Tag: shells

Finally out on my favorite beach again

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Tampa bay sights9 Comments

It felt really good to be out on this beach in mid-February. My last visit to Fort Desoto Park was in June. I didn’t make it down here in the summer and then the hurricanes hit in September and October. The park had a lot of damage and was closed for several months. They opened back up in stages and the north beach area did not open until early February. To the naked eye it looked the same but there were small changes. The park rangers sifted through the sand on the main beach areas to clear all of the debris that had washed up on the beaches here. I was out at the beach just after the sun came up (I stopped at East Beach to get sunrise shots but more on those later).

It was low tide and I walked up to the end of Outback Key.

The sun coming up over seashells.

The back side of the lagoon had a lot of big clam shells that had washed up with the tide. The shells were empty and most were covered in barnacles. Wilson’s plovers were hiding among them. It’s a good place for them to nap because people wouldn’t be walking through those shells and stepping on them.

A piping plover walks by me with his orange legs.

All of the usual birds were on the beach including great blue herons, reddish egrets and a wintering ring-billed gull.

 

Almost to the northern end of the key. It was going to be a long walk back.

This guy got stranded in the low tide. It was going to be a while before that boat was getting out of that spot. The shorebirds were keeping him company.

I noticed that the grassy areas at the north tip were gone and found out that they didn’t wash away. They were covered with sand. In certain areas you could see how much more sand had stuck on the beach during the storms.

SkyWatch Friday

A morning out on water

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Florida animals, Tampa bay sights2 Comments

My sister and I were out at Sand Key beach early in the morning to look for shells since we had a 10am dolphin tour booked nearby.  We didn’t find a lot of shells at this beach compared to Honeymoon Island but I did find some interesting clam shells. The 1st one looks like it had the insides coming out. I couldn’t tell if it was alive but the tide was coming in and would wash it back out.  The next two are front and back of another shell I picked up. It had a lot of things living on it. The barnacles were still alive so I tossed it back in the water.

At the Clearwater marina, waiting for our boat tour to leave.

We went by the new Clearwater Sound. It’s an outdoor music venue that sits next to the big public library.

A view of the intercoastal waterway.

A view from the small spoil island we stopped at.

An empty urchin that Debbie found on the little beach. This came home with us.

Heading back into the marina. We saw lots of dolphins and I realized I didn’t take any pictures of them. I just had my phone with me and stayed in the back so everyone else could see the dolphins up close. It’s fun seeing the reactions when the kids see them.

Lunch was at an open air restaurant at the marina. Above is the view from our table.

We walked around a bit and saw some of the early half day fishing boats coming in after lunch. You can buy fresh fish right off the boat if they have a big catch. The pelicans hang around hoping for a hand out.

If you are ever in the Clearwater area I highly recommend taking the Encounters With Dolphins tour out of Clearwater Beach. We have taken several and always had a great time.

an image of a red sports car with a lady caricature going at Vroom Vroom high speed, Senior Salon Pit Stop Vroom Vroom LinkupInspire Me Monday

 

Hanging on the causeway

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

I was back at one of my favorite spots for a quick walk and a rest.

After my walk I got out my chair and started watching a juvenile yellow crowned night heron trying to eat a crab. He flipped it around for a long time and then swallowed it quickly when I blinked. He has one tiny white fuzz strand still sticking out of his head from his baby fuzz.

It was low tide and the rocks were covered in these tiny black shells. I don’t know if these are baby conch shells or just some type of tiny black shell. Any Florida shell experts out there?

A pair of oystercatchers fly by.

Later I drove over to the other bridge on the causeway, closest to the mainland, and parked to walk on that bridge. I noticed a great egret and a reddish egret standing fairly close to each other. I pulled my camera back out and shot the above.

The great egret started walking towards the reddish egret and the reddish egret started ruffling his feathers like “Don’t come over here. This is my spot”. The great egret kept going and then flew off.

Heading over the bridge.

Clouds were moving in as I walked over the bridge. I noticed an osprey on the top of the gate that closes when the drawbridge has to go up.

Pelicans were sitting along the pilings under the bridge.

As I was getting back in my car I heard some nanday parakeets screaming nearby so out came my camera again and I walked over to the bushes and caught a few of them eating the seed. At this point the clouds were getting dark so I headed home.

