Florida Gulf Coast Creations

Tag: Nanday Parakeet

  • A Couple of Recent Trips

    A Couple of Recent Trips

    Last week Pam and I took a quick trip over to Lakeland to meet up with an old friend from Canada who spends the winters with his wife and dogs in Florida. We met him at Lake Morton, which is one of our favorite bird spots in the region. It was a beautiful sunny day and there were a lot of ducks present. We only saw a couple of wood ducks, which was a little disappointing, but there were several ringed-neck ducks and a stunning male redhead duck that provided some great photo opportunities.

    Male Redhead Duck Slowly Swimming Past
    Male Redhead Duck Slowly Swimming Past

    Lake Morton is also known for its population of swans, and we saw several mute swans and black swans. There were even some new black swan cygnets in the breeding pens. It was a good day for pictures and to catch up with a friend. On the way home we got to eat lunch at Cheddar’s, which is one of favorite restaurants. After a delicious meal, we headed over to Plant City to pick up a flat of fresh strawberries. Yum! Just a fun day all around.

    Black Swan Cygnets Resting
    Black Swan Cygnets Resting

    A few days later we headed to another one of our favorite bird spots in Sarasota. The Celery Fields nature preserve is a designated Audubon sanctuary and is home to a large variety of birds. One of the highlights of the morning was photographing the nanday parakeets at the feeders.

    Nanday Parakeet Finishing Up Drink
    Nanday Parakeet Finishing Up a Drink

    We’ve added new photos to several galleries listed below:

  • 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.

  • Go Green

    Go Green

    One of the most striking birds that we see around here is the nanday parakeet. Their colors are absolutely amazing. On the neon green bodies is an entire palette of blue and purple accents. They also look like they’re wearing orange and yellow socks.

    Unfortunately, despite their beauty, nandays are annoying because of their constant squawking which can get extremely loud. They can also quickly wipe out feeders.

    Nanday Parakeet Perched On Cedar Tree
    Nanday Parakeet Perched on a Cedar Tree

    For a larger selection of photos, go to the galleries listed.

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