Florida Gulf Coast Creations

Tag: Canon

  • Central Florida Kites

    Central Florida Kites

    Summertime in Florida is generally a quiet time for bird photos. Many of our winter visitors have gone north and won’t return until fall. But there are some species that migrate here for the summer to nest and raise their young. One of those is the beautiful swallow-tailed kite. They travel all the way from South America and stay here from March to August.

    Swallow Tailed Kite Banking To Right
    Swallow-tailed Kite Soaring to the Right

    My good friend and fellow photographer, Art Nadelman, and I, talked about our aspirations for this year and at the top of our list was to capture some good shots of kites. Since swallow-tailed kites spend most of their days in the air, our goal was to get them before they left their morning roosts. The challenge is finding those locations. Kites typically nest and roost in very remote areas near water which makes them inaccessible.

    As the breeding season winds down and the return flight back to South America approaches, the kites begin to congregate in large groups in just a few spots around the state. The numbers can reach as many as 1500 birds. The peak time for gathering is usually mid to late July. I’ve included a couple of links to read more about these amazing birds.

    This week we had the opportunity to achieve another goal. We went out with a guide that we learned about from a friend. The experience was incredible. We loaded up our gear on his boat before sunrise and headed out on a 4-mile journey through channels and floating water hyacinths to get back to the birds. When we rounded the last of what seemed like endless turns, there at the tops of the giant cypress trees were hundreds of the bright white kites. It was a “WOW” moment!

    Our guide worked with us to quietly maneuver the boat into great spots for us to get the best shots. We finally got our photos of swallow-tailed kites on perches. As the sun rose higher, the birds began to awaken and start preening for their day long flights. Eventually a few would test the breezes and search for the thermals that they would ride the rest of the day as they headed out to feed. Then more would take off and begin circling and rising – a process called “kettling” because it resembles stirring a kettle. Occasionally one or more birds would drop down and swoop across the water to get a drink or sometimes just to splash their feathers. This makes for a favorite shot for photographers. Unfortunately, we only had 2 “swoopers” that morning and my only shot was of a bird flying away.

    Swallow Tailed Kite Swooping For Drink
    Swallow-tailed Kite Swooping for a Drink

    By around 10-o-clock, the trees and skies were empty, and the birds had gone off to feed for the day. According to our guide, they usually start returning a couple of hours before sunset to settle in for the night. In between, they soar all day looking for bugs, lizards, frogs, or small snakes. In a few weeks, they’ll be on their way south again.

    I’ve attached some links for more information about these magnificent birds.

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

  • Cape Coral

    Cape Coral

    Springtime in Cape Coral, FL means one thing …. burrowing owls. Nesting season is almost finished and most of the new owls have grown as large as their parents. They can fly and are learning to hunt. The family units are still intact so it’s fun to see several together outside their burrows.

    Burrowing Owl Quartet Outside Den
    Four Burrowing Owls Outside Their Nest

    The city of Cape Coral does a great job protecting the owls. They even have a Burrowing Owl Festival. Cape Coral has the largest population of burrowing owls in Florida and many people visit just to see the owls. It’s easy to get within 30 or 40 feet of them for some great photo opportunities. The owls are used to people, so they are tolerant. And photographers are very respectful of these little treasures.

    On this day, we saw almost 40 owls, which is a very big number. It was a positive sign that, despite a lot of new construction, the owls seem to still be thriving. The mannerisms of burrowing owls are so different from other owls. Typically, great horned owls, barred owls, and screech owls will sit very still in trees. Their movements are usually slow and smooth. Burrowing owls are like bobbleheads. Their heads are constantly moving as they stay on alert. The most feared predator of burrowing owls is a hawk so you will see them often looking up. It also makes catching a photo of them staring directly at the camera a challenge. Burrowing owls are beautiful little birds that are smaller than a crow. They are only found in Florida east of the Great Plains.

    The link below provides more information specific to the Cape Coral owls.

    home page – Cape Coral Burrowing Owls

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

  • Highlands Hammock State Park

    Highlands Hammock State Park

    Now that the summer is upon us and the weather is getting hot, a favorite location for us to visit is Highlands Hammock State Park just outside Sebring. Like many other parks in Florida, it has a diversified habitat. The park transitions from a dry, primitive area with scrub oaks and pine trees to a deep woodland swamp with huge cypress trees. In between is an area called the hammock which is covered with large hardwood trees.

