Birding Days in the Sunshine State

March 22, 2024

Most of the year I’m out taking pictures in my home state of Michigan, but I always look forward to our change-of-pace visits to Florida during the winter months where I can go looking for all the beautiful birds that I rarely, if ever, find in Michigan. This was our first trip back in three years; a welcome change after more than two years of COVID, and the deaths of our two very old dogs.

Brown Pelicans on the pier waiting for a handout from the fisherman

One of my favorite Florida birds to photograph is the brown pelican. It is both charmingly elegant and absurdly acrobatic. I have found them posing stoically on a pier waiting for a tasty handout from the fishermen, and I have watched in amazement as they soar into the air, contorting their bodies like pretzels, and then plunging head first into the water. What a fun bird to watch and photograph!

By comparison, Florida also has the American white pelican; an equally fun bird to photograph, but without the acrobatic skills of its cousins, the Browns. White pelicans are scoopers not divers. They glide gracefully along the water and scoop up fish, often working cooperatively with their peers to herd a school of fish into a dense ball or toward shallow waters where it’s more difficult for the fish to escape. Cooperative herding catches more fish!

American White Pelicans sharing a funny joke in the early morning hours

A much smaller, less obvious shorebird that scurries about on the Florida coastlines is the willet. I’ve found at least one willet, usually more, on every one of my beach walks. They skitter tirelessly in and out of the waves searching for crabs, crustaceans, and mollusks in the water-soaked sands, and provide endless entertainment for me as I amble along the shore.

Willet hoping for a tasty snack to show up in the receding waves

Running around with the willets at an even faster pace, are the tiny, two-ounce sanderlings. It doesn’t seem possible that these little birds can run as fast as they do! Their little black legs are a blur as they race back and forth along the beach like cartoon characters, stopping only for a millisecond to probe the wet sand for crabs and other invertebrates left by the receding waters. Rachel Carlson, in her book Under the Sea Wind, poetically described the sanderling’s breakneck run as a “twinkle of black feet.” What a perfect description!

Mixed in with the willets and the sanderlings, I might also find the ruddy turnstone; a smaller bird than the willet but bigger than the sanderling. Its name aptly describes both its appearance and what it does! This is a stocky, reddish-brown shorebird that flips over stones, shells, and seaweed looking for food. Sometimes there are dunlins in the mix as well; a little shorebird that looks similar to the sanderling but is slightly bigger and has a longer bill.

Then there are all the gulls, terns, and skimmers either flying overhead or taking a break along the shore! I took hundreds of pictures the other day of the Forster’s terns soaring above the ocean waves, then plunging into the water to catch a fish; and hundreds more shots of the black skimmers gliding just above the surface of the water with their lower beak barely touching the water as they scooped up fish! It’s always a fun challenge trying to catch these birds in flight!

Another bird in flight that’s fun to catch is the Osprey. We have osprey in Michigan, but I rarely find them. In Florida, you can find them everywhere, hovering over both large and small bodies of water, preparing to plunge feet first into the water and grab a fish with their sharp talons! I like to catch them as they emerge from the water, a good-sized fish in tow, lifting into the air with a thousand beads of water spinning off their feathers in all directions.

When I’m not walking along the ocean beaches looking for birds, I’m stalking the smaller bodies of water in search of herons, egrets, ibises, storks, and the mostly elusive roseate spoonbills. On this particular visit to Florida, my first wood stork and spoonbill were standing at the edge of a retention pond, behind a locked fence along a busy roadway near a strip mall! It was not an easy picture to get! The herons, ibises and egrets, on the other hand, have been much more cooperative!

Then there are birds that I’ve seen on previous trips to Florida, but have yet to find here in St. Augustine; birds like the black-bellied whistling ducks, black-necked stilts, crested caracaras, glossy Ibis, gallinules, painted buntings, and sandhill cranes with their babies. To find some of those birds, Mel and I took road trip to the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Titusville, Florida.

