Mid-march, a family of Mallard chicks

 

A female Mallard Duck and 7 of her 10 chicks

Jeanne sent a message saying that Swallow-tailed Kites were soaring above the Woodlawn pool and because of Marc's photographs taken in WWS a few weeks ago, she could identify and delight in them with others at the pool. Her message affirms one of my hopes: that we learn, enjoy, and care for this precious Audubon-certified neighborhood

The birds are vociferous, and busy. Many of us pause in our walks to enjoy them. 

The Limpkins continue to nest in this Sabal Palm.

Limpkin sits.

A Tri-Colored Heron was nearby.

On Wildewood Drive, two Mourning Doves courted by preening each other, mated, and more preening.

Pie-billed Grebe on the big pond. Look for a solitary bird that stays offshore.

A Great Crested Flycatcher, a bird I hear and mostly cannot locate in the tree canopy. This time, I have a photo for you!

Palm Warbler (yellow underparts helps distinguish it in this pose from the Pine Warbler) - Pinehurst neighbor Allen and I gazed upward to the point of feeling Warbler neck. So many warblers hopping about. Too fast to photo ID.

 Carolina Wren sang and sang and sang. I sat down to marvel about its unrelenting call.

Those Mallard chicks' first days exploring the pond habitat.

I count 4 pairs of Yellow-Crowned Night Herons at various stages of courtship and nest building.  

Pre-Thanksgiving pond feast for birds

Tri-colored heron

Birds are feasting at the big pond!

A front passed through and it's breezy and cool. Here is the weather (from the forecast link in the sidebar). 

When this happens, birds visit the large pond in numbers. I heard their delighted calls before I saw them. 

Here is what made me pause. A Fish Crow's call.

And a lot of geese.

Then, the geese took flight. What is that about, I wondered. 

(Look at this Florida fall color.)

I scanned the sky.

This bird landed at the top of a Norfolk pine. An American Bald Eagle!

When the Eagle left, the birds settled. Time to eat. This Brown Pelican (with a Wood Stork) eats fish after fish.

Great Egrets

A Florida Southern Softback turtle poked its head up to check out the action.

Lesser Scaups were in the middle of the pond away from the other birds.

Pied Bill Grebe

So many feathered visitors today.

I watch them as they watch me.

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Pied-billed Grebe

This is a Pied-billed Grebe. I recently photographed it on the big lake in Wildewood just after the sun rose with that gorgeous morning glow. 

"Pied-eyed Grebes are not often seen in flight. They migrate at night and instead of flying to escape predators, they diver or submerge their bodies so only their head is just above the surface of water. Although they swim like ducks, their feet are not webbed, rather each toe has lobes that extend out on the sides for paddling. "Grebe" means "feet at the buttocks." These shy little divers are not social so they are usually seen singly or in pairs, not large flocks." - Traci @tlsepkovic, York County, PA

Some Native American people think of the Grebe as a symbol of perseverance and fearlessness. There is a story about a brave grebe that withstood weather's fury

Grebes protect themselves by submerging like an alligator below the surface with just their eyes and nostrils above the surface. 

If you want to have a sighting, look in the grasses and cattails along the pond edge. On the water, a grebe will be a lone swimmer.

Here is a 1:42 second story about the Pied-billed Grebe.