If you look at my UK blog post HERE you will see what I mean.
Friday, 19 February 2010
Tavernier - Yellow-crowned night heron
In addition to the ospreys the place we were staying had a range of other wildlife to see. I was really pleased the day I first saw one of the yellow crowned night herons, skulking amongst the mangrove roots - by the last day there were three adults and a juvenile wandering around. Unlike their black crowned cousins I gather the y-c are more active in the day. In this case I'm sure what drew them out were the dozens of fish that had died from the cold weather we were having, incredible as that may sound.
If you look at my UK blog post HERE you will see what I mean.
If you look at my UK blog post HERE you will see what I mean.
Friday, 12 February 2010
Tavernier: Osprey
So, here we go; the 2010 trip to Florida, this time to the Keys, and just a little of the Everglades.
I'll start in Tavernier where we stayed first, and where I was delighted to find a nest platform had been put up for ospreys and a pair were using it. You can see how near it was to the block we were actually staying in, so it was a 2 minute stroll down in the morning to see who was around. Just a shame the weather and light weren't better more of the time.
The birds were completely unphased by me walking past and snapping them, no doubt habituated to human presence by the various dog-walkers who used this area.
The birds usually came back with headless fish, the head containing the most nutritious part, and so eaten without risk of having to share.
The pair were copulating, from my observations/voyeurism, not too successfully, although Kay reported it looking right at least once! What was interesting was how the male tucked away his talons when on the female.
Mind you one glance at this shot shows you why! (Is this the most pensive bird you've ever seen?)
One morning the moon was still high in the sky, but sadly the laws of optics meant I couldn't focus on both the bird and the details of the moon. Only the great god photoshop could have achieved that.
This last is probably my favourite - not perfect lighting but the light is OK, highlighting the eye beautifully, and the sense of action as the bird tries to eat the last of the fish elevates it beyond the 'bird on a stick'.
Shame the perch wasn't more photogenic, but life is what it is.
More to follow from the resort grounds in the next few posts.
I'll start in Tavernier where we stayed first, and where I was delighted to find a nest platform had been put up for ospreys and a pair were using it. You can see how near it was to the block we were actually staying in, so it was a 2 minute stroll down in the morning to see who was around. Just a shame the weather and light weren't better more of the time.
The birds were completely unphased by me walking past and snapping them, no doubt habituated to human presence by the various dog-walkers who used this area.
The birds usually came back with headless fish, the head containing the most nutritious part, and so eaten without risk of having to share.
The pair were copulating, from my observations/voyeurism, not too successfully, although Kay reported it looking right at least once! What was interesting was how the male tucked away his talons when on the female.
Mind you one glance at this shot shows you why! (Is this the most pensive bird you've ever seen?)
One morning the moon was still high in the sky, but sadly the laws of optics meant I couldn't focus on both the bird and the details of the moon. Only the great god photoshop could have achieved that.
This last is probably my favourite - not perfect lighting but the light is OK, highlighting the eye beautifully, and the sense of action as the bird tries to eat the last of the fish elevates it beyond the 'bird on a stick'.
Shame the perch wasn't more photogenic, but life is what it is.
More to follow from the resort grounds in the next few posts.
Saturday, 6 February 2010
Bok Tower Gardens
Every so often as I blunder through life I come across somewhere that will live on in the memory. Often going back isn't the best thing to do as few places can live up to the selective memory that develops over time.
However I hope I do go back to Bok Tower Gardens one day, to enjoy the peace, the gardens, the sculptures, the restaurant (mmmm! ),the dream come live, the birds (definitely the birds) .... and I must time it again to ensure the experience is underpinned by the glorious scent of the orange blossom. Normally you expect the light, the sun on your back, but add in that fragrance ........
After a bit of a drive, and a few wrong turns - why is it signposts in the US so often just disappear half way along a route? - we drove into the estate through the orange groves. I can still almost taste it.
Anyway this is Bok Tower Gardens, built by a man with a vision - Edward Bok - one of the few places we found (outside state parks) where the natural world is held in high esteem. There is a viewing hide, where an ill-timed look at a chart about the local wildlife meant we missed the osprey dive into the lake, and some feeding stations where I found the most ridiculously plumaged little bird. Called the painted bunting it's a great description. Give a child a drawn outline of a passerine and a kit of dayglo paints and tell it to paint the brightest bird ever! Just a shame that (a) the light was so low at that spot and (b) I only caught it on the feeder.
I'll leave the rest to the pictures.
Northern cardinal
Tufted titmouse
Dragonfly
Turtles
Anole lizard - showing dewlap below
American kestrel
Downy woodpecker excavating nesthole
Northern flicker (male/female) First woodpecker nest I ever found with two entrance holes - each complete with a head!
Red bellied woodpecker (male/female/male)
White winged dove
Red winged blackbird - female
Osprey
Grey catbird
Blue jay
Brown thrasher
Woodduck
Eastern towhee
And finally ................. the fabulous painted bunting
However I hope I do go back to Bok Tower Gardens one day, to enjoy the peace, the gardens, the sculptures, the restaurant (mmmm! ),the dream come live, the birds (definitely the birds) .... and I must time it again to ensure the experience is underpinned by the glorious scent of the orange blossom. Normally you expect the light, the sun on your back, but add in that fragrance ........
After a bit of a drive, and a few wrong turns - why is it signposts in the US so often just disappear half way along a route? - we drove into the estate through the orange groves. I can still almost taste it.
Anyway this is Bok Tower Gardens, built by a man with a vision - Edward Bok - one of the few places we found (outside state parks) where the natural world is held in high esteem. There is a viewing hide, where an ill-timed look at a chart about the local wildlife meant we missed the osprey dive into the lake, and some feeding stations where I found the most ridiculously plumaged little bird. Called the painted bunting it's a great description. Give a child a drawn outline of a passerine and a kit of dayglo paints and tell it to paint the brightest bird ever! Just a shame that (a) the light was so low at that spot and (b) I only caught it on the feeder.
I'll leave the rest to the pictures.
Northern cardinal
Tufted titmouse
Dragonfly
Turtles
Anole lizard - showing dewlap below
American kestrel
Downy woodpecker excavating nesthole
Northern flicker (male/female) First woodpecker nest I ever found with two entrance holes - each complete with a head!
Red bellied woodpecker (male/female/male)
White winged dove
Red winged blackbird - female
Osprey
Grey catbird
Blue jay
Brown thrasher
Woodduck
Eastern towhee
And finally ................. the fabulous painted bunting
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