Merritt Island is one hundred miles south of where we are now and is billed as “one of Florida’s premier birding sites.” It was established in 1963 for the protection of migratory birds and provides a wide variety of habitats including coastal dunes, saltwater marshes, scrub, pine flatwoods, and hardwood hammocks. It is home to more than 1,500 species of plants and animals!

Black-necked Stilt at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

To get to Merritt Island, we left before dawn and arrived by 8:00 a.m. Mel and I wanted to have the entire day to wander around the refuge –and take a ridiculous number of pictures! We found black-necked stilts, common gallinules, reddish egrets, glossy ibises, roseate spoonbills, and a variety of other delightful birds. It was a day well spent!

In less than two weeks we’ll be heading back to Michigan; just in time for the daisies and the daffodils, the chatty red-winged blackbirds, the rose-breasted grosbeaks, and the comforting sounds of the spring peepers drifting through the screens on a warm April evening; all the sights and sounds I love to welcome me home!

Sandhill Crane and colt from our last trip to Florida in 2020

Hello Sunshine!

January 15, 2024

It’s been a long, long three years since we last visited Florida for the winter. Our last extended visit was in the winter of 2020. We had a few weeks left in our three-month stay when the pandemic hit. The first news reports were so dire that we worried about whether to remain in Florida or return to Michigan. If we returned, our doctors, family, and friends would be near at hand in case we needed them. If we stayed, there would be no one close by to help, and we had our two old dogs with us to consider. Who would take care of them if we both became seriously ill?

Ultimately, we chose to stay in Florida until our lease ran out in April, but we stopped going out to eat or spending time in our favorite coffee shop. Our niece, Holly, kindly sent us her homemade cloth masks, and we avoided others as much as possible. When it came time to leave, Mel and I drove straight through to Michigan with our two dogs in tow, and only made stops to get gas and use the bathroom. It was a long, grueling two-day marathon of driving.

While the pandemic was still running rampant in 2021 and 2022, we avoided going back to Florida, preferring instead the safety net of family, friends, and our local physicians. In 2023, we stayed home once again because our very old dog, Brandy, was in her last days. She died in April of 2023. Our other dog, Corky, had died the previous year. As the winter of 2024 approached, we were both extremely ready for a change of venue.

It’s not that I don’t like Michigan winters. I love the snow, especially if there are beautiful pictures to be had! What makes me weary, though, are the seemingly unrelenting overcast skies and intermittent rainy days. By January, I am more than ready for sunnier days and new birds to photograph!

Mute Swan in a beautiful Michigan snowfall

Mel and I checked into our rental home late in the day on Monday January 8, 2024. On Tuesday, a huge storm blew through, but Wednesday arrived with an abundance of sunshine and bright blue skies! We both grabbed our cameras and headed out the door to the nearby Anastasia State Park in St. Augustine, to see what we could find.

My first subject was a tiny, solitary shorebird called a Sanderling. It was running along the beach hither and yon like someone had flipped a switch in its brain to fast forward. It was a bird possessed–and hilarious to watch!

Sanderling on a Florida beach in January

After taking hundreds of pictures of the little Sanderling, I wandered down a nearby trail and stopped at the edge of a deep saltwater marsh where I could see Brown Pelicans diving for fish. They flew low across the water then rose gracefully into the air before plunging like a torpedo into the water for fish. The force of that impact stuns the small fish in their path and allows the pelican to scoop them up. It was amazing to watch them go through their acrobatic moves. First, they tucked their heads in, then they rotated their bodies to the left. This maneuver is believed to cushion the trachea and esophagus from the impact of the pelican’s dive. Both the trachea and the esophagus are located on the right side of their neck.

I stood in the same spot for an hour or so just watching all the different birds search for food. There was a Great Egret, a Snowy Egret, a Little Blue Heron, several Ibises, a Tricolored Heron, Piping Plovers, a Ruddy Turnstone, Red-breasted Mergansers, Common Loons, and a very magnificent Osprey that landed on a post less than 20 feet from where I was standing! I’ve never stood in one place for any amount of time and had such a variety of birds visit! It was mesmerizing.

