Florida Gulf Coast Creations

Category: Wildlife

  • Hurricane Idalia Flamingos

    Hurricane Idalia Flamingos

    Every now and then there is a silver lining to a major hurricane. Despite all the damage that occurred with hurricane Idalia last week, there were some positive things that happened that astonished communities all along the Gulf Coast. For the first time in decades, American flamingos were spotted in several places after the storm. Even though flamingos are often associated with Florida, the reality is that, outside of places of captivity, there are only a few wild flamingos in the Everglades near Miami.

    Idalia made landfall in the Big Bend area of Florida on Wednesday, August 30. The following day, a group of 17 flamingos was spotted between Clearwater and St. Petersburg. As word got out about the initial sighting, more reports started to come in from other areas along the coast down to Fort Myers. Speculation was that the birds were carried from their native areas of Cuba and the Yucatan Peninsula when the storm intensified in the region and quickly headed north. There were even reports of flamingos being rescued due to exhaustion.

    On Friday, we journeyed out to Fort De Soto Park in St. Petersburg in search of these rare birds. Being connected to the birding community helped tremendously. My friend Art Nadelman was receiving emails and text messages with updates. We checked out several areas in the park and talked with other photographers, but it seemed like everyone was striking out. As we started to head back home, a text came in about a sighting nearby. Apparently, a pair had flown into an area we just left. We found one of the two birds a long way from where we were standing and were able to get some photos.

    After hearing that the birds were still being seen in the evening on Friday, we decided to go back to the park the next morning hoping they hadn’t left overnight. It turned out to be a great decision. When we arrived at the park, there was a group feeding in the tidal pools along the beach. But, by Friday night, the flamingos had become one of the top news stories and the park was quickly flooded by photographers and people wanting to see them. It didn’t take long for the masses to get too close to the birds and they flew off. But we got word that they didn’t go too far and were even more accessible. Fortunately, we were able to get great shots.

    Group Of American Flamingos Preening At Edge Of Lagoon
    Group of American Flamingos Preening at the Edge of a Lagoon

    Fort De Soto is a wonderful park. It has miles of beautiful beaches and since its located right at the point where Tampa Bay flows into the Gulf of America, it’s known to birders and photographers alike for its amazing access to so many species of shore birds. One of the most sought after is the reddish egret. I’ve posted stories about these beautiful birds in the past. While my wife Pam was busy shell hunting, I photographed one of the reddish egrets along with a few other birds. And you never know what other critters you may find in the sand and receding tidal pools.

    Reddish Egret Walking Through Tidal Pool
    Reddish Egret Walking through a Small Tidal Pool
    Fiddler Crab Crouched Next To Sea Grass
    Fiddler Crab Crouched Next to a Piece of Sea Grass

    For now, our hope is that some of the displaced flamingos will find our area to their liking and make this their new home. Only time will tell. But as of Monday evening, several were still here. We’re keeping our fingers crossed. I’ve attached a couple of links to recent articles.

    A few more pictures from this journey are featured below. For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

  • Highlands County

    Highlands County

    There is a great park located near Sebring, FL called Highlands Hammock State Park. The topography of the park is like a lot of areas across Florida with a very diversified landscape. At the far back of the park is a flooded swamp with a large tree canopy. It has a jungle feel. In the middle area of the park, the terrain transitions to an upland forest with huge live oak trees. There is a very nice campground and recreation area here along with several walking trails.

    Our favorite place in the park is called the primitive area. It is a large open area dotted with tall pines and scrub oak brush. There is a dirt road that winds through so we can drive and watch and listen. That’s a nice feature in the summer with temperatures in the mid-90s.

    Although summer isn’t the best time to visit the park, there are certain bird species that are present in larger numbers. Those would include red-headed woodpeckers, Northern flickers, Florida scrub jays, Eastern towhees, bobwhite quail, and great-horned owls. On this day, we saw or heard 37 different species along with several whitetail deer. Our best photo opportunity was with a male great-horned owl who posed for us for several minutes.

