Tag: tampa skyline

Make room for me!

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

One of my favorite spots, the Safety Harbor fishing pier, was closed after Hurricane Debby did damage to the pier. The birds had taken advantage of the closure to turn the pier into their new home, somewhere they can hang out between feedings and not be disturbed. I had heard there were hundreds of birds on the pier so I headed there one morning with my camera. I quickly realized this needed to be an afternoon shoot. I had forgotten I would be shooting directly into the sun (even though it was mostly cloudy this morning). As I stood there for a few minutes I noticed the birds would all take off at the same time, leaving the pier in an orderly fashion.

Flying in front of the bridge.

The light was so bad in the morning so I came back later that afternoon. The birds were still there and even more showed up. I realized that a lot of the birds were black terns.

Looking from the side I could see tons of black terns, many royal terns and a few laughing gulls mixed in.

The black terns were in all stages of molting. Some were almost all black and some had just a little black on their heads. They are only all black during breeding season. They are known as “marsh terns” since they breed in freshwater marshes in the most northern part of the USA and Canada. They only stop over here for a short time during migration on their way back and forth from the north to central America. I’ve seen a few at a time over the years and this was the most I’ve seen at one place.

“Make room”. They seemed to yell when one was trying to find room to land.

Farther down near the end of the dock I could see a lot of royal terns (with the orange beaks). There were a few laughing gulls and they are much bigger than the black terns. I could also see a few sandwich terns (with a tiny bit of yellow on the tip of their beaks).

Lift off across the pier.

They would all circle around and land back on the pier.

Zooming in I could Tampa across the bay.

The end of the flamingo frenzy

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

The wild flamingo frenzy continued through the end of October. Flamingos blown in from Hurricane Idalia (late August) were showing up all over Florida as well some northern states.  The one spotted near Safety Harbor was one of the last ones to be seen in the Tampa Bay area. I was nearby and stopped on a cloudy icky morning just to see if “HarborRita” (the name the locals gave her) was still there. At first it was really far out in the bay feeding but slowly moved her way towards the mangroves.

Far across the bay, the view of the causeway heading into Tampa.

A few days later I stopped by on a Sunday late in the day and there she was again.

It was windy and the kiteboarders were out in front of the pier.  The view across the bay is a little better when the sun is behind me.

I took a quick walk around the boardwalk and found some roseate spoonbills trying to nap. They were far into the mangroves, trying to stay out of the wind.

I walked back to see if the flamingo was feeding. The water was pretty choppy and she looked like she was just trying to stay upright.

She eventually tucked her head in for a nap and that was my cue to head home. This was the last time I saw her.

Above was a post from one of the rescue groups in the area in early November. This was our own HarborRita that was rescued. The tag on her leg matched the one HarborRita was wearing. She was not doing well and was found in some mangroves slightly north of where she had been hanging out. She had a break in her wing that did not set correctly and would not have been able to fly home. She is now living at Busch Gardens with other flamingos.

Across the bay

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Tampa bay sights7 Comments

The view of downtown Tampa from Ballast Point Park. It wasn’t that early in the morning in the beginning of August when I stopped by. I had been out running errands and had my camera in the car so I stopped for a quick walk on the fishing pier. The park sits down in south Tampa and from the pier you can see across to downtown.

There wasn’t many birds around the pier but I caught this scruffy young grackle with a snack left over from some bait fish.

I caught this “fever’ of stingrays cruising by the pier.

The views from across the bay include the Tampa port, the electric plant over in Apollo Beach, the downtown skyline and some buildings going up on Bayshore Boulevard.

I caught this squirrel with a snack in the parking lot next to my car.

One last snap of Tampa through the trees (this was taken with my phone so you can see how far away I was).

SkyWatch Friday

Late day walk at the pier.

