Another Day at the Beach

As luck would have it, good friends of ours, R and L, have purchased a monster RV and are taking delight in "camping" at a beach-front park in our area. They live near Orlando, and like many Floridians, lease their house out to snow birds…so they've been taking 4-7 day trips to escape the hustle and bustle of a more urban life. And we've been visiting them during their stays…the weather was nasty (but hey, no snow!) during their 3rd and 2nd-to-last visits, but it was just warm enough weather a week ago, during their most recent visit, when we met them on the beach….I didn't go far at all to take some photos of the shore birds at hand...

A large, mixed cluster of sea birds were just chillin' less than 50 yards from where we planted ourselves, including these two royal terns and their hilarious 'dos…they never cease to amuse me…once summer plumage takes over the 'do will be a solid black cap up to the bill...

This little Forster's tern will also have a solid black cap come summer, but they only winter along the Florida coastlines...

The black skimmers were still in presence, in a larger number than my previous visit...

…Again, a lone willet among the larger gulls and terns…the willets seem to be tireless feeders at the ocean's edge, and this was the first time I saw one head up onto the sand, and seem to think to itself "Hmm, this looks like a good spot…"

…And then proceed to settle in for a good rest.

There were also the usual small number of ruddy turnstones (and sanderlings) skittering about, and the one brave rogue who came close to see if a snack would be tossed its way…this shot was taken from my beach chair...

And so was this shot, I admit…out of nowhere this brown pelican flapped down to the sand, stood in one spot checking things out…and then took off…you never now what will come along at a Florida beach…we saw Northern gannets diving into the ocean, too far out for photos…and the token osprey made its appearance, also not quite close enough…

Just another day at the beach!


Back at our humble cottage, today...

I believe this is an Eastern phoebe! A lifer! It visited the back yard briefly…no seeds for this one tho. The yellow-rumped warblers, however, are flocking all over the place and even visiting our feeders these days.

 I also discovered that the Carolina wrens aren't as scarce as I thought…they're just busy nibbling insects on the north side of the house.

A Feathery Tail…or Two

 Well, I'm finally back at my Blog, updated my bird sighting list and now posting the latest photos collected in the past month or so…I saw my first bald eagle in Florida about a week ago! I was driving, so no photo…the eagle was soaring over the coastline, hunting breakfast no doubt...

A recent round of beach therapy…in-between Arctic Vortex blasts…resulted in a first sighting of 3 black skimmers at Flagler Beach, since moving to the area. I'd seen a couple at Fort Lauderdale Beach a couple years ago, but didn't have my camera then (gasp!) 

The larger birds shared the shoreline with the usual sanderlings, ruddy turnstones, and this lone willet…

Meanwhile, back at the "ranch"...

The titmice are showing up a bit more, flitting in and out as rapidly as ever...

…And the pine warblers are back, equally good at flitting about…although, this fellow allowed me to get within 8 feet to take photos...

…Along with the pine warblers there is an occasional Carolina Chickadee, scarce really…

and still about impossible to photograph...

The fairly abundant pine warblers and No. cardinals chow down daily…

…The feeders can be so busy that there is literally a queue in nearby trees…the chipping sparrows are back in abundance this winter as well…

…The red-bellied woodpecker couple is back…they're suet lovers...

…And the squawky, pushy blue jays…have been seeing a pair together at the feeders more often than I did last year…but they still don't seem to like to share with one another...

…I know we're getting more than one type of mottled brown sparrow at the feeders but can never seem to get a clear shot…is this a song sparrow? Or…? Probably just a "vague" chipping sparrow…

…Hubby likes the olive-colored female cardinals...

…Like last year, a downy woodpecker has made a few scarce appearances, not 

at the feeders, but pecking at our small trees...

…Not to be left out, the brown-headed cowbirds are back, sporadically as usual...

…The Carolina wrens are also scarce and flitty, seen in the background mainly but also they take a peek at the feeders, not sure they actually eat anything (don't think so)...

…The yellow-rumped warblers arrive at dusk, mobbing the maple and small trees in our front yard...

The American robins are back too…these lovely red berries don't stand a chance…as soon as they were ripe, the robins came, conquered, and left…in 3 days the tree was BARE. Well they're still about town, just not at this property now that it's been wiped clean.

