outdoor photography

Black-bellied Whistling Duck There's a little lake (or large pond) near my house. It's just a little community pond, but during the winter time, there can be as many as 100 Black-bellied Whistling Ducks there.  They are also very tolerant of people. They like to hang out on a little hill, and there's a fence which is perfect for resting my camera.  Then I can take photos to my heart's content. Black-bellied Whistling Duck Black-bellied Whistling Duck

Reddish Egret with American Avocets I had a pretty fun time at Merritt Island this morning. I saw a Horned Grebe at the causeway and then went to Blackpoint Dr.  There was a significant number of shorebirds there: lots of American Avocets, Dunlin and Least Sandpipers, quite a few Black-bellied Plovers, and a few distant dowitchers and Red Knots. There were far fewer species of ducks than is normal this time of year: Northern Shoveler, Blue-winged Teal, Lesser Scaup, and four Red-breasted Mergansers. Black-bellied Plover On the south side of the main road (west of the turnoff to Blackpoint Dr), there was a large number of wading birds, shorebirds and pelicans.  At one point, a group of them flew, containing the most interesting species in the group.  If I've counted right, this photo shows 11 Marbled Godwits, 5 American Avocets, 3 Dunlin and 1 Willet, though there were more of each species in the water. American Avocet, Marbled Godwit, Willet, Dunlin The v...

Black-bellied Whistling Ducks Yesterday I drove back to the Lake Apopka Restoration Area where the Fork-tailed Flycatcher had been seen last week.  It had not been seen yesterday morning, but I thought I'd see if I could find it again.  It was a no show.  But there were about 30 or so Swallow-tailed Kites around, and they were having a literal field day with the dragonflies and grasshoppers that were there.  I found one kite that must have grabbed a blade of grass with its prey (it looks like a grasshopper but I can't be sure). I did take a few minutes to photograph the dragonflies as well.  I think I found both Red and Carolina Saddlebags, but I'm very new to identifying dragonflies, so I'm not confident in my ID yet.  On the way back to the car, I dropped by the ponds by the parking area on Canal St.  I found two Black-bellied Whistling Ducks with six little ducklings.  They stayed very close to their parents, tucked between mom and dad. ...

Black-bellied Whistling Duck This morning I dropped by Orlando Wetlands Park for about an hour before heading to work.  It was fun to see a Roseate Spoonbill and three American White Pelicans, though they did not want to pose in good light for me.  The most interesting find, though, was a Belted Kingfisher, which is unusual here this time of year. Belted Kingfisher Also fun to find was a young Sandhill Crane; it's nearly full grown and getting new feathers.  All the normal wading bird were there, and a Cattle Egret flew by in good light for a photo.  Snowy Egrets were flying low over the water picking fish out of the water.  At one point, it appeared to be running on top of the water. Sandhill Crane Cattle Egret Snowy Egret Boat-tailed Grackle Red-winged Blackbird Red-winged Blackbird I also found this Florida Green Watersnake, the first I've seen and photographed. Florida Green Watersnake

American Kestrel I was at Central Winds for about an hour before work this morning, and it started off pretty slow. Interestingly, though, 19 Black-bellied Whistling Ducks landed by the pond in the park and 17 Blue-winged Teal flew over Lake Jesup (my first seen in the park).  But I found very few warblers, and only 7 total species: Ovenbird, Black-and-white Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, American Redstart, Northern Parula, Magnolia Warbler, and Yellow-throated Warbler.  It was an overcast morning, and things remained quiet until the sun started to poke through the clouds (sometime around 8:30).  Then things started to get more active, and I found a couple more of my "firsts" for the park: a Scarlet Tanager and 3 Indigo Buntings. Of course, as things were getting good, I had to go. But the biggest photographic highlight was an American Kestrel.  It flew toward me (!) and landed on the goal post in the fields.  I now finally ...

Limpkin In a previous post I shared the warblers I'd seen at Orlando Wetlands Park.  But many other birds were there, and they were also pretty fun to photograph.  I think my favorite was a Limpkin that flew up into a tree just so that I could photograph it with a different background than usual.  And then there was this Red-winged Blackbird.  I often find these guys difficult to photograph, but this one turned out as well as most that I take. Red-winged Blackbird American Coots and Common Gallinules (aka moorhens) are also there.  There were many Purple Gallinules there as well.  There were some juveniles foraging near the shore. American Coot Purple Gallinule Herons and egrets were also there in great numbers as usual.  This Tricolored Heron was particularly photogenic. Tricolored Heron And of course, there were those wonderful Black-bellied Whistling Ducks. They are so numerous in the park.  I know of no better pl...

Black-bellied Whistling Ducks Yesterday I drove by Central Winds Park on the way home.  I've been seeing Black-bellied Whistling Ducks there frequently here, and this time there were two sitting by the shore of the pond.  As an added bonus, I found an immature White Ibis by the playground--a pretty good use of 15 minutes if you ask me. Black-bellied Whistling Duck Black-bellied Whistling Ducks Black-bellied Whistling Ducks White Ibis

Black-bellied Whistling Duck Yesterday morning I went to Orlando Wetlands Park, and I had a wonderful time, despite not seeing some of the species I was hoping to see.  I missed seeing Black-crowned and Yellow-crowned Night Herons, though I found out that if I'd taken a different path when I arrived, I'd have seen some (so I know where to go next time).  I also missed seeing Waterthrushes where I'd seen several last year.  I did, however, find 5 Least Bitterns, and while I didn't come home with any presentable photos, it was great just to see them.  I also found many Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, which are always fun to see. Wood Duck Plenty of egrets and herons were out and about, and I'm convinced that Orlando Wetlands Park is the best place in Central Florida to see and photograph just about any heron, egret or bittern.  The only exception is the Reddish Egret, which isn't generally found this far inland.  And I suppose I could add that, since...

Black-Bellied Whistling Duck at Orlando Wetlands Park You know the phrase, "If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck"  Well, Black-Bellied Whistling Ducks [ gallery ] are proof that the converse is not true.  They may look like ducks, but they don't really swim like ducks, and they certainly don't quack like ducks.  They perch in trees and they whistle--that's right, whistle.  So, of course, these are my absolute favorite ducks. Black-Bellied Whistling Duck at Orlando Wetlands Park These ducks can be fo und at Viera Wetlands at certain times during the year, but Orlando Wetlands Park is the place to go if you want to see them. They're everywhere, and you can walk up pretty close to them. These ducks alone are reason enough to visit Orlando Wetlands Park.  Look for the dead trees on the Birding Loop of the park, and yous should be able to find them. Black-Bellied Whistling Duck at Orla...