After taking more than 600 pictures, I thought, perhaps, it was time to move on, but it’s never easy for me to do that even when I already have many more pictures than I’ll ever need or use! I always think there will be one more incredible shot that I don’t want to miss. On this particular day, there was!

I had walked a little farther down the trail and stopped dead in my tracks when I saw a large beak and a big yellow eye peeking up from the weeds. Oh, my goodness, I thought! It was a juvenile yellow-crowned night heron! I rarely ever see them! I quickly took a few pictures and then quietly backed away so I wouldn’t disturb him.

The juvenile Yellow-crowned Night Heron that was my favorite catch of the day!

Having fully satisfied my picture-taking appetite for the day, I happily returned to our car, totally rejuvenated by my time outdoors and my camera full of pictures.

It doesn’t get much better than that.

A Common Denominator

April 2, 2020

We are nearly three weeks into isolating ourselves as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Mel and I have been staying at home (our Florida rental for two more weeks that is) except for our daily walks and our brief but infrequent trips to the grocery store. Our walks have mostly been to nature preserves and wildlife areas that are not commonly visited by others, and for most of those walks, we have taken our cameras– which is how we have amassed so many pictures in a relatively short period of time!

Juvenile Little Blue Heron and an adult Little Blue Heron

Fortunately, photography is a hobby that is serving us well during this time of forced isolation. Even if we become restricted to the parameters of our own backyard, we will still find things to photograph–especially Mel with his macro photography!

One of Florida’s many alligators sunning itself in the grass.

Adult Black-crowned Night Heron and a juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron

Little Blue Heron coming in for a landing and a Glossy Ibis taking off

One of the many benefits of this nature photography hobby has been its therapeutic effects. No matter how anxious or worried I am about the overwhelming consequences of this pandemic that we are all suffering through, once I start focusing on the birds and bugs around me, I am almost immediately calmed. All my concentration is focused on the subject at hand and whether the settings on my camera will be correct. But, even before the COVID-19, my picture walks had proven to be quite the magical elixir for restoring a sense of balance, tranquility and joy to my world.

A very young Sandhill Crane ‘baby’, called a ‘colt’

Limpkin and a Great Blue Heron, both of whom fish along the edges of ponds

An added benefit of this nature photography hobby has come from sharing my pictures with others, By sharing the things I have seen, I am afforded the opportunity to stay connected to others. The natural world is our common denominator. It gives us a common language with which to converse and to find joy. Pictures are just another way to communicate that joy– particularly during these very uncertain and heart-wrenching times.

Stay safe out there!

Gulf Fritillary Butterfly and an Orange Spotted Flower Moth

Zebra Swallowtail Butterfly (minus the swallow tails!)

Eastern Amberwing and a female Four-spotted Pennant

Male Four-spotted Pennant and a Scarlet Skimmer Dragonfly

Red Saddlebags with Mites

March 26, 2020

In the midst of this global pandemic, I feel grateful that I can still go out for walks. No matter how anxious or stressed I am by all the heartache and suffering this pandemic has caused, if I can get out for a while and take pictures, I always feel better when I return.

Green Heron and a Louisianna Waterthrush

I enjoy going to a wide variety of places in hopes of finding a wide variety of interesting things to photograph. But, when I’m limited in the number of choices I have, I just change the time of day that I go– which changes the light as well as the creatures who might be out and about. In the past ten days, I’ve been to nine places, two of which were repeat visits. No matter how many times I go, I always manage to find something that surprises or delights me. If nothing else, it’s all good photography practice. When I do find something unusual, it’s fun to do a little research later and find out more about it.

Great Blue Heron and a Black-necked Stilt

One thing that has really helped my research endeavors is an app called iNaturalist. When I don’t know the name of the bird or bug or plant I’ve photographed, I enter the picture into the app and, within a few seconds, I get back several suggestions as to what it might be. Once I am reasonably certain that I have correctly identified my subject, I go online for more information. That’s how I identified this dragonfly called a Red Saddlebags.

