Rare American Flamingo Lingers At New Pass

Now is a good time to again be reminded that it is not a good idea to ever look directly at the sun.

The Laughing Gull above (image 1) was photographed at New Pass in July 2015.

With luck, for good or bad, a Laughing Gull's trajectory had it pass directly in front of the rising sun. One should certainly prefer to have a subject like this pass in front of the 400,000 times dimmer full moon.

The Brown Pelican with American Oystercatcher above (image 2) was photographed at New Pass in July 2015.

The Tricolored Heron with American Oystercatcher above (image 3) was photographed at New Pass in July 2015.

Our eyes certainly tell us of the danger if we look at the sun. It's also particularly not a good idea to look at the sun through the viewfinder of a camera where you may be observing the extremely bright orb magnified. Such was the case on my 17 July effort to observe a very uncommon American Flamingo that had settled down at the southern end of Lovers Key State Park at New Pass.

The Great White Heron above (image 4) was photographed at New Pass in July 2015.

The American Oystercatcher above (image 5) was photographed at New Pass in July 2015.

Photography while looking in the general direction of the sun is rarely preferred. Through experimentation you may find that the sun at your back is ideal. Note the value of the Golden Hour, Blue Hour, and Twilights. Although the birds were initially mere silhouettes, it was unmistakably clear that four of them were American Oystercatcher as indicated by their display calls.

The American Oystercatcher above (image 6) was photographed at New Pass in July 2015.

The Great Blue Heron above (image 7) was photographed at New Pass in July 2015.

After about an hour with no luck in finding the flamingo, I set out for National Audubon's Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary where Ghost Orchids live and bloom in early summer. The orchid species at the Swamp had been reported in the local news a couple of weeks earlier. That passage of time unfortunately led to blooms that looked long since peaked.

The Osprey above (image 8) was photographed at New Pass in July 2015.

The Seashore mallow above (image 9) was photographed at National Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in July 2015.

It was relatively quiet for bird activity along the boardwalk. The first species seen/ heard was a Northern Cardinal. Prolific as well were Red-bellied Woodpecker and Carolina Wren. A pair of Pileated Woodpecker were heard distant from one another. The wrens were ridiculously melodious above me while one captured a large spider and consumed it hastily before I was able to focus the camera on it.

The Ghost Orchid above (image 10) was photographed at National Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in July 2015.

The Carolina Wren above (image 11) was photographed at National Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in July 2015.

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck was personally observed at the Sanctuary for the first time after many visits there. When water levels are at their lowest (early to late Spring) is when wading birds are most prolific. See Hemant Kishan's reports for additional reasons to visit this remarkable place.

The Limpkin above (image 12) was photographed at National Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in July 2015.

The Black-bellied Whistling-Duck above (image 13) was photographed at National Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in July 2015.

My thanks to Tom Obrock for bringing the flamingo to my attention. Though the species was not seen on my 17 July visit to New Pass, a follow-up kayak trip on 23 July was well rewarded. The dolphins were excessively exhilarating at close range.

The American Flamingo above (image 14) was photographed at New Pass in July 2015.

Ed Weislo's website was helpful in identifying the flora this week.

A Fish Heist At Carlos Pointe: Pt. II

A trip to the beach is always a relaxing and rewarding experience in southwest Florida no matter the time of year.

The Black Skimmer with chick and decoy above (image 1) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

A July observation of Black Skimmers and other wildlife that had taken a good hold of Carlos Pointe directly south of Estero Beach was a great attraction in itself. Perhaps not quite as thrilling as a roller coaster, an interchange between a skimmer and several Laughing Gulls was almost as dizzying.

The Least Tern above (image 2) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Snowy Plover above (image 3) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull above (image 4) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The immature Tricolored Heron above (image 5) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 6) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Great Egret above (image 7) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

While I had considered a walk to the American Oystercatcher nest, I weighed the exhaustion that would ensue with an interest for reading a report about the birds first. It was with a Facebook report by Gail R. Campbell the day after I made my trip to Carlos Point that I read bad news.

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 8) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer with chick above (image 9) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull above (image 10) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 11) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 12) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 13) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

According to Gail, John D. Mosele of Fort Myers Beach had observed one of the American Oystercatcher chicks on 2 July, but it had not been seen thereafter. I have not seen any other reference to the second egg in the nest.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 14) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 15) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 16) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 17) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 18) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 19) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The oystercatcher eggs were hatching more quickly than I had anticipated since first observing them on 15 June. The loss of the oystercatcher chick was likely through predation from a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or perhaps an extremely hungry Laughing Gull.

The Black Skimmer above (image 20) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 21) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 22) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 23) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 24) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 25) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

Jessica Yarnell has made superb reports of Black Skimmer chicks at Indian Rocks Beach, just south of Clearwater, with additional images she intended to present interrupted with good fortune by her blog's namesake.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 26) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 27) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 28) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Laughing Gull harassing Black Skimmer above (image 29) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Least Tern above (image 30) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Black Skimmer chick above (image 31) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

Here at Carlos Pointe I was given an incredible show with the heist of a fish from a Black Skimmer by an extremely persistent Laughing Gull. The chase for the quarry which began with a solitary gull in pursuit of the skimmer, after two minutes had three gulls immediately on its tail.

The scene above (image 32) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Double-crested Cormorant above (image 33) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Snowy Plover above (image 34) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The Beach Sunflower above (image 35) was photographed at Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The walk back to the car offered a view of blooming flora sheltered at the foot of Big Carlos Pass bridge.

The sunface above (image 36) was photographed near Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

The scene above (image 37) was photographed near Carlos Pointe in July 2015.

Please also see A Fish Heist At Carlos Point: Pt. I