A hot quiet walk at Roosevelt Wetlands

On September 3, 2025October 15, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography6 Comments

In early May I made my last trip out to the Roosevelt Wetlands for the summer. There is no shade here and not many critters during the dead of summer. I was standing near the parking area and could see across the lake to the waste plant mountain. All of a sudden tons of birds took off across the open mound. I’m not sure what scared them, mostly gulls and terns. There’s a lot of hawks in the area and I think most of the eagles are gone for the summer.

Cattails along the trail.

After staring into the reeds for a while I saw a bittern’s head pop up. He stayed hidden after he saw me.

Little critters along the trail.

A bunny hops across the trail, trying to hide fast before I pass him.

Color along the trail in the form of tickseed.

I saw a purple gallinule heading into the reeds and noticed a baby was right behind her. I was able to get a quick shot before the baby disappeared.

A female grackle posing. When I cropped this up I noticed the ladybug on the bottom right.

Standing near the waste plant, looking across the lake to the parking area. It’s a long walk back when it gets hot and the wind blows from the waste plant area.

A little blue heron flies by.

The northern harriers and winter ducks have all gone north for the summer. There was no sign of baby black necked stilts which is the highlight of late spring. Critter traffic comes to a halt through August so I took a long break from visiting.

Art along my morning walk

On August 25, 2025September 6, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn Tampa bay sights6 Comments

In mid-May I was out on the Safety Harbor waterfront for my weekly walk here. When it’s too hot to be walking around in the woods with my camera, I walk close to the water. I was hoping to get a breeze but there wasn’t a ripple on the water this morning.

Looking across the bay at Tampa I could see someone paddleboarding. This was a great morning for paddleboarding since the water was so smooth.

A bunny was feeding before the mangrove boardwalk.

Since there was no breeze along the waterfront I decided to walk through the town area and noticed some of the artwork at the library.

Plumeria (also known as frangipani) was blooming all over Safety Harbor.

Murals along my walk.

The most colorful corner goes to the Safety Harbor Art & Music center.

Little fuzzy quackers in the pond

On August 18, 2025September 6, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

This spring has been a banner Cape May warbler year. I was at Possum Branch Preserve at the end of April which doesn’t get a lot of migrating birds but this morning there were several.

A black throated blue was also there, feeding in the mulberry tree.

Smaller flying critters along the path around the pond.

A purple gallinule was in the middle of the pond, standing on the spatterdock.

I think this bunny noticed me. He didn’t run though.

An osprey flies by with breakfast.

It was fun to see a big mallard family on the edge of the pond.

I plopped down on the grass for a while and watched them feed. Mom seemed proud of her babies.

Momma duck had better keep an eye out for this guy at the other end of the pond.

Things in the yard and neighborhood

On August 11, 2025September 6, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography1 Comment

We have a little spot of dirt in our front yard that gets full sun so I planted sunflower seeds and a few weeks later they started coming up.

Near the end of April this one was the first to start blooming.

A tiny Eastern amberwing dragonfly was flying around the sunflower plants.

A titmouse was showing off his snacks. I’m assuming he had a nest somewhere high up in the tree. I kept seeing him fly up there but couldn’t tell where he was going.

A moth through the window. Taken with my phone.

This blue jay was driving me crazy. He kept eating the suet and digging around in the plants for bugs. He lets me get really close. I took the above with my phone.

Critters on the flowering plants in the front yard.

I was sitting at the kitchen table working on my computer when I looked up and saw a hummingbird flying around in front of the window. I pulled out the old window feeder that I hadn’t used in a long time and made some extra food and put it on the window. By the next day she was coming to the feeder. If I was standing still in front of the window when she flew in she would continue to feed as long as I stood still.

A video of Fred flirting with me through the window.

It was almost time to take the suet feeder down. It’s just too hot once May comes and even through the package says they don’t melt, they do. The woodpeckers will just have to eat the regular sunflower seeds instead for a few months.

I kept hearing a peeping noise when I went out to water the plants and saw a downy woodpecker hanging around a spot high up in the oak tree in the backyard. I saw the woodpecker fly away and walked over and saw the above juvenile looking out from a hole underneath a branch. So I did what any normal bird nerd would do, I went inside and got my camera and dragged my patio chair under the tree and waited for the parent to come back.

The parent came back several times. There were two juveniles in the hole but only one popped out at a time. It must be tight in there. I could see the red on the young one’s head so I knew it was a boy. There was also a female.

Both parents stayed busy bringing in food but they would stick their head far into the hole to feed the kids so I couldn’t get a shot of them feeding it.

I knew that the babies were about to be too big for that hole and a few days later I saw them chasing the parents on the trees.

A regular visitor to the backyard.

I was out running errands and on the way home I saw these 3 on the sidewalk in front of the utility field down the street. I pulled over on the nearby parking pad and got out with my camera and crossed the street. Then they started crossing the street and heading right for me. These guys were strutting around like they owned the neighborhood.

I realized there were 2 females behind the trees on my side of the street. The males got close to the females but the females ignored them and went into the woods.

Linking to A Stroll Thru Life.

A new owl family

On July 7, 2025August 5, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

I was thinking I had missed the baby owl season when I went for a walk at Chesnut Park in early April. There was a 2nd barred owl family and my timing was pretty good. Both babies were right on the boardwalk.

The oldest baby was so cute, looking around at everything with such curiosity.

Mom was nearby watching both babies.

The younger baby was just a little bit fuzzier than it’s older sibling and was sitting lower in another tree. I waited a short while to see if Mom would get some food and feed them but they all stayed in their spots so I headed down the boardwalk to see what else I could find.

