When I received a reply from Alice Van Zoeren, affiliated with the University of Minnesota, advising me of details about the banded Piping Plover presented in last week's post, I immediately had a quirky title come to mind for this week's article.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
Alice informed me that she spent a lot of time with the banded Piping Plover that was a chick this past summer at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The bird, possibly last seen by Alice, appeared in the Fort Myers area on 27 September or before. Alice has given permission to include here an image of the banded bird with one of its parents at Platte Point created on 29 June 2012. Out of curiosity of the distance the bird traveled between the two points it was observed, I remembered hearing the term "as the crow flies." The
Great Circle formula is used to calculate such a distance while taking into account the curvature of the Earth. Using coordinates Alice provided me of her sighting and the location I observed the bird makes the distance traveled 1284 miles. I would imagine that the plover and the massive flock of birds it certainly made the journey with actually traveled a greater distance considering weather obstacles. The final destination of the plover on its migratory journey will hopefully be observed and reported. I made a trip to Festival Park in Cape Coral and Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve in Fort Myers on 1 October.
Festival Park offered a trio of juvenile Peregrine Falcon and a trio of Florida Scrub-Jay as highlights. Loggerhead Shrike were on the wires and an Eastern Meadowlark was heard, but not seen. In two hours at Six Mile, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher were observed as the most prolific species. No other photo opportunities arose along the boardwalk with a favorable weather event needed to cause a fall out.
The Piping Plover above was photographed by Alice Van Zoeren at Platte Point in June 2012.
The Piping Plover above was photographed at Bunche Beach Preserve in September 2012.
The juvenile Peregrine Falcon above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in October 2012.
The Blue-gray Gnatcatcher above was photographed at Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve in October 2012.
The Blue-gray Gnatcatcher above was photographed at Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve in October 2012.
Good job Bob
ReplyDeleteThanks, Tom. Festival Park appears to remain an unpopular venue. I would enjoy visiting it daily if it were possible.
DeleteLove the blog and especially the photographs Bob. You have great patience and a trained eye. The colors pop out and I will be checking regularly. Thanks for dropping by and visiting Snap Dragon, I appreciate your comments. Keep up the excellent work.-R Keith
ReplyDeleteSuperbes photos !
ReplyDeleteWhat a marvellous post Bob!
ReplyDeleteI love the Scrub-Jay! I wish we could have such a stunning bird in France!
Amazing portraits... Congrats for getting so close!
I adore bird watching in this region, a lot to see and a lot to learn! Pick up a book and discover a life long hobby filled with excitement and patients. I never thought I would take an interest in this but surprisingly it is a great way to relax if you have a stress filled life. I was just in Florida and had a great time scoping out the birds! Stayed in Palm Bay and drove around to various parts of Florida. The Palm Bay Hotel (www.palmbay-hotel.com) was great on my wallet since it was so cheap and close to a lot!
ReplyDelete