Wordless Friday: Flight

Seagulls

Please click on the thumbnail image to see the slightly larger version of the picture.  Enjoy!

Glossy Ibis

Wood Stork

Osprey

 

Sandhill Cranes

Belted Kingfisher

White Pelican

 

 

 

White Ibises and a Great Egret

Juvenile White Ibis

White Ibises and Great Egrets are among the many varieties of birds frequenting our shrinking small lakes here in The Villages, FL these days.  The Great Egrets are sporting their magnificent breeding plumage now.  Quite the beautiful sight!  There are several juvenile White Ibises around, too.  The youngsters have the brown color mixed in with the white.  In a few months, they will turn white.

I took these pictures on Dec. 20, 2016 at Paradise Lake.  We are in a drought and the little lake is rapidly drying up.  The Boone Park area of the lake is mostly mud flats and Swartz Park is nearly so.  The main part of the lake still has a lot of water so all is not dire.  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the slightly larger version the picture.  Enjoy.  Wishing everyone a very happy New Year in 2017!

Adult White Ibis

Great Egret with empty Apple Snail shells on mud flat lake bottom

Glossy Ibis, Great Blue Heron

Glossy Ibis

This Glossy Ibis was spotted on Saturday, April 30 2016 at a small parkland pond in The Villages, Florida.  This pond is located on Morse Ave. above CR 466 and is along the golf cart multi-modal path.  This pond is near the beautiful Live Oaks Park and Lake Sumter.

Glossy Ibises are a little more common than the White Ibis in the USA but here in Central Florida, the White Ibis are more numerous.  This Glossy Ibis is the third Glossy Ibis I have seen in the last year.  Some can easily confuse the Glossy Ibis with juvenile White Ibises but the Glossy is a deep brown all over without any hint of white.  The juvenile White Ibises have a light brown color with a pinkish bill and begin to turn white fairly young.

By the way, in addition to the Sandhill Cranes, the Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, egret, and Florida Mottled Ducklings I saw at this pond with the ibis, I also spotted a Great Blue Heron!  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the slightly larger picture.  Enjoy!

Glossy Ibis (at far right)

Great Blue Heron

Glossy Ibis

 

A Wading Bird Rookery

 

A Cattle Egret in Breeding Colors

Cattle Egrets, Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, Anhingas, White Ibis, Glossy Ibis, and other large wading birds have created a rookery or nesting area in a marshy preserve on Morse Ave. in The Villages, FL above CR 466.  This area is along a popular golf cart multi-modal pathway and golf carts can easily stop there in the grassy area in front of the rail fence (not automobiles).  I have photographed this area once before.

I was very surprised to see the large flock of hundreds of Cattle Egrets that have nested there in the front section of the preserve.  The swampy area likely is protected by both the fence and the Alligators that may be present in the shallow marsh under the shrubbery. I took these pictures in the afternoon, on April 30, 2016.  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the larger picture.  Enjoy!

Great Egret in Flight

Cattle Egrets in the Roost

Cattle Egret with Nesting Materials

 

Nesting Cattle Egret

Cattle Egret Nest

Snowy Egret

Another Waterbird Extravaganza!

Great Blue Heron, Great Egrets, Snowy Egret, ducks

Five Great Blue Herons, White Pelicans, Great Egrets, Snowy Egret, ducks, Cormorants

White Pelicans, Double Crested Cormorants

 

 

Great Blue Herons, Great Egrets, American White Pelicans, Double Crested Cormorants, Snowy Egrets, Canada Geese, what looks like a rarely seen Snow Goose, White Ibises, Bufflehead Ducks, Mallard Ducks, an Osprey, Seagulls, and a few Lesser Scaup Ducks were all spotted yesterday afternoon at a wonderful little private park lake, Lake Paradise, at Paradise Park in The Villages, Florida.

Seeing all the numerous birds is very pleasant and is similar to what I used to see at Tuscawilla Park in Ocala, Florida.  Mostly the crowd of birds are migratory Winter visitors.  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the slightly larger version of the photo.  Enjoy!

Hen Bufflehead Duck

Probably what is a Snow Goose???

Osprey (Sea Eagle or Sea Hawk)

 

Mallard Ducks

Great Egrets, Great Blue Heron, Snowy Egret

Drake (male) Bufflehead Duck

Yard Birds

Palm Warbler

A hen Northern Cardinal, a Palm Warbler, and a small flock of White Ibises were all visitors to my yards this past week.  I took the pictures of the cardinal and warbler from inside my home through the window.  The Ibises had taken advantage of the rainy weather to seek out grubs and worms in the lawn.  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the larger picture.  Enjoy!

Hen Northern Cardinal

Palm Warbler on the Live Oak

White Ibises

White Ibises

 

Older Juvenile White Ibis

I frequently see several flocks of White Ibises here in my area.  They are often seen in the parks and sometimes in neighborhoods, browsing for grubs worms and insects on lush lawns.  They also wade in shallow water foraging for aquatic snails, small fish, and aquatic vegetation.

The White Ibises here tend to fly to various places from pretty much the same roosting area.  They like to roost in small trees in a marsh were alligators keep predators away.  Please click on the thumbnail image to see the larger picture.  Enjoy!