    Great Horned Owl Watching From Pine Branch
    Great Horned Owl Watching from a Pine Branch

    The drive over to Highlands Hammock takes us through mostly agricultural and pastureland. There are many fields of crops like citrus, tomatoes, and blueberries along with plenty of cattle. These areas also offer chances to see crested caracaras, bald eagles, wild turkeys, and lots of egrets, herons, and sandhill cranes. There is a citrus grove just a few miles from the park that is home to a family of crested caracaras. We usually see one of the family members every time we go to the park. This day was no different as one of the adults stood watch on top of an orange tree for a few minutes.

    Crested Caracara Sitting Atop Orange Tree
    Crested Caracara Sitting on Top of an Orange Tree

    For more information about Highlands Hammock State Park, check out the link below.

  • Bahia Beach Preserve

    Bahia Beach Preserve

    One of our favorite spots for bird photography is a little place in Hillsborough County, FL called Bahia Beach Preserve. It sits on the east side of Tampa Bay only ¾ of a mile from the bay and just ¼ of a mile from the Little Manatee River. Because of its proximity to the bay, it can be a magnet for water birds.

    Bahia Beach Preserve has provided some amazing photo opportunities for waterfowl in the past. We’ve usually visited the preserve during the winter months after the migratory birds have arrived. But we decided to give it a try after reading some promising reports from local birders. It did not disappoint. We made two trips over the past 10 days.

    One of the birds we were hoping to see was an American Avocet. Their general range is across the western US, but some do travel closely along the far southern coasts of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico during the winter.

    American Avocet Resting In Shallow Calm Water
    American Avocet Resting ion Shallow Calm Water

    Avocets have long necks and legs. Their black and white markings are striking when they fly. Avocets are mostly white, but their head, neck, and upper chest turn a brownish-peach color during breeding season. Their long, thin, black bills turn up at its tip. The bill is really the only way to distinguish the males from the females. The bill of the female is more upturned at the tip while the bill of the male is slightly longer. They like to feed in shallow waters like small ponds or pools along tidal mud flats. Avocets swing their bills from side to side through the water to stir up prey. They eat mostly aquatic insects and small shrimp.

    American Avocet Taking Flight
    American Avocet Taking Flight

    In addition to the Avocets, we also found many other water birds such as egrets and herons. As a bonus, we also came across several colorful roseate spoonbills.

    Roseate Spoonbill Trio Feeding In Quiet Water
    Roseate Spoonbill Trio Feeding in Quiet Water

    Follow the link below for more information on Bahia Beach Preserve.

    A few more pictures from this journey are featured below. For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

  • North Port

    North Port

    While we get ready for the start of the fall migration, we like to find some new spots to check out. Recently, at the suggestion of one of our birding friends, we took a trip to Deer Prairie Creek Preserve South in North Port, FL. The park sits along the shores of the Myakka River at a point before the river widens and joins the Peace River and flows into Charlotte Harbor by the Gulf of America.

    We arrived at the park that morning right before a thunderstorm moved by. It was a typical summer day in Florida with the storms forming over the Gulf of America and coming onshore. The storms can often create some great photo opportunities like interesting cloud formations, lightning shots, and rainbows. This day we had some good cloud and rainbow shots.

    Thunderstorm Clouds Billowing Up
    Thunderstorm Clouds Billowing Up into the Sky
    Broken Rainbow Over Myakka River
    Broken Rainbow Over the Myakka River

    While little tributaries of the river flow through the park, most of it is flat prairie and scrub land along with pine forests. There are lots of trails that are easy to hike. It seemed like a great spot to find the elusive Florida Scrub Jay. But we were on a mission to find a Brown-headed Nuthatch. We had gotten reports of sightings of these little birds at the park and decided to try and find them. While eventually identifying one by its call, we only got a brief flash of the bird as it flew off. Unfortunately … no photos.

    While going on a nice long hike, there were a few occasions to capture some images of herons and egrets fishing.

    Young Little Blue Heron Grabbing Tadpole
    Immature Little Blue Heron Grabbing a Tadpole

    See the link below for more information on Deer Prairie Creek Preserve and the Brown-headed Nuthatch.

  • Cortez

    Cortez

    This week we took a little trip out to the village of Cortez, which is located on the shores of Sarasota Bay where it empties into the Gulf of America. Cortez is known for its commercial fishing fleets. There are still places to go to get fresh shrimp and several kinds of fish caught daily.

