The Pileated Woodpecker above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. I was surprised to see large tents certainly used for overnight camping south of the parking area upon my arrival.
There was no wildlife action evident at all before parking the car at the north gate access point.
The Mottled Duck above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. Immediately upon getting out of the car, however, the unmistakable calls of Limkin could be heard to the north.
With great fortune, my first photographs taken were of Pileated Woodpecker flying overhead from the stand of trees directly in front of me and across the water.
The Great Egret above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. It didn't take long for my eyes to focus on the surroundings and see the majestic Osprey perched in the early morning light.
A few Mottled Ducks were then seen floating in the water seemingly waiting for my next move.
The Osprey above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. An overflight of Mallard was observed within the next few minutes.
A solitary Limpkin was working the shoreline and would prove to be the only one seen, though countless others of the species were heard in the preserve's tall grass.
The Mallard above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. As I made my way to the north on a journey I didn't have a specific goal to accomplish, the thought of walking around Harns Marsh Preserve crossed my mind and I couldn't help but dread its distance.
The weather was initially relatively cool at 59 degrees, but was expected to warm up quickly which it did.
The Limpkin above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. Not too far along my walk, I encountered a rarely seen (for me) Black-crowned Night-Heron at the preserve.
A mystery species seen in a flock of 23 I would later identify as Red-winged Blackbird with the assistance of local birding expert Wes Dirks.
The Black-crowned Night-Heron above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. And very shortly thereafter a Wood Stork gave me a flyby that was so close, I couldn't fit it in the frame of the shots taken of it.
A Wood Stork was also seen in the company of a Great Egret at close range while another stork was seen to perch with a pair of Black Vultures and a Turkey Vulture across the lake.
The Red-winged Blackbird above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. It was at about this location that I observed Tree Swallows that were by far the most abundant species seen during my November visit to Harns Marsh Preserve.
It was nearly a year earlier to the day at this same wildlife venue that I was able to capture my first image of the species.
The Wood Stork above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. Although I tried my best to ignore these quite fast and extremely unpredictable birds due to my initial very fuzzy unrecognizable images captured of them, they would instill in me a passion I couldn't resist to attempt to photograph them and their behavior.
Of the hundreds of swallows that swarmed around me for an extended period of time, I would only see them at rest on a tall weed for mere seconds.
The Wood Stork juvenile with Great Egret above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. The Tree Swallows were otherwise constantly on the move and would be seen nearly until the time I left the preserve in the late morning.
The second most prolific species seen at Harns Marsh Preserve was American Coot.
The Tree Swallow above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. These relatively diminutive birds considering the somewhat unpleasant guttural vocal calls they made throughout my stay were very good cover for a new bird sighting for me.
The Redhead required intensive study for me to identify it in my Sibley guide, with the bird's yellow eyes the clincher.
The American Coot above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. I saw no evidence of what may have caused them to take flight leaving the coots behind while the Redhead regrettably did not return to my observation area although likely remained nearby.
Tom Obrock's previously reported Blue-winged Teal was also observed within the group of waterfowl as was a solitary Common Moorhen.
The Redhead with American Coot above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. As Black Vultures made flybys, a few Snail Kites were seen actively feeding on Harns Marsh's Apple Snails.
As I had the gumption to continue my walk, I encountered an Eastern Phoebe that I had just photographed for the first time a month earlier at Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve in Fort Myers.
The Black Vulture above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. And while walking even further I was able to observe a pair of Sandhill Cranes that I see infrequently at Harns Marsh Preserve.
As I settled down near a pile of discarded Apple Snail shells, the smaller of the cranes was meticulously preening itself for over a half hour.
The Eastern Phoebe above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. It was interesting to see that it created a small hole in the ground with its beak near the shoreline.
The Sandhill Crane would put its beak in the hole every moment or so to cover it in water which it then used to preened its feathers.
The Sandhill Crane above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. At one point the cranes would call in almost perfect unison while other Sandhill Cranes across the marsh replied.
The Sandhill Crane has an exceptionally loud call and it was quite exhilarating to be so close to them in experiencing this auditory marvel.
The Sandhill Crane above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. When the cranes decided to move on, it was late in the morning and I decided to return to the car.
About a dozen Cattle Egret were feeding successfully on insects in the grass along the roadway.
The Cattle Egret above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. About a half dozen Pied-billed Grebe were seen occasionally resurfacing for air with one coming up with a small fish in my observations.
A pair of Roseate Spoonbill were seen doing a rarely seen and unusual acrobatic midair dance.
The Roseate Spoonbill above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. As a small number of vultures were climbing the thermals in the area near the car, a bird that didn't quite seem to fit in was initially a mystery to me.
When an adult Bald Eagle flew into view a short while later, I was confident that I had earlier seen a juvenile of the species.
The Bald Eagle juvenile with Wood Stork above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. I investigated my images of the Bald Eagle to be assured that it was a juvenile and not a second or third year sub adult.
I was pleased to see the Pileated Woodpecker again at the spot I had begun my journey as this species cannot always be expected to be seen at Harns Marsh Preserve.
The Pileated Woodpecker above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. In all, there were 32 species of bird seen at Harns Marsh Preserve.
This post is something of an experiment in the presentation of images going forward.
The Tree Swallow above was photographed at Harns Marsh Preserve in November 2010. I've learned that with the manipulation of images in CS5, the use of default in the reduction of image size, Bicubic (best for smooth gradients), leads to a less distorted image when presented here, as opposed to Bicubic Sharper (best for reduction).
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