Global Cooling at Lakes Park

Free time to experience SW Florida's wildlife has been extremely limited these past weeks.

The Great Egret with Snowy Egret above was photographed at Lakes Park in January 2010.

On the first occasion for observation and photography this year where there wasn't an overcast sky, the temperature was near freezing at dawn. For that reason I made the very easy decision to simply stay warm indoors.

Earlier this week, I had heard two reports that there were significant fish deaths in lakes and ponds across the state of Florida. One of the reports specifically mentioned Lakes Park which I was compelled to visit to see the bird activity the fish might have attracted.

The Snowy Egret above was photographed at Lakes Park in January 2010.

Although I was not able to arrive at Lakes Park until near sundown on Tuesday, I still brought the camera with hopes to document something interesting. The bird activity was more prevalent than in any of my handful of other visits to the park in the past couple of years.

It was my greatest hope to see the Scarlet Ibis which has been observed at the park on occasion. Images available of it can certainly never do it justice for its beauty.

The Snowy Egret with Tricolored Heron above was photographed at Lakes Park in January 2010.

Although I saw many hundreds of birds in very close proximity including ibis, heron, egret, stork, the Scarlet Ibis was again elusive.

The timing of my visit to Lakes Park was a mere day and a half after I had heard of the fish kill, but the evidence of the event was non existent as might be explained by the great abundance of birds at the park. The cleanup effort was complete.

The Wood Stork above was photographed at Lakes Park in January 2010.

I took photographs of the birds I did see, primarily attempting to capture them in flight, and unfortunately had little success as the lighting was quite poor and I was shooting at a relatively high ISO setting to keep the shutter speed up.

It was a tremendous amount of fun in the experience nonetheless.

Another report heard this past week was that the temperature of the Gulf of Mexico had reached the high of that in the Atlantic Ocean. Does that mean a disappearance of the Gulf Stream if not just temporarily?

1700 Miles

It was an attempt of mine, with the opportunity, to observe migratory action of birds that may be making their way through Florida these past few days in the late 2009 migration period.

The Crested Caracara above was photographed at the Prairie Bird Loops within the Great Florida Birding Trail in November 2009.

While I was able to travel through two new regions (the East and Panhandle) along the Great Florida Birding Trail, I was only able to add a handful of new species of bird to my wildlife lexicon that I had not seen before.

My 1700 mile journey without doubt went by much too quickly.

The Common Moorhen juvenile above was photographed at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (Black Point Wildlife Drive) in November 2009.

I managed to travel through 12 clusters of the trail and visit 31 new venues within them.

Some were more rewarding than others for the wildlife seen.

The Forster's Tern above was photographed at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (Black Point Wildlife Drive) in November 2009.

Without question, the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge offered the most exciting viewing along Black Point Wildlife Drive.

I spent half a day there while attempting to photograph a greater plethora of the larger wading birds than I have seen anywhere else.

The Dunlin with Willet and Black-bellied Plover above was photographed at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (Black Point Wildlife Drive) in November 2009.

I had hoped for the best weather and light conditions at this time, but was dealing with overcast conditions all morning. I was also shooting into the brightest light for the most part.

It was an opportunity to photograph under conditions I would normally avoid.

The Tricolored Heron above was photographed at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (Black Point Wildlife Drive) in November 2009.

The greatest diversity of wildlife was seen at this venue, including an alligator seen that appeared no less than 12 feet.

In its vicinity, I spent a lot of time observing moorhens including what appeared a solitary juvenile which seem accustomed to living within the close proximity of such a predator as I've also observed in the Everglades area.

The Common Moorhen above was photographed at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (Black Point Wildlife Drive) in November 2009.

In my opinion, the best wildlife observations can unquestionably be had at virtually any of the venues closer to home within the Southwest portion of Florida.

I can say for sure, based on my experience, that wildlife is prolific within the South Florida Birding Trail virtually at any time of the year to a greater degree than the observations I've made outside of it.

The Roseate Spoonbill above was photographed at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (Black Point Wildlife Drive) in November 2009.

Certain venues seem to accommodate specific species of concern or interest. These creatures will be found around areas of water that provide them sustenance.

The drive home along I-10 was extraordinary in the view I had of the area of Torreya State Park. The light was perfect with the vista of the trees along the Apalachicola River.

The Belted Kingfisher above was photographed at Big Lagoon State Park in November 2009.