    But our visit wasn’t for seafood, it was to try and find a group of nesting Magnificent Frigatebirds. We got a tip that there were large numbers of them seen in Cortez. They are found along the coast in the southern United States, most commonly in Florida, and Mexico, and the Caribbean.

    Magnificent Frigatebirds are unique and peculiar. They are large seabirds that appear to be a mix of a few other species. They have the head and bill of a cormorant, the wings of a nighthawk and the split tail of a swallow-tailed kite. They are the only seabirds where the male and female look different. The males are all black and have a bright red pouch on the throat, which they can inflate like a balloon to attract females. The females are bigger than males and have a white chest. Juveniles have varying amounts of white on the head, chest, and belly. They start with a white head and belly and have a pale tan streak on their upper wings. They have the largest wing to body difference of any bird species. They tend to take flight later in the day when winds and thermals are greatest. As a result of their massive wingspan, they can drift on thermal winds for days while barely flapping their wings. Even though they have webbed feet, they rarely land on water because their feathers are not waterproof.

    Frigatebird Male Flies By Right With Red Neck Pouch Inflated
    Magnificent Frigatebird Male Flies by to the Right with his Red Neck Pouch Inflated

    The Magnificent Frigatebird feeding and nesting habits are also unusual. They primarily eat small fish and squid, which they grab from the surface of the water without getting wet. They also eat plankton, crabs, jellyfish, and other items on the surface of the water. They can be a common sight around fishing boats, where they wait for scraps to skim off the surface of the water. Sometimes they will even eat hatchling turtles, young terns and other birds, and eggs. What makes their feeding habits unusual is the way they steal food from other birds. Sometimes Frigatebirds will harass other birds until they regurgitate recently captured food, and then swoop down to steal the meal before it hits the water. Like swallow-tailed kites, they will swoop down and drink from small freshwater ponds and lakes. We were hoping to capture some shots of them swooping to drink but they didn’t cooperate that morning.

    Large Flock Magnificent Frigatebirds Leaving Island
    Large Flock of Magnificent Frigatebirds Leave their Island to Soar

    However, we were successful in finding a nesting colony. Frigatebirds breed and roost in colonies, with nests often very close together. The female usually builds the nest with materials brought by the male. It’s typically just a simple flimsy platform of sticks. They typically build their nests in mangroves and in low trees and shrubs on islands. In our case, we found their colony on a small island covered with mangroves. What’s unusual about the breeding habits of Frigatebirds is the relationship between parents and their young. They care for their young for up to a year after hatching. This is the most extended parental care cycle in the avian world. Juveniles often don’t leave the nest for 6 months and females will continue to feed them until they are one year old. The parents never leave the nest unguarded until young are half-grown, as other members of colony will eat their eggs or young at an unattended nest. Because of the long breeding cycle, most females likely don’t breed every year.

    Frigatebird Male With Red Neck Pouch Flies With Juvenile
    Magnificent Frigatebird Male with Red Neck Pouch Flies with a Juvenile

    When the juveniles finally leave the nest, they practice stealing “food” from one another by playing games with sticks. They hold sticks in their mouths and chase each other. When one of them drops the stick, the other dives below to retrieve it. I’ve included some links to articles with more information about these interesting and strange birds.

    A few more pictures from this journey are featured below. For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

  • Fort Myers

    Fort Myers

    One of our best destinations to look for the uncommon snail kite is a large marsh just outside of Fort Myers. The kites nest in the area and the waters around the marsh are full of enormous apple snails, which is the main diet of snail kites.

    This day was not the best for snail kites. But their relatives, the swallow-tailed kites, put on quite a show for us. We know that there is a significant roosting area for the swallow-tailed kites not far to the east of this marsh. We were fortunate that a large group of them chose to feed above us. They are amazing to watch as they circle and glide chasing bugs and frogs and lizards.

    Swallow Tailed Kite Glides By To The Right
    Swallow-tailed Kite Glides by to the Right

    We’ll head back later in the summer after the young kites have grown and their parents are actively hunting for food. There will also be more apple snails that have hatched providing a better food supply. Stay tuned.

    For more information about this endangered species, go to the link below.

