Day-9: New Smyrna Beach – gulls and more

Today we went down and drove the beach here north to the jetty. Since it was early in the morning as well as cool and foggy there were very few people to disturb the birds. I got to see some of my favorite gulls and terns. This is one of the many Sandwich Terns thatContinue reading “Day-9: New Smyrna Beach – gulls and more”

Day-8: Orlando Wetlands, Florida

Yesterday we went to Orlando Wetlands. The day started with thunderstorms, but quickly cleared into a beautiful day. Our walk started with sparrows (like this Savannah Sparrow) and warblers (‘Myrtle’, Palm. Common Yellowthroat and Northern Parula), but quickly shifted to waterbirds. Nesting birds here include Wood Storks, Roseatte Spoonbills, Anhinga and an array of heronsContinue reading “Day-8: Orlando Wetlands, Florida”

Day-7: Merritt Island, day-2

Our day started out looking for Florida Scrub-Jays. The birds were “abundant.” We probably saw between 8-12 in about 100 yards of walking. This one was color-banded. Along the road as we headed back to Black Point Wildlife Drive we found a slough with hundreds of swollen bladderworts. Gulf fritillaries were quite common, especially atContinue reading “Day-7: Merritt Island, day-2”

Day-5: St. Augustine, Florida

I love getting into the south before the oaks have leafed out. There is so much mistletoe here. Everything that you see in this photo is “oak mistletoe.” It’s easy to see why the Druids considered mistletoe to be mystical in nature. When the entire tree is leafless the mistletoe is still green and leafy.Continue reading “Day-5: St. Augustine, Florida”

Catching up from Oregon

We spent Christmas in Eugene with Alexis, Camilla, Oscar and Simon. We will also be here for New Year’s.  In stead of trying to end the year with what’s happening locally (which I might still do) I thought that I would show some of my favorite photos of the year. I believe that this is theContinue reading “Catching up from Oregon”