Pages

Monday, April 28, 2014

Sora at the Bailey Tract

After doing the Sanibel Garden Preserves trail, I headed over to the Bailey Tract. It was unusually quiet by the North Dike, so I headed over to the Tarpon Slough. Kent, another birder, was already quite busy observing a Sora - sweet!
It had been at least a year since I saw a Sora at the Bailey Tract, I was happy to be able to watch it for a bit.




A Juvenile Little Blue was nearby, feeding - look how the blue feathers are starting to come in.



There were quite a few Mottled Ducks and Blue Wing Teal in the area still.


A Tricolored Heron in its breeding plumage came by and look how well the Sora is camouflaged along the edge of the pond.








Oh Oh! A couple of Otters came over and seemed to be heading straight for the Sora.


It was nice to see it come back out after the Otters had gone.

Preening time for the Black-necked Stilts.


As I  headed out to my car - I couldn't help but notice that The North Dike had a few ducks, a couple of Black-necked Stilts and a Green heron - standing on the edge of the pond - looking tall.


There's Kent - hard at work taking great photos.

The newest addition to the Bailey Tract.  My E-Bird List for the Bailey Tract http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S18118991
 

Sanibel Garden Preserves as the sun rises

Bright and early - that's my middle name. I arrived at the Sanibel Garden Preserves with the hopes of finding the Swallow-tailed Kites perched on the snags but instead found many others that had eluded me in the past.
I had a feeling that it was going to be a great day - how could it not with such beautiful vistas!

Ha! Surprised to see this Yellow-crowned Night heron here.

As I proceeded down toward the tower, I came upon this little pond with Great Egrets all around the edges - as if a meeting was taking place and I was intruding.....I continued on my way.


The Killdeer was ever watchful and vocal when he flew.


The Great Blue Heron and the Black-crowned Night Heron shared the pond...lots of room to go around, Little Blue herons, White Ibis of different ages and Anhinga were also enjoying the area.


The Marsh Rabbits stayed by the entrance and watched me as I made my way back.

This was the first time that I saw so many Black-crowned Night Herons at the Sanibel Garden Preserves.


A singing Cardinal lead the way.

A pair of vigilant Great Crested Flycatchers, also quite vocal....

Sometimes too fast for me to capture their image.

Good bye said one of many Red-bellied Woodpecker. My E-bird List for this morning's venture http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S18118924
 

Sunday, April 27, 2014

Winding down

These past couple of weeks have been so exciting and filled with beautiful migrants, that it's hard to get used to the idea that this will end soon and normalcy - as I know it - will resume. I looked in all the 'hot spots' this morning and found the few that have been hanging around lately - as you'll see, and also a mystery bird which turned the morning into a learning opportunity.
The Blackpolls have been 'regulars' by the "Picnic Tables" area, as well as a Tennessee and a Northern Parula.




The Grey Kingbirds and Western Kingbirds were again spotted near the Lighthouse area.


And then, my funny guy. I heard the "caw", so figured that it was a crow but the yellowish throat was puzzling - being new on the birding field, I assumed that it was a juvenile and I made a mental note to check it out when I got home.

A bit later I bumped into Lillian and Don Stokes - so I asked them about the 'juvenile' and showed them my photos.

I saw/heard Lillian and Don in action as they discussed and pointed out the different key points while trying to determine what the bird was - the bill being deformed and the yellow being determined as being pollen. As I put my photos on my computer, I also saw that he has a deformed foot and lots of hair on his legs. The feathers are not being well taken care of because of the condition of the bill - however, it is amazing how this crow with all its limitation is able to carry on. We searched the area to spot the bird and sure enough we found it - and it was hanging around with the other crows. I learned a lot today and felt very lucky to have bumped into Lillian and Don and grateful that they had the time to share their knowledge and expertise.I


One single Indigo Bunting was spotted by the Picnic Tables too.

A Pileated Woodpecker enjoying the ripe berries by the Lighthouse.

A pair of Crows and their behaviors were being observed, Lillian and Don pointed out that they were a pair because of the way they were sharing food back and forth....not a typical crow behavior.

Well, it might have been quiet but the experience and knowledge that I gathered this morning was truly priceless - thank you Lillian and Don for sharing your time with me. My E-Bird List for today http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S18100152