    A few more pictures from this journey are featured below. For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

  • Bobolinks

    Bobolinks

    Each spring and fall the migration brings an amazing variety of birds through the area. Like their human counterparts, several choose to make Florida their winter home. But many are only passing through on their way to more southern destinations.

    One species that spends a brief period here is the bobolink. They are related to blackbirds and travel in large flocks. It’s not unusual to see 100-200 birds in a group. They are seed and insect eaters and most often can be found in open grassy areas where there are plenty of insects and seed pods present. The males are easily identified by their black and white bodies with a large buff colored patch on the back of their heads. We were fortunate to come upon a large group that made a brief stop at the Celery Fields in Sarasota last month.

    Juvenile Male Bobolink Eating Ragweed Seeds
    Juvenile Male Bobolink Eating Ragweed Seeds

    The links below provide more information about bobolinks.

    A few more pictures from this journey are featured below. For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

  • The Celery Fields

    The Celery Fields

    An area in eastern Sarasota County that was once farmland, was purchased by Sarasota County in 1995 and eventually transformed into a park. The area was known for growing celery and is comprised of ditches and wetlands. Today it is a popular destination for birders, walkers, and runners. There is a manmade hill in the center of the park that provides a nice challenge for fitness enthusiasts. The Sarasota Audubon Society has a small nature center on site, and they offer tours and educational services through a network of volunteers.

    Black Necked Stilt Chick Walking Through Water
    Black-necked Stilt Chick Walking through the Water

    But for us, the main attraction is the habitat. The park has a series of flooded marshes, lakes, creeks, and grasslands. The great habitat means a lot of birds. It’s also a hotspot during the spring and fall migrations and attracts not only the birds, but bird enthusiast from all around the world. There have been almost 250 bird species reported at the Celery Fields.

    Great Egret Flies By To Left In Morning Sun
    Great Egret Flies by to the Left in the Morning Sun

    For more information about the Celery Fields, please visit the links below.

    A few more pictures from this journey are featured below. For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

  • Spring Migration at Fort De Soto

    Spring Migration at Fort De Soto

    The spring migration was amazing this year. Each year is different depending on the weather patterns. One of the absolute best places to be when the birds come through is Fort De Soto Park in St. Petersburg. The park is located where Tampa Bay empties into the Gulf of America and is a destination for bird photographers from around the world.

    The park has several types of habitats which means a lot of different bird species. There have been well over 300 species reported. The beaches are host to many types of shore birds. Other areas of the park feature hardwood hammocks that attract warblers, songbirds, and birds of prey. In the spring, the park explodes with migrating visitors. It seems like every trail and beach offers different opportunities. There are ample food options for the travelers like mulberry and fig trees. The new buds on sea grapes are a favorite of several birds. And there are the shore birds that prefer the foods the waters provide. Since most of the birds are approaching breeding season, many of the males are in their full colors.

    White Ibis In Breeding Plumage Stands By Fountain
    White Ibis in Breeding Plumage Stands by a Fountain

    This spring the weather played a big role in some great photography successes. We had several strong cold fronts move through the area at well-timed intervals to create what birders refer to as fallouts. This occurs when the birds are pressing against the very strong frontal headwinds and eventually must find a place to rest. Fortunately, there were plenty of trees that were full of fruit, so the birds were able to eat and rebuild their energy levels.

    Summer Tanager Male Eating Fig In Tree
    Summer Tanager Male Eating a Fig in the Tree

    We visited the park four times over a week and each day provided different opportunities. I hadn’t seen a blue grosbeak in over 20 years. This year there was a group of 10 to 15 that stayed for several days feeding on grass seeds.

    Blue Grosbeak Male Hopping Through Grasses In Sand
    Blue Grosbeak Male Hopping through Grasses in the Sand

    The most amazing incident occurred on a morning right after one of the strong fronts passed through. I noticed a group of photographers gathered in a small area snapping shots. When I walked over to investigate, there was a male scarlet tanager hopping around in the grass chasing bugs. He had no fear of us. He was exhausted from his travels and his only focus was refueling. I sat on the grass and at one point he hopped within 10 feet of me. It was incredible. While he was looking for bugs, a male indigo bunting joined him and began eating seeds from the ground cover. Such beautiful colors!