“ The red-mantled saddlebags or red saddlebags is a species of skimmer dragonfly found throughout the eastern United States. It has translucent wings with red veins, and has characteristic dark red blotches at their proximal base, which makes the dragonfly look as if it is carrying saddlebags when flying.”

One interesting thing that you can see on this dragonfly are tiny red dots. A few years ago, this phenomenon surprised me. You can’t really see them with the naked eye (unless, perhaps, the dragonfly is in your hand), so, I was quite surprised the first time I saw the red spots on a dragonfly when I had enlarged a picture on my computer. They’re called mites.

“…these bright red mites, from the tick family, are hitchhikers that feed on body fluids. They jump off when the host drops down over a new pond or wetland.”

Apparently, these mites have little or no adverse effect on their host dragonfly, unless you happen to be a male dragonfly with a body full of them, in which case, you might not be as successful as your friends during the mating process.

White Peacock Butterfly and a Tri-colored Heron

Anhinga and Black-bellied Whistling Duck

Wherever you are in this world living through this pandemic, I wish you good health. If you are able, take a restorative walk outside now and then and look for something that surprises or delights you. If that’s not possible (or not particularly fun for you!), I hope these virtual walks serve a similar purpose!

Stay well.

Riding Out the Storm

March 15, 2020

In the ten days since I last posted, so much has happened here in the states (and all over the world) in terms of the Coronavirus. We are officially in a ‘state of emergency’. Schools, libraries, restaurants and churches have closed all across the country for an indefinite period of time. Broadway has closed, Disney World has closed, New York City’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade has been cancelled and the Boston Marathon has been postponed! And this is only the beginning!

For many people, this emergency presents a severe economic hardship, for others, it is just an inconvenience, and for some, it will be a death sentence.

Little Blue Heron and a Tri-colored Heron

Pine Warbler and a female Boat-tailed Grackle

In order to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19, to ‘flatten the curve’ as they say, we are being asked to limit our contacts with other people, to practice ‘social distancing’ as much as possible. For Mel and I, the changes will be minimal. We’re retired. We won’t have lost wages. We won’t have young ones at home who need childcare, and we won’t have elderly parents in our care. In fact, at ages 66 and 73, we ARE the elderly!!

Black-bellied Whistling Ducks and a Great Blue Heron

For our part, then, we’ve stopped going to the coffee shop, stopped going to restaurants and stopped going to any stores other than an occasional visit to the grocery store. What we haven’t stopped doing is going out for walks.

Ring-billed Gull and a Ruddy Turnstone at the Venice Beach

I am beyond thankful that we, as a nation, haven’t yet been restricted from leaving our homes like other countries have had to do. If this becomes necessary, we would readily comply, but home confinement would, no doubt, stress the limits of my ability to stay sane– or even pleasant!

Lesser Yellowlegs and a Great White Egret

My picture walks are an antidote to all the upheaval. They keep me interested, excited and connected to the world around me—they keep me healthy. So, I am hoping I won’t have to give up my walks during this crisis, and that they will continue to do what they have always done, which is to save my sanity during these very troubled times.

For those of you who are housebound or otherwise unable to spend time with Mother Nature, I hope the pictures here provide joy or, in some way, pique your interest in the wonders of the natural world, and that they will help you ride out this storm!

Scavenger Hunt

February 11, 2020

Going for a ‘picture walk’ is a lot like a scavenger hunt, I think. It’s not that I have a list of things to find, but every picture I take feels like a little treasure I’ve collected and put in my pocket. When I get home, I empty my pockets of all the things I’ve found and decide what to keep and what to throw away. The nice thing about this kind of treasure is that my pockets are always big enough! And that’s a good thing– because sometimes I have more than 500 treasures to sort through!

Here’s what I’ve collected this past week…