coastal

Male Red-winged Blackbird singing on a Mangrove

By |2024-03-01T04:58:43-06:00November 15th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Red-winged Blackbirds|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I don't if this male was successful with the female Red-winged Blackbirds but he sure had me mesmerized with his sleek black feathers and his flashing red, orange and yellow epaulets.

Female Long-billed Curlew in a Florida lagoon

By |2024-03-18T17:35:51-05:00September 28th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Long-billed Curlews|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

It has been another very long week so I thought I'd post a female Long-billed Curlew because of her very long bill but unlike the way my week went this curlew is graceful, elegant and serene.

Waves and a Forster’s Tern

By |2022-09-13T03:41:54-05:00September 3rd, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Forster's Terns, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

The nonbreeding Forster's Tern in these two images is the same bird and the images were taken ten frames and a few seconds apart as the tern stood on the shoreline of the Gulf of Mexico in Florida.

Great Blue Heron up close and not so close

By |2024-03-24T08:58:16-05:00August 26th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Great Blue Herons, Pinellas County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

One December morning in 2008 I was sitting in the sand at Fort De Soto County Park's north beach in Florida when a Great Blue Heron came up and perched on a driftwood stump that had washed up onto the shore.

Great Blue Heron Portraits from Florida and Utah

By |2021-08-19T07:01:56-05:00July 18th, 2013|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Great Blue Herons, Pinellas County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

In Florida I found it easy to get close up images of Great Blue Herons because quite often they are used to the presence of humans but here in Utah that isn't the case and Great Blue Herons are sort of skittish.

Laughing Gulls in breeding and nonbreeding plumage

By |2021-08-07T03:54:27-05:00June 29th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Laughing Gulls|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Both of these Laughing Gull images were taken at Fort De Soto County Park's north beach in Florida, the image above shows a Laughing gull in nonbreeding plumage that was taken in September of 2008.

Eastern Willet in flight at Fort De Soto

By |2021-04-25T09:13:59-05:00May 28th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Willets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

There are two subspecies of Willets which Western and Eastern, here in Utah I only see the Western subspecies but in Florida I could see both during the course of a year.

Tricolored Herons Times Three

By |2022-12-14T11:40:38-06:00May 26th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Boyd Hill Nature Preserve, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Tricolored Herons|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I actually like the backgrounds in each of these images, all of them show the habitat that Tricolored Herons might be found in and highlight the birds too.

Adult and juvenile White Ibis

By |2024-02-18T10:52:41-06:00May 20th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, White Ibises|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

White Ibis can be strange looking birds to people who have never seen them before, they have soft, sky blue eyes, skinny legs, long necks and a bill that could be compared to Jimmy Durante's nose.

Snowy Egret on the shore of the Gulf of Mexico

By |2021-05-21T07:18:57-05:00May 11th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Snowy Egrets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

This Snowy Egret was photographed as it stood in the shallow water of the Gulf of Mexico at Fort De Soto County Park's north beach one early August morning in 2007.

Spot the Sandpiper on the Seawall

By |2022-06-04T17:46:35-05:00May 5th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Spotted Sandpipers|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

It really isn't too hard to spot this Spotted Sandpiper on the seawall, I just thought it was a catchy title. I saw my FOY (first of year) Spotted Sandpiper this past week and that got me excited.

Ruddy Turnstone and a Laughing Gull

By |2021-05-17T06:55:08-05:00April 18th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Laughing Gulls, Pinellas County, Ruddy Turnstones|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Five years ago today I was laying in the warm wet sands of Fort De Soto County Park's north beach as the salty water from the Gulf of Mexico soaked my skin while photographing a Ruddy Turnstone doing what they do best, turning things.

Ruddy Turnstone in early morning light

By |2021-05-17T06:51:37-05:00February 27th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Ruddy Turnstones|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

I photographed this Ruddy Turnstone in early morning light at Fort De Soto County Park in Florida several years ago as it stood on the sandy beach.

Brown Pelicans on the Gulf of Mexico

By |2021-06-11T04:42:54-05:00February 20th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Brown Pelicans, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

The forecast is calling for snow today and there is already a heavy cloud cover so looked back through my files and found some Brown Pelican images taken on a warm February morning in Florida to post today.

Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork Size Comparison

By |2023-02-26T07:17:25-06:00February 15th, 2013|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Roseate Spoonbills, Wood Storks|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

This photo shows a Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork on the shoreline of a tidal lagoon at Fort De Soto County Park in Florida and it shows how the Wood Stork can dwarf the Roseate Spoonbill in height.

Reddish Egret Morphs

By |2021-10-09T04:13:02-05:00December 27th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Reddish Egrets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

These two Reddish Egrets; a dark and a white morph, were photographed on the same day at Fort De Soto's north beach in May of 2009 and both of them were showing signs of being in breeding plumage.

Short-billed Dowitcher On The Wrack Line

By |2024-01-13T02:48:53-06:00December 20th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Short-billed Dowitchers|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I photographed this Short-billed Dowitcher and the out of focus Sanderling the day after a storm had pushed mounds of Sargassum seaweed onto the wrack line and the birds were busy looking for food within it.

Ruddy Turnstone on Driftwood

By |2021-05-17T07:26:44-05:00December 5th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Ruddy Turnstones|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

I was tickled one morning when I came across this Turnstone in nonbreeding plumage perched on a piece of weathered driftwood just after the sun came over the horizon with the waters of the Gulf of Mexico behind it.

I’ve got the Blues – Great Blue Herons that is!

By |2021-10-15T04:42:47-05:00October 15th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Great Blue Herons, Pinellas County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

It seems I have always had a fondness for Great Blue Herons although I don't recall the first time I ever saw one. Great Blues are large wading birds that have a prehistoric look to them and even their calls; more like a croak, sound like something from the long distant past.

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