    Our favorites are the primitive and swamp areas. On this occasion, we didn’t make it to the swamp because there was so much activity in the primitive area. Highlands Hammock is known for having a population of Florida scrub jays, which are endangered. We were fortunate to find the jays. This time of year, the red-headed woodpeckers, northern flickers, and eastern towhees return to nest. We often see great horned owls, bobwhite quail, eastern bluebirds, American kestrels, and other woodpeckers.

    You can learn more about Highlands Hammock at the link below.

  • Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park

    Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park

    Just outside of Gainesville in the town of Micanopy, FL lies Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park. It is one of the largest parks in the state with almost 23,000 acres. It is designated as a National Natural Landmark. The preserve is known for snail kites, which is why we traveled there. There are also herds of bison and wild horses in the park, but we didn’t see them because high waters prevented us from reaching certain areas.

    We did, however, see several very large alligators. Since it was mating season, the males were bellowing all over the marsh. It’s an intimidating noise that sounds a lot like a lion roaring. At one point we thought we would witness a showdown between two very large gators but when they finally faced off, the smaller of the two hustled away into the grass.

    Alligator Male Bellowing In Marsh
    Large Male Alligator Bellowing in a Marsh

    But our trip was to see the snail kites and they did not disappoint. We counted a total of nine. It’s uncommon to see more than two or three so it was a great day. The only place in the US where Snail kites are found is Florida. They are considered endangered because of habitat loss. The main staple of their diet is the apple snail which are the size of a medium apple. They have a hooked bill which helps them dig the meat out of the large shells. Years ago, their main habitat was in the Everglades. But steady loss of the wetlands has forced them further north in search of more shallow lakes and marshes with apple snails.

    Snail Kite Perched On Dead Branch
    Female Snail Kite Perched on a Dead Limb

    The links below contain more information about Paynes Prairie State Park.

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

  • Fort De Soto Park

    Fort De Soto Park

    A great location that is often featured on many photography websites and in magazines is Fort De Soto Park in Tierra Verde. The park has a very diversified environment which includes several miles of beaches. Fort De Soto Park sits at the end of Tampa Bay where it flows into the Gulf of America. In addition to the wide range of shore birds by the water, there are also hardwood areas where we often find warblers and songbirds.

    Hooded Warbler Resting On Branch Among Green Leaves
    Hooded Warbler Resting on a Branch with Green Leaves

    During the spring migration, the variety of birds increases significantly. The park is known for the migratory stopovers, which sometimes last for only a day or two. Every day in late spring brings different birds on their way back north. There are abundant ospreys and pelicans. It’s also common to see bald eagles.

    The link below provides more information on Fort De Soto Park.

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

  • Sarasota Celery Fields

    Sarasota Celery Fields

    The Celery Fields nature preserve in Sarasota is another top destination for birders and photographers on the gulf coast of Florida. It’s also a popular place for runners and walkers with a series of trails.

    From the 1920s to around 1995, the fields were used for growing celery crops which is how the area got its name. The Celery Fields is also on the Great Florida Birding Trail.

    What makes the Celery Fields so popular is the wide range of bird species. We generally see several birds of prey, wading birds, songbirds and during the winter months, many ducks. The preserve is managed by the Audubon society, and they maintain feeders which are frequently visited by nanday parakeets, red-winged blackbirds, and other songbirds.

    Bluebird Male Sitting In Small Pine Tree
    Bluebird Male Sitting in a Small Pine Tree

    The past two years, a yellow-headed blackbird has appeared at the feeders, and he stayed there for the entire winter.

    The link below provides more information about the Celery Fields.

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

  • University of Florida

    University of Florida

    The University of Florida is recognized as one of the top public universities in the country. It’s also known for its highly successful athletic programs. But this year, UF also had the distinction of being home to a rare yellow cardinal.

    Yellow Cardinal Resting In Willow Tree
    Yellow Cardinal Resting in a Willow Tree

    According to most data, there are an estimated 15 million cardinals in the eastern US. But there are only a reported 10-15 yellow cardinals in that group. So, finding a yellow cardinal is literally a one-in-a-million opportunity. This year one has been living in the natural area teaching lab off Natural Area Drive. People have been traveling from all parts of Florida to find this rare bird. Thanks to some help from others, we were fortunate to find him, but he was difficult to catch out in the open. He liked the willow shrubs and often stayed in the interior areas of the shrubs making photography very challenging.

    We were also lucky enough to find a ruby-throated hummingbird nest with eggs. The female would fly off and return frequently.

