Crested Caracaras
It’s always a thrill to see a Crested Caracara. They are a Federally designated threatened species so sightings are not real common. Caracaras are usually only found in parts of Florida, Texas and Arizona in the United States. Their range is mainly in Mexico, Cuba and Central America. They feed on dead animals like vultures […]
Shore Birds
During one of our recent visits to Fort DeSoto State Park in St. Petersburg, we saw several types of shore birds. Some live in this area all year while a few are just temporary residents until returning to distant nesting grounds. The whimbrel is one of the birds that migrates here from way up north […]
Zebra Longwing Butterfly
One of my favorite butterflies is a zebra longwing. It is the official state butterfly of Florida. Unlike other butterflies that dart around, the zebra longwing seems to fly slower and is more graceful which may be just an illusion because of their stripe pattern. Zebra longwings are fairly large butterflies which can grow to […]
More Buntings
We visited one of the local nature preserves a few days ago just to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather. To our surprise, we found a bunch of indigo buntings along with a single male painted bunting. We thought maybe they had started their journey north for the summer but to our delight, they’re […]
Ducks Unlimited Milestone
I apologize for getting a little “political” but one thing I learned years ago is that the vast, vast majority of sportsmen and sportswomen are more concerned with actually doing something about the environment than our government. Maybe the best example of this is the Ducks Unlimited organization. The attached article highlights the efforts that […]
Burrowing Owls on The Move
One of my favorite birds to photograph is the burrowing owl. They are absolutely adorable. The past few years we’ve had to travel 90 minutes to Cape Coral, FL to find them. The city of Cape Coral has become a sanctuary city for the owls. But this year, thanks to a tip from fellow photographers […]
Baby Birds Everywhere
The nesting season is in full force. It seems like there are babies everywhere. We picked one day recently to check on bald eagle nests and found a total of 6 new eaglets in 4 nesting sites! It appears that they are all well on their way to growing into young adults. There are also […]
Back From a Break
Wow! When I looked at the date on my last post, I couldn’t believe it’s been 6 weeks!! There has been plenty going on to keep us busy. But 6 weeks? Shame on me. During my hiatus from the website, I had the opportunity to get out a few times with the camera and capture […]
Our Favorite Bunting
Our favorite male painted bunting has been coming to our caged millet feeder since early November. Hardly a day goes by that we don’t see him several times. A couple of weeks ago he surprised us by bringing a buddy to the feeder. Two male painted buntings on the feeder at the same time is […]
Diving Ducks
Tis the season for our northern visitors. I’m not talking about the mass migration of “snowbirds”. I’m talking about waterfowl. We have huge numbers of ducks just about everywhere. One small lake behind Costco has become the winter home for ring-necked ducks and lesser scaup. They look very similar. The main differentiating feature is the […]
More Owls
The young great horned owls are growing quickly. Last week we checked in on our favorite family and they are still doing great. On Friday we visited an eagle nest for the first time in several months and to our surprise, the eagles had been displaced by great horned owls. In fact, their lone owlet […]
Port Manatee
Last week I had the pleasure of joining a group of some of the top birders in Manatee County, Florida for a field trip to Port Manatee. The trip was hosted by the Army Corps of Engineers due to a number of highly restricted areas. The fields and ponds consist of silt dredged from the […]
