Been Awhile

It has been too long since I was able to visit Mead Botanical Garden. Now that Fall migration is kicking in I decided now was the time. That and reports of some more rare birds being sighted got me out early.

The beginning of the trip was promising but the Sun was making shots difficult but birds were definitely here. By the time I got to the concrete bridge I did find a Cape May Warbler foraging over the water.



I was there for a different flycatcher but soon a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher landed mere feet in front of me. Of course, it flew off as I aimed the camera. I had to try and chase it for a couple of minutes, only getting a brief ID shot before it flew off over the pond.



I got to the wooden bridge to find a female Anhinga basking in the rising Sun. I stayed at the far end and she eventually flew off. Moments later, the flycatcher I was there for dropped down maybe 4 feet in front of me devouring an insect. Like the Yellow-bellied, it flew before I could click for a nice up close shot.



So I waited at the bridge hoping it would return. In the meantime, I was joined by other birds including a Prairie Warbler.



Then a Red-eyed Vireo made a quick stop and a peek-a-boo treatment. They are hard to photograph as they move so quickly through the branches, usually higher above in the trees.



A male Anhinga decided to drop into a Cypress across from be to soak up the sunlight.



Another Prairie Warbler pranced through another Cypress as I continued my watch for my prize.



An "Elephant ear tree", (Enterolobium cyclocarpum), spreads over the wooden bridge and at one point a male Cape May Warbler spent time feeding among its branches and paused for a moment to provide me my best ever shot of this species.



I was prepared to leave when I decided to do something I typically never do. I played a sound clip in hopes of seeing if the bird I was after was still nearby. Moments later the bird I was here for, a Least Flycatcher emerged from the bamboo for a quick minute. I have been trying to get one of these birds on my List for years. Nemesis, no more!



Next Sunday is the official start of Fall migration and I will be spending full weekends trying to capture and band birds at the banding site. More fun ahead!

Return of the Bald Eagles

If it is daylight I try to make it through Greenwood Cemetery to see if the Bald Eagles have returned for the season. Finally, on Saturday, one of the birds made it back and was perched in a distant pine tree near the nest.



On Sunday, I found the pair in the same tree just hanging out. Time to try for a new brood!



Last years attempt was unsuccessful. Good luck, you two.

Barn Swallows at the Cemetery

With our banding season beginning again, I have less time to explore. Well, I still do my lake checks but there has not been a lot around. I try to end my trip by swinging through Greenwood Cemetery while waiting for the return of the Bald Eagles that nest here every year. No eagles yet. However, I was surprised by the large flock of Barn Swallows foraging all over the property.



As always, swallows travel very fast and trying to get a shot is tricky. I got my best one during the middle of the stop. At first, I thought it was a Cliff Swallow but later investigation showed it was a juvenile Barn Swallow.



Several Chimney Swifts were also in the area but darkness was falling so I couldn't get any shots of them. Might have to swing through again tomorrow!

Mom's Feeders

We headed over to Mom's to sort through Dad's clothing and other belongings to see if we could recycle stuff before getting the rest to Goodwill. A somber 4 days but we managed to have some enjoyable times here and there. One of the last things Dad did before weeding and passing away was filling the feeders. If we visited and I noticed that they were empty I would head out to fill them and get water in the bird bath.

Mom mentioned that she had not filled the feeders since because she never saw any birds out there so it was not really worth it. Besides, she is busy enough. I figured I had to fill them as the rains approached to see what would show up. It rained for 4 solid days afterwards.

It didn't take long for birds to start returning to the feeders after they were loaded. Kinda like, "Where was that old guy who fed us? Yay! Food!!". House Sparrows and other birds began streaming into the yard. I enjoyed trying to examine the sparrows to see how many were juveniles like this one who was picking at grasses in between feeder visits.



Blue Jays were soon to follow and there was an entire family. Juveniles were everywhere of many species but the Jay kids were super hungry for most days.