Flagler Finds

Summer is winding down...even in central Florida...but for now it's still plenty warm. Just not quite as warm as September. Our old homestead in S Dakota just got slammed with 3 feet of record-breaking snowfall a couple days ago, yikes! (The Rapid City area.) That "world" seems ages ago...it has been nearly two years now since we left the midwest...it'll officially be two years at the end of this month.

So, speaking of our new reality...Hubby and I really don't get to the beach nearly as often as we should, but we did recently get some beach therapy...

...It was lunchtime, and not just for us but for this ruddy turnstone as well....

...And this sanderling...

The sand ghost crabs are abundant on Flagler Beach, providing free entertainment as they go about the serious business of clearing sand from their tunnel homes. It was another relaxing, pleasant day at sea side.

*    *    *    *    *

.....Back at home, I've been keeping track of all the interesting things nature is coming up with in our own back yard......

This pretty bloom is actually hanging in the back neighbor's yard, just over our fence...but the scraggly little tree is actually in our yard. The squirrels use it as a ladder to get up onto the fence.

This tree has pretty, peeling bark...and white cluster blossoms up on top.

These clusters of tiny mushrooms kept appearing on and off this summer, under the magnolia "tree" (it's actually a branch sprouted from a magnolia tree stump, but it looks like a small tree and has had blossoms  :) )...

In the front yard, I recently captured a fritillary at a crown-of-thorns...

Lately, I've been sticking close to home due to a nasty head cold / bronchitis, which is finally getting better and I'm feeling more amongst the living again.

New Bellies to Feed

The only birding done lately has been watching the usual activity at home...well, except we did take a maiden voyage recently, with our new bike carrier and bicycles, on a park trail along the Intracoastal Waterway. I didn't take a camera (hubby would've been most unamused) as this was about exercise; a.k.a. no dwaddling. We saw an osprey on the opposite shore, surveying the expanse of water before it from the top of a bare tree. And we saw little blue herons and one great heron on the water's edge by the path, cruising for food. 

Yesterday we witnessed a female ruby-throated hummingbird hovering at one of the bell-shaped flowers in our front yard...then she perched on a thin tree branch above the flowers for a few moments. I knew I'd never get to the camera in time so didn't bother. Darn it....

However, I did get some shots "through the looking glass" of what I'm guessing are the new offspring pair of our resident male and female red-bellied woodpeckers!

First, this is Mama RB Woodpecker at the suet, which I can hardly keep in supply it's going so fast...and of course a blue jay at the nuts/seeds feeder...

...Ok, ok, without further ado...here they are! Our newbies! Will they stick around like their parents? I hope at least long enough to see what gender they are. Mom and Pop wasted no time showing them where the easy pickin's can be found.

A closer look at suet fledgling...

The tufted titmice are really scarce right now, but lately I've seen one here and there zing in to the feeder and zing out. This one looks like it could be a fledge, but I really have no clue.

Washington Oaks Gardens State Park

How's that for a mouthful of title?! Ru and I finally visited the WOGSP, off of A1A and touching on the shore of the Matanzas River, part of the Intracoastal Waterway. The park was originally part of a Spanish land grant in 1815 that was developed into a plantation, owned by a distant relative of George Washington. Purchased in 1936 by Owen and Louise Young, the couple built a winter home near the waterway under the live oak hammock, and developed the gardens. When Mr. Young died, Louise gave the land to the state. The park is part of the Great Florida Birding Trail....

This is the view of the Matanzas River / Intracoastal Waterway from the WA Oaks Gardens Park...

A great blue heron graciously allowed us to walk close-by due to the fact that a fisherman was nearby fishing off the sea wall.....the heron was all in shadow until the sun broke through the clouds suddenly, after I'd taken a zillion photos....

The gardens are graced by this huge live oak tree that is dripping with Spanish moss...

I'm surprised I didn't see more mushrooms besides this lone one....

A grey squirrel was keeping a very close eye on us as we strolled by "his" tree....

A pretty, curly frond....

Barely into the garden wandering, the tranquility was interrupted by sudden hammering...I followed the sound as far as I could w/o wading into a pond....a pileated woodpecker sending Morse code...

At the pond's edge is a charming gazebo...

And near the gazebo, this lovely statue....

I'm afraid I don't know the names of most of these flowers...

Bird of paradise, of course.....

I believe this is a double delight rose, a favorite of my mom's...there is a rose garden at WA Oaks...
And pink flowers of many kinds...

Hibiscus of course...

There were many other flowers, some not yet in bloom. We saw one other bird, unidentifiable, that may have been a Caroline wren...besides the usual No. cardinals.