outdoor photography

Black-throated Green Warbler My father and I had a fantastic time at Fort De Soto this morning.  We went hoping for some nice migrants, and we came home with twelve species of warbler, including my first Black-throated Green.  Here's a list of all the warblers we saw in the park: Black-and-white Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Hooded Warbler, American Redstart, Cape May Warbler, Northern Parula, Yellow Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Palm Warbler, and Black-throated Green Warbler. Hooded Warbler Yellow Warbler Blackpoll Warbler On top of these we saw two Eastern Kingbirds, one Veery, several Indigo Buntings, a Painted Bunting, a Rose-breasted Grosbeak and a Blue Grosbeak. We found both a Scarlet and Summer Tanager. Rose-breasted Grosbeak Scarlet Tanager But the biggest surprise was seeing two Whimbrel.  One was pretty far a way near the Least Tern breeding platforms.  The second landed ...

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 ...