House Sparrows have never been uncommon at the house when the feeders are full but I was amazed by the numbers on this visit. At one point of the last day there were at least 50 flocking through and perching everywhere.



Out front at feeder #2, a juvenile Mourning Dove stayed on the ground picking up the spilled food. You can tell young doves with their feathers looking more like scales instead of a smooth, uniform brown.



Even juvenile Boat-tailed Grackles joined in at a couple of times. It was difficult to get that iridescent shine in the rain but this one works for me.



Another juvenile House Sparrow perches on the feeder pole waiting for a turn to grab more food.



A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird was seen many times but I never had the camera in my hands when she was out in the open. I had to settle for a blurry shot through the window as she rested in the Crepe Myrtle.



Despite the heavy bands of rain, once we had a small break the House Sparrows decided they needed a more thorough washing in the bird bath.



There were several other species that flew through. There were Eurasian collared doves, Red-winged Blackbirds, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, and Starlings. On the final day, a Tufted Titmouse braved the mass of birds and took a chance at getting to the feeder.



When things got too crazy, it would retreat to the Crepe Myrtle and wait for the next opportunity.



We were packing the car to head home and I put the camera in the front seat. I decided to look out back once more and a juvenile Cooper's Hawk flew in to try for a birds meal and landed in the yard. I headed back to the car to retrieve the camera hoping for the raptor to still be around. It did stay but flew up to the power lines to keep watch.



The fun part about juvenile Cooper's Hawks is that they are not afraid of much. Too inexperienced. I got 30 close-up shots before we headed back to Orlando.



So, we got through the first wave of help to clean out Dad's stuff. We also got some good birding in the yard and saw Star Trek (I recommend it). I told Mom not to worry about keeping the feeders filled. They went through 3 fillings while we were there but they are fine on their own. Clearly.

By the way, I call it 'bird bait' and not bird seed. We only use it to bring bird to us. They are just fine on their own.

Pulse

A little break from the birds.

I do a tour of the local lakes most Saturday mornings and today I got a little hungry when I was done and drove over to Wendy's for some nuggets. This Wendy's is directly across the street from the Pule nightclub just a couple miles from the house and less than a mile from where our kids went to school. Heck, most of the victims brought to the hospital is right next to where both our boys were born. So, I have been driving past this location for most of nearly 25 years.

Pulse was originally an Italian restaurant we visited at least once. After that closed it eventually became a nightclub catering to a primarily gay clientele. The place was fairly unassuming and had a packed parking lot after hours. Again, I drove past this spot all the time heading to the stores or coming home. After the shootings the roads were closed for weeks as the investigations went on so I didn't have a reason to go near it.

Now, the spot is a memorial and people still file through all day. Some leave items, many more take photos and read what was left at the front entrance. When you leave the Wendy's parking lot to the main road you are facing Pulse. I decided to take a photo nearly two months after the event.



Two days before the Pulse shooting, Christina Grimme, a singer who was on 'The Voice', was shot and killed 2 1/2 miles in the other direction from our house. Senseless violence so close to home. But remember, this is not a violent city. This was just two crazy events in one weekend carried out by two lunatics. I still feel safe here but deeply saddened. I, and many countless others, love Orlando. All the signs say it. 'Orlando Strong', 'Orlando United', 'Orlando Love'.

We are a wildly diverse city and we are better for it. Glad our kids were brought up tolerant of others and they really don't get why people hate others for little reason. Generations are getting smarter all the time. I was born in Gainesville and lived in several cities in Florida but Orlando will always be my home.

Jaywatch, 2016, Pt. 2

My 2nd day at Buck Lake for the Jay Watch this year. Many known faces and a few new ones as we gathered for the group photo before heading out to our check points.



Once I settled in to my first point I took a bit of time to move up the trail during one of the in between call playing sessions. I was mainly looking at the trees but as I headed back to my starting point I gazed down and noticed a Black Bear paw print in the road! They looked fairly fresh. It rained last night so these prints were probably from not too long ago. They lead directly to...my check point flag and disappeared into the scrub. Gulp!



