Author: Gary Walker

It’s been a while since the last post. And there has been a lot happening. I’ll break out the specifics in separate posts, but I wanted to report that the migration is in full force. We have been seeing numerous visitors for several weeks including many species of ducks. The robins have been everywhere. Some…

The landfill is always a good place to capture some good photos of bald eagles. The days after a holiday are even better as all the scraps from those big meals eventually find their way to the landfill and the birds have their feast. In addition to the eagles, there are vultures, crows, and countless…

Thanks to my good friend Art Nadelman, I was able to locate a recent migrant to the area. Scissor-tailed flycatchers are found mainly in Oklahoma, Texas, and Mexico. Occasionally their winter migration route to southern Central America takes them a little off course and they can end up here in Florida. They’re fun to watch…

The hooded mergansers have begun arriving for the winter. We often find them on small retention ponds around the area until February. They are typically wary but this flock of around 15 birds found a small little pond to their liking next to a very busy intersection. I seldom get an opportunity for a decent…

Bald eagles have gotten very active as the mating season has begun. This always offers some good photo opportunities. The birds are active hunting for food and nesting materials. We are fortunate to have a pair that built a nest a few years ago that is very easy to photograph. A few pictures from this…

Yesterday we endured a 2+ hour ride with hopes of finding some beautiful scissortail flycatchers. But the flycatchers apparently decided to move to a different undisclosed location. So instead of photographing flycatchers, we had the pleasure of watching and capturing some images of 3 snail kites. These are amazing birds that glide across shallow waters…

Last Friday we went to Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, FL to photograph a rufous hummingbird. They are most likely to be found in the western US. But they are appearing more frequently in other parts of the country. Their copper and green colors are striking. More photos have been uploaded to the following…

This past Friday we visited Lake Morton in Lakeland, FL. It was a great day for photos. We saw several beautiful wood ducks and mallards. There were a few ring-necked ducks that have arrived from their northern summer homes. The lake is famous for its flock of mute swans and black swans. For anyone visiting…

On Wednesday I had the opportunity to catch a glimpse of another endangered species. The whooping crane was near extinction in the 1940s with fewer than 30 birds alive. Today there are still only about 800 of these beautiful birds remaining in North America. There have been substantial efforts to increase their population over the…

Last week, thanks to some help from good friend Art Nadelman, I finally got the opportunity to photograph a family of Florida Scrub Jays. The jays are only seen in specific areas of central Florida and are on the endangered species list. They are curious and friendly which makes for some fun action. Several companies…