Sylvanite
Member
Now you might disbelieve me, but I am not a birding enthusiast. Bird photography is my Father's hobby, however, so when I visited my parents in Florida over the holidays, we spent a few mornings at the local wetlands. Here are some of the pics I snapped of the local wildlife.
The Great Blue Herons were nesting, which means that the males were flying back and forth bringing building material to their mates. I liked the heart-shape that formed when this guy presented a stick to his lady-friend, so I call this picture "love birds".
There were a lot of Little Blue Herons in the area too - many more than I have seen in previous years. Here's a shot of one in flight.
I'm told that the Black-Crowned Night Heron is the most widespread heron in the country, but you don't see them as much because they forage at night. They typically sleep (tucked away in trees) during the day. I was lucky to catch this juvenile Night Heron flying in the daylight.
There seemed to be more Great Egrets present than any other bird, and I took quite a few photos of them. Here is one in flight.
And here is another having breakfast.
The Double-Crested Cormorant is a gangly, awkward looking, noisy bird that some of the locals refer to as "rats with wings". They're not particularly photogenic, but I like the reflection this one made as it flew low over the water.
The Boat-Tailed Grackle is also very common, and generally unremarkable, but I think the photo of one taking a bath is interesting.
A dozen or more White Ibises all flew into the same area (along with the Great Egrets) at the same time. I got better flight shots of individual birds, but I like how these two are flying in sync.
I missed a flock of Roseate Spoonbills (they took off just as I was walking up), but did manage to get a few pictures of one that flew by later. Here's one.
My favorite picture of the trip, however, is this one of a Sandhill Crane. The colors came out a little unusual because of the ambient light (normally they look more brown than blue), but I think it's the most dramatic photo of the bunch.
I did photograph some things besides just birds. This is a Common Water Hyacinth covered in dewdrops.
Milkweed plants seem to be in vogue this year. People are growing them in hopes of attracting butterflies. Caterpillars had eaten the plants nearly bare and Monarch butterflies were emerging from crysalises. They have to wait for their wings to unfurl and dry before they can fly and I came across this one in the middle of that process.
I hope you enjoy the pics and that they help take your mind off the winter weather.
Regards,
Eric
The Great Blue Herons were nesting, which means that the males were flying back and forth bringing building material to their mates. I liked the heart-shape that formed when this guy presented a stick to his lady-friend, so I call this picture "love birds".
There were a lot of Little Blue Herons in the area too - many more than I have seen in previous years. Here's a shot of one in flight.
I'm told that the Black-Crowned Night Heron is the most widespread heron in the country, but you don't see them as much because they forage at night. They typically sleep (tucked away in trees) during the day. I was lucky to catch this juvenile Night Heron flying in the daylight.
There seemed to be more Great Egrets present than any other bird, and I took quite a few photos of them. Here is one in flight.
And here is another having breakfast.
The Double-Crested Cormorant is a gangly, awkward looking, noisy bird that some of the locals refer to as "rats with wings". They're not particularly photogenic, but I like the reflection this one made as it flew low over the water.
The Boat-Tailed Grackle is also very common, and generally unremarkable, but I think the photo of one taking a bath is interesting.
A dozen or more White Ibises all flew into the same area (along with the Great Egrets) at the same time. I got better flight shots of individual birds, but I like how these two are flying in sync.
I missed a flock of Roseate Spoonbills (they took off just as I was walking up), but did manage to get a few pictures of one that flew by later. Here's one.
My favorite picture of the trip, however, is this one of a Sandhill Crane. The colors came out a little unusual because of the ambient light (normally they look more brown than blue), but I think it's the most dramatic photo of the bunch.
I did photograph some things besides just birds. This is a Common Water Hyacinth covered in dewdrops.
Milkweed plants seem to be in vogue this year. People are growing them in hopes of attracting butterflies. Caterpillars had eaten the plants nearly bare and Monarch butterflies were emerging from crysalises. They have to wait for their wings to unfurl and dry before they can fly and I came across this one in the middle of that process.
I hope you enjoy the pics and that they help take your mind off the winter weather.
Regards,
Eric