    Ruby Throated Humminbird Female Resting On Nest
    Ruby-throated Hummingbird Female Resting on Her Nest

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

  • Circle B Bar Reserve

    Circle B Bar Reserve

    One of the most popular destinations in Florida for photographers, birders, hikers, and families is Circle B Bar Reserve just outside of Lakeland. It’s a fantastic place to see amazing wildlife while walking some lengthy trails. The park is located along the western side of Lake Hancock. The terrain varies widely from swampy water areas with small lakes to hardwood hammocks with huge oaks.

    Great Blue Heron Standing Sunlight
    Great Blue Heron Standing in the Sunlight

    The park is a relatively short drive from the Orlando area, so it gets many tourists in the winter, especially during spring breaks. They realize there is no reason to pay a lot of money to go to an alligator farm because when the weather is warm you can count on seeing plenty of gigantic gators at Circle B for free.

    For more information about the park, check out the link below.

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

  • Lakeland Area

    Lakeland Area

    As the “snowbird” season comes to an end in Florida, we wanted to try and photograph a few waterfowl species before they begin or continue their journeys north. One of the species that spends time here is the ruddy duck. We’ve photographed the attractive little ducks in the past, but we’re always on a mission to find that perfect shot. So, we headed to Lakeland where we have always found ruddy ducks in the past. We follow the recent sightings from birders on Cornell University’s website so we knew the ducks were still in the area from several reports. As luck would have it, they chose a different lake that day!

    But all was not lost. This day turned out to be one of the best days we’ve ever had for wood ducks. We saw almost 30, and many were just perched and preening in the morning sun. Their colors are simply amazing. Other birds that settled on or around the lake that day included mallards, ring-necked ducks, mute swans, black swans, lesser scaup, and a large flock of white pelicans.

    Wood Duck Male Resting On Wall
    Wood Duck Male Resting on a Wall

    The male pelicans were hilariously courting the females by cruising around the lake with their wings lifted over their backs.

    White Pelican Male With Wings Up Pose
    White Pelican Male with a Wings Up Pose

    Here is a link to Cornell’s website which is a wonderful resource for anyone interested in birds.

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

  • Sebring Area

    Sebring Area

    Sebring, Florida is known for its famous Sebring Raceway and the 12 Hours of Sebring. Racers from all around the world just descended on the small city of 10,000 people to drive in the annual event. The race is part of the prestigious IMSA sports car series.

    Sebring is surrounded by thousands of acres of agricultural land including citrus groves, blueberry farms and cattle pastures. It’s a great area to see many different species of wildlife, especially crested caracaras.

    Orange Tree With Blossoms And Fruit
    Orange Tree With New Blossoms and Fruit From the Last Crop

    On a recent visit we enjoyed the fragrant blossoms of citrus trees that were flowering with oranges still on the stems. And we were also successful in finding caracaras. One juvenile bird stayed within 30 feet of us as he tried to figure out how to carry away an armadillo carcass. He finally gave up and flew off but not before giving some nice photo opportunities.

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

  • River Ranch

    River Ranch

    From March to September, Florida is the summer home to swallow-tailed kites. Hopefully, I’ll be writing about some great photo opportunities over the coming months. We began seeing these incredible birds around the end of February, so we decided to take a drive to an area that is known to have a decent population.

    KICCO Wildlife Management Area is located about 30 miles east of Lake Wales. The Florida National Scenic Trail cuts through the WMA. The Florida Trail is 1 of only 11 Congressionally designated National Scenic Trails in the country, and 1 of 3 contained entirely within a single state. The trail is currently about 1,500 miles long and winds its way across Florida from Big Cypress National Preserve in the south to Gulf Islands National Seashore in the western end of Florida’s panhandle. We did see 4 of the prized kites but they were sailing around above us while we were under the tree canopy, so we didn’t get any good photos.

    Eastern Phoebe Perched On Branch
    Eastern Phoebe Perched on a Branch

    Follow the link to learn more about KICCO WMA.

  • Baby Sandhill Cranes

    Baby Sandhill Cranes

    Again, this year, we had a pair of sandhill cranes nest right around the corner from our house. The eggs finally hatched and there are now 2 new crane “colts” enjoying the neighborhood. The cranes chose to build their nest by a pond that they used 2 years ago. Luckily it was in a spot that was easy to see and photograph. The images I shot were right after the first egg hatched. The colt was less than a day old. The second egg hatched the next day and within another couple of days the family had moved on.

    Sandhill Crane Female Nudging New Chick
    Female Sandhill Crane Nudges Her New Chick

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

Don`t copy text!