On By dinajohnstonIn Tampa bay sights2 Comments

Another “get out of the house” moment. I headed down to the St. Pete Pier late in the day in early December. I knew it would be crowded but went early enough before the dinner crowd. Standing out on the pier, I could see Tampa across the bay in the bottom shot.

The new cool sculpture on the pier. The first commercial airline started right here back in 1914 with a commercial flight from St. Pete to Tampa with paying customers.

Heading towards the end of the pier.

Looking up at the back of the building on the pier, it looks a little like a space ship.

Looking towards St. Pete, the sun was just starting to go down.

Walking around past the park, I could see a dolphin swimming around by the pier.

Looking out on the bay, the sun had gone down behind me.

As it gets dark, the netting over the grounds before the pier turns pink.  The crowds were starting to come in so I headed home for dinner.

SkyWatch Friday

Tampa across the bay.

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography3 Comments

A fever of stingrays came by just as I walked out on the Safety Harbor fishing pier. They must call a group of stingrays a fever because you’re going to get a fever if you step on one. I’ve seen grown men cry from getting stuck with a barb from one after not doing the stingray shuffle. It’s supposed to be very painful. Luckily I don’t know that personally. Brett and I saw a man get stuck in the ankle at the beach a few years back. He could barely talk and was turning blue. It was a big barb. I helped his wife pack up their stuff and 2 sons and Brett helped him walk back to their car.  We told them to stop at the ranger station on the way out to get some relief. The rangers would have put his foot and ankle in a big bucket with the hottest water he could stand to help stop the pain along with pain relievers.

Standing at the end of the fishing pier, I could see Tampa. Zooming in I could make out the airport and the football stadium. It was hot and hazy in early June.

Not many people on the pier.

I found some osprey taking a break in the water in the shallow area and one flew right over my head.

People have started putting locks on one end of the boardwalk. What they may not know is that so many people were putting love locks on the bridge in Paris that part of the bridge collapsed. They have since removed all of the locks in Paris but now people are putting them everywhere. This is symbolic of “locking” in your love for someone. Eventually the rangers will take them down so the rail of the boardwalk doesn’t collapse and cause injury to someone. And those locks are going to rust quickly in the salt air.

A small mangrove growing along the water.

Grasshoppers are everywhere.

SkyWatch Friday

 

“Don’t let the sun go down on me”

On By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Tampa bay sights3 Comments

Royal terns and willets on the sea wall across from the boat ramp at Davis Islands.

Pelicans and a great egret hanging around the island.

The view of Tampa across from the Davis Islands yacht basin right before sunset.

Watching the sun go down early in the quarantine in late March.

It was a quiet night. Most people were sitting in their cars watching the sun go down instead of getting out and walking around the small beach there. I kept saying I was going to get back over there but I just never did.

SkyWatch Friday

Crossing Tampa Bay

On By dinajohnstonIn Tampa bay sights4 Comments

 

It’s funny that we took 3 ferry rides while we were in Boston but have never taken the ferry across Tampa bay. It’s hard to do fun tourist things when you are working and on a schedule. When my sisters came to visit we booked the ferry from St. Pete to Tampa. It’s a little less than an hour each way. It was fun hanging out and being a tourist.  As we headed to Tampa we got close to the TECO electric plant. It was so nice out that there were a lot of boats on the water.

In the middle of the bay you could see Tampa.

Passing by the ports and Davis Islands yacht basin.

We were close to the big boats at the port.

Heading into the channel.  I took a ton of pictures on the trip so more to come.

SkyWatch Friday

The Tampa art festival

On By dinajohnstonIn Tampa bay sights4 Comments

Several years ago Brett and I went to an art festival in downtown Tampa and I just recently found these old pictures. In late February it’s usually beautiful, sunny and cool.

Looking across the bay at Davis Islands.

The University of Tampa minarets in the sun.

Most people are there looking at the art and I’m running around taking pictures of the birds. Mostly gulls.

image-in-ing: weekly photo linkupOur World Tuesday Graphic