It was on my third trip through the area along I-10 that I had the opportunity to appreciate the magic this Florida state park has to offer.

I was very tempted to make an immediate u-turn, but decided to make a return trip there in the future.

Gatorland Bird Rookery

This past May I went to Gatorland. I didn't have any desire to go to an alligator attraction but I heard there was an unusual bird rookery there. The big alligator lake had mangroves all along the boardwalk and big wild water birds were coming there to breed.

Brett and I got up early one Saturday and drove over to Orlando. We got there when it opened at 9am. We walked straight back to the boardwalk. I thought we'd be one of the few people there that early. Coming around the corner there were at least 15 guys there already taking pictures with their big guns (big cameras, big lenses, big tripods). I found out later you can buy a photo pass to get in as early as 7am.

The mangroves were filled with birds: cattle egrets, great egrets, blue, tri-colored and great blue herons. I heard there were spoonbills (didn't see any). There were so many babies, from months old to days old. The parents were busy feeding them. It was very loud with all those babies crying. If you're into birds it's a great spectacle to see.

The alligators were fun to see as well. You can feed them and wrestle with them (we did neither). They had parrots, snakes and a few other animals. It was a fun morning.

Illegal Documentation

I recently made my first trip to Everglades National Park on June 18, 2009. While there may be virtually unlimited access to this incredibly vast wildlife venue that encompasses a major footprint on the southern peninsula of Florida by water, there are only two official primary entrances to the park by land. These include the Shark Valley Visitor Center at the northern edge of the park between Naples and Miami and the primary access to the park at its main entrance in Homestead south of Miami which allows access for a slice through the park all the way to Flamingo at the end of the highway.

The Black Skimmer above at Lovers Key State Park is always a special treat to observe as it can never be counted on for a sighting.

Everglades National Park is considered to be a world class venue for wildlife viewing. One can expect that for its enormity in size and diversity including eight habitat types. In my limited research of the park, it has been noted that more than half of its area may have been negatively impacted due to man's intervention for control of its water sources for urban and agricultural needs. Weather consequences as well may have been attributable to concerns of a reported 90 percent reduction in the numbers of wading birds observed in the recent past. It is believed that the birds, however, are on a significant rebound.

As with many popular wildlife venues in this part of Florida, it may be expected that wildlife is especially abundant as the water levels from torrential summer thunderstorms and hurricanes subside to the point where food for avian and land creatures is virtually cherry picked for the taking. This scenario was recently described to me by a friend whom observed this reality at Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve before the beginning of this year's rainy season. I've made a few visits to the slough with the closest experience seen first hand at the National Audubon Society Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary this spring when a veteran volunteer told me of an alligator getting the better of a wading bird some years ago. Such an event is surprisingly not much more frequently observed at that time as dozens of egrets were seen in the company of a handful of what appeared to be very well fed alligators.

It was during my initial journey into the national park on the way to Flamingo that I made my first observation of the Swallow-tailed Kite with its flight along the road toward me as it made a flyover. The observation was especially exciting as I had not seen the species before. This past week has offered the sighting of the kite in Fort Myers on two additional occasions. I'm very optimistic to offer my own photographic evidence of this species in the future.

In the meantime, you may see the Swallow-tailed Kite as observed by my friend, Tim Rucci, here. I hope you encounter a similar experience.

Beware poo

What you are about to read is hopefully of interest to you. The subject matter will predominantly involve the photography of birds which I've become enthralled with.

Why this subject of interest? One can't ignore this incredibly varied species which makes their presence known virtually everywhere. For the very fortunate of us, even if you keep a homestead within a very small region of the earth, the sight or sound of many hundreds of these species may be experienced over a human lifetime.

The Brown Noddy above was a special sighting of a rare visitor to the area I live which I had the great fortune of documenting at Lovers Key State Park for the first time. This is a must see venue which borders the Gulf of Mexico.

When one observes a bird, it is typically at the time of its greatest activity which will likely be in the few hours around sunrise and sunset. The specific environment may have great significance for a viewing opportunity. Fresh or saltwater provides the food chain which may have a particular species of bird migrate through or make a home in the area of its sighting.

In my home of Florida, state and federal agencies are in cooperation for the support of the Great Florida Birding Trail. This endeavor is a benefit to business and enthusiasts alike. It is a goal of mine to visit all the sites on the trail and to report my observations and opportunities you may see at them at specific times of the year.