Along the road were a few flowers including a native pink spiderwort also called Roseling (Cuthbertia ornate).



At my next check point was was positioned to look back toward the rising Sun and to where I was not long ago. I began to play the call files and noticed several silhouettes approaching me. Could they be a family of Scrub Jays? No. A family of Eastern Towhee with two adults and several newly fledged young.



We passed this stalk of flowering Palmetto on the way back to our initial check points and I was glad we had a chance to come back by it again so I could get a photo.



I even got to walk past it as we headed toward the truck and get an even closer view. Never saw such a stalk before.



Our driver, Pete, did find our one Jay of the morning.



My next two stops were in areas not that common for the Jays so I always look for more flowers like the Loblolly Bay.



My final point had a good number of Asters blooming at the edge of the roadway.



A pretty scene for the end of the day. These areas are burned periodically to clear the way for a Jay friendly environment. Snags still stand above the lush new growth and tower into the sky.



Only one Scrub Jay in our transect. I recall many more in this area years ago so it is kind of sad. We will see how the data compiles later in the year. Hopefully, the birds are gaining ground in different areas.

Jaywatch 2016, Pt. 1

Oh, how I was dreading this year's Jay Watch. We are doing it a bit later than in past years and we have been under very humid and hot weather for a week. Fortunately, the morning was not too bad and we even had a bit of a breeze to keep things a little cooler. Plus, we ended fairly early. Not too bad. We gathered for a group photo just before heading out to the survey areas.

Always easy to spot me in my beard and banding uniform.



My group began at Site 41 in the area well known for a reliable group of Jays. The first one jumped up to check us out right away.



Another bird (unbanned, we determined after a lot of looks and scoping) stayed high in a snag and was joined by another bird as we surveyed the area.



The most curious Florida Scrub Jay came down to check us out. It only has a single Federal aluminum band. I decided to call it Silver. I didn't notice until later (we are really focused on band colors) that this bird was molting in tail feathers.



One of the first Florida Scrub Jays I remember at Buck Lake was a bird with mostly green bands. I was wondering where it was when she finally popped into view. Two Kelly Green bands plus the metal band leaves me calling her Kelly.



We went to our next site points and Kelly and Silver, here atop a pine, followed us down the road.



We headed farther down the check points to gather Susan from her spot and I noticed a Jay coming up behind here. Turned out it was Silver once again, following us even farther along the way. Those molting tail feathers give it away, too.



I was hoping to get a good shot in the open and Silver complied.



Kelly soon joined us, too. These were the only Jays we had on our transect but it was nice to get some good clear shots to share with the group.



The next spot found me beginning to play the taped calls to attract more jays. Soon, I saw a Swallow-tailed Kite circling overhead. We have to stop playing calls so any juveniles bring themselves into view as any predators are around. Kites will take a young bird when they can.



No trip out to the scrub is complete without me getting a shot of Tar Flower blooming. They are waning right now but still beautiful.



I finished my point a bit ahead of others and started toward the truck for pickup. Susan (one of our banding volunteers) was winding up her spot at that point.



We found a few Gopher Tortoises along the side of the roads and Maria, head of the Jay Watch here, moved it to the scrub. I didn't realize it but I heard rustling and had to investigate. There it was, plowing through the underbrush.



Only one family to record but I was happy to get some shots along the way. Tomorrow, I will be in another transect at Buck Lake and hope to find more Jays.

Atlas V Launch

Time for another Atlas V launch. This morning was a bit too bright for my liking but all I have to do is step outside and wait for a couple of minutes before...liftoff!



The rocket rose into the bright sky. Not another cloud in the area.



One of the fun things I like about launches is seeing what the contrail is going to do based on light, wind, ect. Got a little contrast in there but it was nothing too spectacular.



Back to work!