A few robins were hanging around.

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Is that parrot waving at me?

A Saturday morning walk at Largo Nature Preserve.

Skywatch Friday

I should have slept in.

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I went looking for a grasshopper sparrow that had been reported at Possum Branch Preserve before heading over to Chesnut Park. This was all I got, trees full of yellow rumped warblers.

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And pigeons flying overhead.

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And fruit that is toxic if you eat it in this state even though it’s pretty.

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Chesnut Park wasn’t much better. Palm warblers. Really? I should have slept in.

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Bees and flowers were still blooming.

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At least the squirrels were cute holding the berries in their tiny hands.

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The usual titmouse were looking for a handout.

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They get pretty close.

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The lake was full of these blooming. Bees were enjoying them.

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View from the end of the dock. You would almost think fall was here. There were a few trees turning red. It was the weekend before Thanksgiving and the high was going to be 80 degrees by noon.

I stopped at the little Possum Branch Preserve to look for the rare (in this area) grasshopper sparrow. There were 3 other birders there looking as well. No luck even though he was sighted the afternoon before. I moved on to Chesnut Park a few miles away. Not a lot of birds there but people were coming in fast. Every picnic shelter was booked and everyone was hauling in food, coolers and decorations. It was a perfect day for a family outing.