outdoor photography

Wilson's Phalarope Biolab Rd It used to be that when I went to Merritt Island NWR, my sole destination was Blackpoint Wildlife Dr. Of course, that is by far the most popular part of the refuge, especially for visitors from out of town.  But the refuge actually has many wonderful locations for birding, hiking and otherwise enjoying nature.  Some are wildlife drives, and some allow you to get out of your car and walk a bit. I thought it would be good to offer a brief summary of the best locations on the refuge. You can consult my field reports as well for more information. Many of those that visit the refuge frequently know every nook and cranny of it, but there are about 9 locations on the refuge that are relatively easy to find with excellent birding opportunities. The above map is turned sidewise--north is to the left.  But you can see I-95 and the Max Brewer bridge over the inter-coastal waterway on SR-406 that takes you on to the refuge. Saltmarsh Sparro...

Reddish Egret Last week my wife decided it might be fun to go to the beach on the Gulf coast (calmer waves), and she asked me if there was a good place there go visit.  Fort De Soto, of course!  So yesterday we spent the day there. My father and I got there early to do some birding and photography, and we were not disappointed. We found many terns and wading birds, including 2 Common Terns and a Black Tern, but shorebirds the most fun finds.  It's great to see them returning. Between the east beach turnaround and north beach we found 12 species of shorebirds, and most of them were pretty cooperative. Semipalmated Plover Western Sandpiper Least Sandpiper Willet Short-billed Dowitcher East Beach was filled with Least Sandpipers, Short-billed Dowitchers, and Semipalmated Plovers. There was also one Western Sandpiper there. Willets were everywhere. Spotted Sandpiper Marbled Godwit Piping Plover Wilson's Plover North Beach is great...

Wilson's Plover Since I moved to Florida and became interested in birding, I've wanted to get good photos of all the little plovers that show up in Florida on a regular basis.  I found most of these plovers without much trouble, but Snowy Plovers have eluded me.  They've been somewhat of a nemesis bird for me, until the end of May.  I visited Siesta Beach in Sarasota, and one was very happy to be out on the beach with all the other sunbathers. So now I can write a post I've been wanting to write for years--a survey of Florida's little plovers. We have four of them, and they aren't too terribly difficult to tell apart, but I'll also share a few ID tips for those that may be new to finding Plovers. I couldn't decide whether I should organize them by the the order I found them or the overall lightness of their plumage, but then I realized that it's the same. I found them in the order of darkest to lightest. Semipalmated Plover Semipalmated Plo...

Piping Plover Today at the Canaveral National Seashore I found my first ever Piping Plover.  I was rather shocked to see it, and in fact I wanted to come home and look at my photos to make sure I was right, even though I didn't know what else it could possibly have been.  He was very active along the shoreline with a couple Semipalmated Plovers keeping him company.  The lighting was just right for me to take a few decent photos. Yea! Piping Plover Piping Plover Piping Plover Piping Plover