This and That...

How was your Christmas?

As usual, I'm glad it's over with,

But we did have a nice Christmas Day . . .

I haven't really been out taking photos

For several days, so now's a good time to

Post misc. photos...

One of the rest stops along I-75 in the Everglades

Is taken over by a bunch of black vultures...

Creepy, yes, but I managed to get a photo...

Speaking of creepy...

A real common sight

While visiting state parks or

Any nature area with a forest-like setting,

Are huge spider webs overhead,

With these golden orb-weaver spiders

Hanging out in their center...

From back leg tip to front leg tip,

A full grown GOW is about four inches long...

Did I mention that spiders

Are my least favorite creepy crawly?!

Moving along to prettier subjects,

The common primrose willow can be seen

Here and there...

Closer to home, about 3-4 blocks away in fact,

In a McD's parking lot...

I took photos of one of two cattle egret

That were trolling for scraps...

Of all the places

To finally see a cattle egret!

Even closer to home,

This little frog

Had to be rescued

More than once

From BIL Sam's pool...

There are many ducks in the 'hood

Thanks to the large ponds nearby...

They waddle by most days

Ru likes to give them

Bread scraps...

I did a post on my S Dakota Blog

Showing the pair of Eurasian collared doves

That were visiting the feeders...

These doves were first introduced to the U.S.

Here in Florida...

This one's on the street light out front...

We have mourning doves

In the backyard often...

The ibises are occasional visitors thru the 'hood...

We see a squirrel pretty much daily,

Skittering along the fence around the back yard...

And have put peanuts out for it...

The palm warblers are scarce visitors now...

 Boat-tailed grackles are super common...

But it was a unique sight when

A female grackle found a tiny snake

In the backyard near the pool.

Iguana See an Anhinga

We liked Long Key Natural Area enough the first time

To make another visit,

And managed to find different critters

To take a gander at...

I was pretty excited to discover this male (or imm.) anhinga sunning...

It tolerated my presence pretty well...

At a slightly different angle, I was able to pick up the reflections in the water...

Hubby spied this iguana hanging by the pond...

These guys are escaped/released ex-pets, can be seen

Along canals and other bodies of water,

Regardless of the human population...

Hubby also spied an atala hairstreak butterfly...

There were gulf fritillaries about the little butterfly garden also...

I believe this is a red-bellied turtle

(As noted in previous post)...

Seemed to be swimming over to greet me,

But he just kept swimming under the bridge.

Up in the trees, I could hear a couple different birds twittering, but it was pretty hard to make out what they were they were so busy flitting about...I managed to capture a black-and-white warbler as it pecked at the bark for a moment before moving again. This warbler was a lifer for me!

Sawgrass Sanctuary

It must be said that

Just because a birdie haven is reeeally small,

Doesn't mean it doesn't hold

Some worthwhile,

Feathery foto ops!

Ru and I visited Sawgrass Sanctuary,

which has a walker's path circling the outer parameter.

The sanctuary is a mere 20 acres,

And we only found three birds here...BUT...

One was a lifer...

Actually another was a recent lifer too,

And this was my first photo op w/ it...

Walking out on the observation platform,

Ru spied this immature green heron

on the water's edge below us...the lifer...

A No. mockingbird landed on one of the platform posts.....

...And in the water between the platform and land,

A wood stork was feeding...

I've seen many wood storks since arriving in FL,

And was happy to get the op to take some close-up shots...

Also out and about,

Were many dragonflies,

Like this red one...

There were a few cypress trees on the water's edge.....

Heading out of the sanctuary,

We found a wood stork sunning

By a water canal....

Along with another lifer,

a tri-colored heron!

Woo hoo!  :o)

Fort Myers Beach

After visiting Sanibel Island,

We landed on another shoreline,

At or near Ft. Myers Beach...

No parking fees,

And plenty of white sand

And shore birds...

Willets were wading...

 

Sanderlings skittered in the sea and on shore...

Ruddy turnstones traipsed in the tickly tide...

A snowy egret,

Wading in its yellow galoshes,

Eyed the shallows for a bite to eat...

And brown pelicans perused the sea

As they soared close to the surface.

Sanibel Island

Last week-ish, Ru and I drove to the west coast...

To have a look around the areas we're interested in living...

We ended up on Sanibel Island,

At Bowman's Beach...

We barely made it onto the causeway,

When we stopped on a narrow strip of beach 

To eat lunch...

And watch the shore birds...

An osprey dove into the water right in front of us...

No camera in hand of course...

But I did capture the black-bellied plover, above...

 

And a great egret...

 

Once at Bowman's Beach,

I gleefully strolled down the shore

Looking for seashells

And watching the feathered friends...

Like the sandwich terns, above

(Black bills w/ yellow tips)...

 

And this royal tern...

(All birds are in their winter plumage)...

 

The scenery was pleasant...

 

Walking back to the car, at the bridge

Over a waterway off of the ocean...

We watched two 'silver' gals

Canoeing at a brisk clip...

(Mom, you can do it!)

Long Key Natural Area

...Ok I missed a couple photos taken

At Tree Tops Park...

I got a better photo of a N. mockingbird...

This one didn't mind posing...

A gentle reminder (above) that...

We're not in "Kansas" anymore...

The park has this nice stand of live oaks...

To the left is a narrow 'stream'...

To the right is a man-made pond...

Several people were arriving to fish...

The pickerel weed grows in swampy areas...

After visiting Tree Tops,

We happened upon Long Key Natural Area...

(Not Long Key State Park)

A real nice, 124 acre nature 'preserve'...

Including a pond with soft shell turtles...

And pretty white pond lilies...

And what appeared to be giant swallowtails,

That wouldn't pose for the camera...

Leaving the park, we watched an osprey

Land on this branch...

I have since seen several osprey

Along I-75 while driving thru

The Big Cypress Nat'l Preserve...

Also in barren tree tops near the osprey,

Was this imm. anhinga...

At first I thought it was a cormorant...

I'm really hoping to get a good shot

Of a female anhinga eventually... (has yellow coloring)...

Also saw many of those along the BCNP...

And belted kingfishers...

And hawks...not sure what kind.

Swamp Creatures

Florida has what's called The Great Florida Birding Trail...

I haven't visited any of the sites on the trail yet...

(Thanks for the good tip, Bob!)...

But nature parks are in abundance...

And we've visited a couple in the past week...

 

So far the parks have been well-maintained,

And small, like Tree Tops Park.

We walked to the end of the boardwalk,

And after we walked away, this

Little Blue Heron landed by the covered sitting area,

So I crept back to get photos.

It posed nicely...

 

Swamp lilies were growing in the...swamp...

Kind of shocking to see lilies in this setting!

 

These berries are truly this color...

The beautyberry...common...

And stunning...

 

A distant common moorhen was paddling about in the swamp...

 

A great egret was carefully fishing...

A very common bird in FL...

 

Many white peacock butterflies were flitting, also common here...

...And a floating red-bellied turtle was hanging out.