When In Rome, Do As The Romans Do

When traveling about Florida to photograph its magnificent and diverse wildlife, it is always a thrill to visit a venue for the first time.


The Cattle Egret with juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.

Such was the case when I made a trip to Gatorland located east of Walt Disney World Resort, and north of Kissimmee. As a bonus in observing the rookery here, a haven for numerous wading birds and other species, it was my great pleasure to meet up with renowned wildlife photographer Arthur Morris and his fellow BirdPhotographer.net friends Denise Ippolito and Cheryl Slechta. Once we entered the venue and had settled down, it was immediately clear to me that everyone preferred to hand hold their cameras and medium sized zoom lenses. That didn't deter me from using my tripod and all that until well over an hour had passed when I realized how opportunistic the use of gear like that might be with the birds flying in and out of the rookery at very close range. I would ultimately go into the bag and utilize the 70-200mm which allowed for greater ease in tracking incoming birds. Most images taken with the longer lens clipped the birds photographed to one degree or another, in some instances even when they were perched. The 1.4x and 2x converter/ extenders brought along for possible use were not considered as I knew my visit was coming to a close with the sun rising and it warming up quickly. I thought it interesting how frequently small branches were brought into the rookery area by some of the birds so late in the season. There were of course a lot of alligators in virtually every direction as Artie and I considered the pruning of trees. At another point I had my first sighting of a Common Peafowl that seemed very comfortable perched beyond a fence. The lores of the egrets showing peak breeding plumage were few as Artie noted another great time to photograph the birds at Gatorland is in March.


Arthur Morris above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Tricolored Heron with juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


Denise Ippolito, Arthur Morris and Cheryl Slechta above were photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Great Egret with juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Great Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Boat-tailed Grackle above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Little Blue Heron juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Great Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Great Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Wood Stork above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Tricolored Heron with juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Great Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Northern Cardinal above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Great Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The alligator above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Great Egret with juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret with juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret with juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Great Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Tricolored Heron juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Tricolored Heron juvenile above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Osprey above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Cattle Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Great Egret above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Great Blue Heron above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Common Peafowl above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Common Peafowl above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


The Emu, the national bird of Australia, above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.


Arthur Morris above was photographed at Gatorland in July 2012.

Guest Contribution II By Hemant Kishan

It is a great pleasure to present to you a continuing series of guest contributions by Hemant Kishan, former Director of Strategy and Planning, with the General Motors Company. Hemant is also known as Digital Plume Hunter, and is working to document Ohio's Magee Marsh 2012 Spring migrants at the publication time of this post . . .

Warblers at Corkscrew -- Part I

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is a productive place to find some key warbler species in Southwest Florida. Breeding species include Common Yellowthroat and Northern Parula; overwintering species include Black and White, Yellow-rumped, Pine, Palm and Ovenbird; while both Waterthrushes are reliable in Spring migration (both Northern and Lousiana).

This article takes a look at the Black and White and Northern Parula warblers.



The black and white warbler is a common overwintering species at Corkscrew. It has striking black and white markings and is hard to confuse with any other bird.



The black-and-white warbler feeds much like a nuthatch -- going up and down the trunks of trees plucking insects along the way. When busy feeding, it can be a confiding bird, often approaching the observer fairly closely.



Its winter range includes Florida, Central America as well as Northern South America. Its breeding range covers most of the Eastern United States and Canada. At Corkscrew in winter, they are easy to see in Winter when the foliage is thin -- they often feed in mixed flocks but seldom flock with others of their kind.

Unlike the stark black and whites of the black-and-white warbler, the Northern Parula (pronounced PAR'you-la) is a colorful Spring/Summer breeder at Corkscrew.



In April, the Northern Parula's are at their peak at Corkscrew -- the males can be heard singing as they establish their breeding territories. Interestingly enough, the Northern Parula breeding population is disjointed -- there is a Southern and Northern range in the US with the latter population using lichen and the former, Spanish Moss, for nesting material.



The best way to find Northern Parulas at Corkscrew is to listen for their song in Spring time. They are fast and energetic feeders and getting a good shot can be a very frustrating experience! However, when that elusive shot finally comes through, you will be rewarded with an image that can only partly capture the spectacular yellow chest, blue/grey hood and an incomplete white eye-ring of this signature warbler at Corkscrew.

Please see Hemant's Finding Vireos at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.

Burrowing Owl Study And A Visit To Little Estero Lagoon

25 months since my first observation of the sub species of Burrowing Owl found in Florida had passed when I made the species a primary subject of interest this week.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


I returned to Festival Park in Cape Coral for two late afternoon visits with hopes of continuing my study of the Florida Burrowing Owl. This species finds disturbed ground on both Florida coasts accommodating in the construction of their tunnels used to perpetuate the species. My first visit this week was timed to hopefully see mating activity that was last observed February 24th. Shame on me for allowing so much time to pass since finding this opportunity. The result has been to find the mating activity apparently over. I observed on the first visit this week to find what I believe to be the male owl outside of the burrow to call to its mate a few minutes after sunset while the bird in the burrow appeared within seconds. The owl from its hidden domicile spent many minutes preening itself, especially its belly which led me to believe that it had been resting on eggs. Both visits to the park to observe all birds offered an audible observation of what I'm sure was Northern Bobwhite. There was no luck to capture an image of this personally undocumented species. Aside from the time spent with meadowlarks and shrike that are almost always seen at this venue, I again found the Burrowing Owl most entertaining. The second visit to Festival Park this week was interesting as I observed the resident owl outside the burrow glance toward the burrow entrance as the bird's mate emerged. The female exited the burrow about 20 minutes before sunset unexpectedly. The female owl appeared fatigued with its pupils constricted. The bird was above ground for a mere moment when I was able to capture an image of it where the pupil in its eyes was appropriately re-sized in the bright light after its duty in complete darkness. I haven't observed the Great Horned Owl the last few times I have visited this park. To end my wildlife observation for the week I met up with Tom Obrock at Little Estero Lagoon. I had been avoiding this area because of the heavy traffic for the commute this time of year. It was my great fortune to spend the morning with Tom while he pointed out all of the most interesting things at this awesome venue. It was also a treat this week to hear workmate Margie Congregane rave repeatedly about our company's decision to purchase Kodak Easy Share C1530 cameras for our stores. It is tragic that the 131 year old company that invented the digital camera revolution and many other marvels filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Eastern Meadowlark above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Eastern Meadowlark above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Florida Scrub-Jay above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The immature Bald Eagle above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Burrowing Owl regurgitating a pellet above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Burrowing Owl above was photographed at Festival Park in March 2012.


The Black-bellied Plover above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Semipalmated Plover above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Little Blue Heron above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Snowy Egret above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Snowy Egret above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Snowy Egret above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Sanderling above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Double-crested Cormorant above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Double-crested Cormorant above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Double-crested Cormorant with Laughing Gull above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Wilson's Plover above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Palm Warbler above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Dunlin above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Brown Pelican above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Great Egret above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


Tom Obrock above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Peregrine Falcon above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.


The Tricolored Heron above was photographed at Little Estero Lagoon in March 2012.