SkyWatch Friday

Up close on a rainy day.

On By dinajohnstonIn flowers and plants2 Comments

Playing around with my macro lens in the house on a rainy morning in February.

We have hibiscus bushes growing on the side of our house but I rarely bring them inside. I need to do that more often. They only last a day though.

Up close with some new shells. Our glass stove top gives off a nice reflection.

Turning the lens on my own birds.  Buddy on top (he’s 27 years old) and Harley in the bottom 2 (he’s 5). Harley used to be terrified of the camera so I would only take pictures of Buddy up close but now he sings for it.

My Corner of the World

All sand, no birds

On By dinajohnstonIn Tampa bay sights5 Comments

Pano of the north beach tip at Fort Desoto during the extreme low tide.

It was cold and windy and a perfect day for a walk on the beach. There were a few other people here but I still felt like I had the beach all to myself. This was the lowest tide I have ever seen here. Someone told me it was because of the full Snow moon (the tides are lowest during the full moon in February). I came out to see if there were any shorebirds but I think the wind kept them hiding somewhere else.

The backside of Outback Key was exposed and all of those little mounds had live sand dollars hiding under them.

A few of them partially exposed.

I’ve read that the pink sand comes from microscopic animals in the water.

Textures on Outback Key.

Walking back to the parking lot.

The beach was littered with the above.

This one had a lot of things living on it.

My stash from the morning when I got back home and washed them off. The beach was covered in whole dead sand dollars. It’s rare to find them not broken. I like collecting shells with barnacles. I feel like it gives them personality.

SkyWatch Friday

Last of the Thanksgiving tourist tour

On By dinajohnstonIn Tampa bay sights1 Comment

Cruising along Clearwater bay looking for dophins.  Lots of big buildings going up around the beach including the new expanded Clearwater Marine Aquarium, home of Winter the movie star dolphin from A Dolphin’s Tale who lost his tail and was given a prosthetic tail.

Anyone want a boat real cheap?  An abandoned boat near the marina.

Cruising by some of the big old historic homes along the intercoastal waterway.

Out along Sand Key.

Two osprey taking a bath on a sand spit during low tide.

We stopped at a spoil island near Sand Key and looked for some shells. The ones that were still alive were put back in the water.

The last day my sisters were here visiting we took a 2 hour dolphin tour out of Clearwater marina. After living here for almost 18 years it was the first time I had done that. It was fun being out on the water on such a beautiful morning. We finally did see some dolphins coming back to the marina but I didn’t take any pictures. The boat was fairly full and I hung back letting all of the tourists see them from the edge of the boat. It’s fun to see people’s reactions when they see one for the first time out in the wild. Living here we take things for granted. I saw 3 of them coming home from work recently while I was stuck in traffic on the bridge.

SkyWatch Friday

A beautiful beach day before red tide rolled in.

On By dinajohnstonIn Tampa bay sights3 Comments

Things along the trail from our car to the beach.

Out on the beach, it was a perfect quiet morning in late August. We get there early before it gets too hot and crowded.

The water was crystal clear but warm. This was before the red tide had brought dead sea life to the beach, the calm before the storm. I was traveling light this morning so all above were taken with my phone.

SkyWatch Friday

Baby owls and some ibis on a sunny morning – Skywatch Friday

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography13 Comments

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One baby was facing me and the other one (on the right) was turned around.

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The older baby (on the left) was stretching her wings.

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This nest is so tiny. They were up against each other the whole morning. Mom was close by on an upper branch.

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Out on the beach, ibis were digging for breakfast.

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Double dipping. An ibis and a great egret were feeding together.

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I found the above birds at the north beach marsh. The tide was really low this morning.

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It was another perfect morning in late February.

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The beach was quiet. The water was calm.

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Lots of shells on the beach.

By now the baby owls at Fort Desoto are flying around from branch to branch. I heard that the park ranger has taken down the orange fencing that went around the area where the nest was which means they have fledged. They grow up so fast. I think they’ll still stay in the area for a couple of months so I’ll look for them next time I’m at the park. There weren’t many other birds at the park. It was cool and windy so the north beach was lacking in shorebirds. I could only find a few ibis and great egrets that morning. Spring break has begun and the beach will become a different place, full of loud kids chasing birds. Can’t wait.

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