    Scarlet Tanager On Ground Eating Large Bug
    Scarlet Tanager Male on the Ground Eating a Large Bug

    Hopefully next year will line up the same as this year and we’ll get another chance to experience an amazing migration.

    The link below takes you to a nice piece about the park.

    A few more pictures from this journey are featured below. For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

  • Coastal Sarasota

    Coastal Sarasota

    Along the coastal areas of Sarasota are several small nature preserves and parks that provide shelter for some different birds. This past spring brought a couple of new birds for me and my good friend Art Nadelman. One of the birds was a tropical kingbird. It is a member of the flycatcher family. It’s rare to find a tropical kingbird east of Texas. Their normal range is South and Central America. During their migration, they are usually found only in the far southern parts of Texas, Arizona and sometimes California. There has been a tropical kingbird coming to this area for the past few years and some speculate that it may be the same bird.

    Tropical Kingbird Perched On Wire
    Tropical Kingbird Perched on a Wire

    Another bird that was new to us this year was a Philadelphia vireo. Again, these birds typically don’t come to Florida. Instead, their migration routes normally take them from the lower Canadian provinces through the middle of the US along the Mississippi river region to Central America.

    Philadelphia Vireo In Tree Top Looking For Meal
    Philadelphia Vireo in the Tree Top Looking for a Meal

    I’ve included a couple of links below to learn more about the vireo and the tropical kingbird.

    A few more pictures from this journey are featured below. For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

  • Sarasota County Eagles

    Sarasota County Eagles

    For the past several years, we’ve had the opportunity to photograph a family of bald eagles in Lakewood Ranch. Their nest was incredibly accessible and gave us countless great shots. Unfortunately, hurricane Ian took out the nest and several surrounding trees last fall and the eagles moved on to another location.

    But we have a lot of eagles in the area and one of our friends told us about another nest with even better accessibility! The nest happened to be hidden well off the main highway but was exposed after the area was cleared for a huge residential development. The nesting area was fenced off to protect the birds but allowed us the ability to photograph them from almost any angle.

    The day we arrived, there were two healthy eaglets in the nest. One of them was beginning to stretch its’ wings in preparation to fledge the nest. The parents would leave and return with food throughout the morning. A few days later we learned that the restless bird had fallen out of the nest. A specialist was called in to return the eaglet back to his family so he wouldn’t starve. Fortunately, since the area was fenced, it was somewhat protected from predators. However, the efforts didn’t last long as the eaglet fell out of the nest again shortly after it was put back. Thankfully, both eaglets ultimately flew off with their parents.

    Juvenile Bald Eagle Sits On Fallen Branch Beneath Nest
    Juvenile Bald Eagle Sits on a Fallen Branch Beneath the Nest

    During one of the trips to see the eagles, we spotted a family of killdeers on an adjacent lot. It was fun to watch the interaction between the little chicks and their parents. The chicks were scattered around, and the parents followed closely keeping watch. If we got too close, the parents would go into their wounded bird routine to draw us away from their babies. Eventually, after following them for several minutes, all four of the chicks obeyed the calls from the female and crawled beneath her for protection.

    Female Killdeer Covers Up Her Chicks
    Killdeer Chicks Come to Their Mom for Cover

    A few more pictures from this journey are featured below. For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

  • Mergansers

    Mergansers

    The past few years we have been fortunate to find several groups of hooded mergansers that picked this area as their winter home. They are small diving ducks that like to feed on little fish, snails, and water insects. When they find a good food source and get into a feeding frenzy, they will dive repeatedly until they are satisfied, or the food source disappears. They will surface only for a moment before diving again. During these periods, they can be a challenge to photograph.

    Male Hooded Merganser Surfaces After Dive
    Male Hooded Merganser Surfaces After Diving for Food

    Male mergansers like to show off. Their bright white crown feathers are striking when fanned. They will often do water dances for the females and chase other males to show dominance. Unfortunately, they don’t stay here for long. They’re among the first group of ducks to leave in the spring, often by the first of March. But while they’re here, they are enjoyable to watch.

    Hooded Merganser Male Rests On Pond In Sunlight
    Hooded Merganser Male Rests on a Pond in the Sun

    A few more pictures from this journey are featured below. For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

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