A rabbit was chomping on the grass out in the field.

The lake looked good enough to jump in but I knew it was filled with alligators. Yes, people ski on this lake but they say the alligators stay close to the edges in the quiet spots. I wouldn’t risk it.

A few fly overs included a swallow tail kite and a great egret.

This limpkin had a yummy snack. He had pulled the meat out of an apple snail and was gulping it down in pieces.

Before leaving I stopped by the owl area again and the babies had moved farther back into the woods. I saw Mom sitting on a branch right up against the trail. Then I noticed a squirrel was on the same branch farther down and was climbing up near the owl. They were so close I took the above with my phone.

A short video of the squirrel getting closer to the owl. I couldn’t decide if the squirrel was stupid, brave or crazy. He would run up to the owl and then run down again and did this several times. Finally the squirrel jumped off the branch and ran under the boardwalk. Mom owl just sat there. She must have already eaten.

Linking to A Stroll Thru Life.

Early August in the backyard

On December 2, 2024December 2, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

At the end of July we were getting rain almost every day. We had several little puddles appear in the backyard and one morning I was able to catch the white ibis getting some bugs in the water. It was fun to watch them sloshing around in the ground. We must have some good bugs in the backyard because they were having a feast.

The rabbit made another appearance and I caught him eating the ivy again. He saw me through the window but kept eating for a while.

Cardinals will molt and lose a lot of their feathers and they look scraggly when it happens. This guy had lost all of the feathers around his neck and the back of his head. He was easy to spot for several days.

We had a lot of Carolina wrens this summer. There were several juveniles that stopped by for a bath. They liked resting on some storm debris we hadn’t picked up yet.

We still had ruby throated hummingbirds at the feeder in early August. It was mostly females but I did have a male show up a few times (with the bright red throat).

Another lacewing on the back door.

A young squirrel getting a snack in front of the back door.

A coyote down the street? What? I knew they were here and I have neighbors that have seen them at night but I had not seen one in the 3 years we have lived here (I did have one on the back patio last year in the middle of the night that I saw on the backdoor camera). I was on my way to the grocery store one morning and saw this guy laying along the sidewalk near the utility field. I luckily had my camera in the car and pulled over and took the above. He just sat there and looked at me. I did talk to a lady walking her small dog that way and told her to watch for it. When I came back from the store I saw him heading into the woods.

More summer skies, all in the backyard.

Around the yard in mid-July

On November 4, 2024October 24, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

I looked out the kitchen window and saw a squirrel in the small tree in our front courtyard. I realized he was eating one of the almost dead sunflowers. He sat there and ate it while I ran and got my camera. I guess he was eating the sunflower seeds. He looked so happy like he had just won a prize.

In mid-July we had a heavy storm and the temporary pond across the fairway filled back up. Late one afternoon I saw a spoonbill feeding in the pond and went out with my camera. Luckily there wasn’t anyone playing golf that late and I was able to stand in the fairway and get some shots of the spoony and his friends without getting too close. There was also a snowy egret, a little blue heron and a juvenile little blue heron (the white one above).

A quick video of them feeding that I took with my phone.

The hummingbird was a regular visitor to the feeder and the shrimp plant.

These two turkeys came cruising by and stopped long enough for me to sneak out back and shoot the above from our patio.

We had a rabbit come by and feed on our ivy in the patio. I took these through the glass door. He saw me but kept eating for a while. I didn’t mind him eating the ivy. We are always cutting it back.

A few days later I was doing some clean up in the front and saw this tiny bunny up against our front door. I snapped the above and texted a rehabber to make sure he was old enough to be on his own. She said he was fine. Later I saw him hopping around the courtyard but haven’t seen him since that day.

Those weird fungus looking things on my back glass door that was actually lacewing eggs turned into this. They are beneficial to the yard and will eat tons of little bugs including mealybugs, aphids, spider mites and whiteflies.

A pretty mushroom after the rain. The squirrels usually eat them.

I was at the pool in our subdivision and this dragonfly landed on my towel and stayed long enough for me to pull my phone out and snap the above.

Afternoon lightning I shot from the garage.

July skies from the front yard.

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.

Spring in central Florida

On June 13, 2022June 3, 2022 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography4 Comments

I love Bok Tower Gardens in the spring. It’s the only place I’ve seen orange sunflowers.

The pitcher plants are really cool as well.

Lots of things were blooming when I was there in late April. I just wish it was closer. It’s now almost 2 hours away, though worth the trip. I usually make several stops on the way home at other parks but it’s too hot to do that in the summer.

Butterflies were everywhere but I mostly saw monarchs.

The birds were not plentiful but I did see some redstarts and great crested flycatchers.

And now I know why they call it a “cottontail” bunny.

The return of the waxwings.

On May 23, 2022March 21, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography5 Comments

I always love seeing cedar waxwings. They looks so magestic,. This is the 2nd spring I’ve seen them at Possum Branch Preserve. They are usually hidden deep in the trees but if you are really quiet you can hear them wheezing up there.

A few minutes later they all took off and moved over to tree on the other side of the pond. I noticed the yellow tips on the bottom of his feathers in this shot.

There’s always a lot of alligators and bunnies here.

One of the ponds here is fenced in. It’s used as a watershed but I’m not sure why this one is fenced and the others are not. I found a family of limpkins moving along the fence in early April. The parents had 4 babies. They stayed hidden in the brush along the fence but I could see them looking for a way into the fenced pond. One of the parents flew in and two of the babies were able to get through the fence holes. The other parent stayed on the outside with the other 2 but eventually they also made it through the fence. If they stay in the fenced area another day or two those babies won’t make it back through until they can fly out.