I jumped the river while our banding project was going on in hopes of spotting the Short-tailed Hawk that has been reported recently but, instead, came upon fellow birder Paul. We were just chatting about the day when, suddenly, an American Bittern snagged a frog from the the lily pads below us.
Neither of us saw it until then. This shot in bad light shows the frog's body in the Bittern's bill.
We quickly repositioned ourselves to get the Sun behind our backs so that we could try to get better shots. Usually, Bitterns are so secretive that you rarely can see them. They stay situated in tall grasses motionless until food wanders past. This one decided to do more hunting in the open.
This pose is closer to how they stand in the reeds. We soon noticed the bright pink snail eggs on the vegetation behind the bird.
I hadn't seen this species since literally running into one during a bird count near Lake Apopka years ago. I was trying to get a closer view of another bird and started wandering into the cattails and walked into it.
I couldn't manage a shot of that bird but this one was a very willing subject. An excellent find in a nearby location.
Now I know where to look more closely.
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