Spring has Sprung!

It's Spring in Ocala and the birds are getting more and more colorful and we are seeing more pairs. Last week was Spring Break and we had visitors from Colorado, Bill's daughter and her family, and naturally, we took them birding!

We didn't have to go very far to see this beautiful Bluebird...

..or this pair of Goldfinches. The American Goldfinches are sporting their vivid yellow colors and are showing up in huge flocks - eating us out of house and home - getting ready to head north.

Our Sherman Fox Squirrels are still showing up every day. We have as many as three at a time.

The Cedar Waxwings came by in huge numbers - but boy they are hard to photograph!!

We took the family to Rainbow Springs State Park and Bill and I walked around while the kids kayaked. We saw tons of Cardinals.

 It's always an especially good day when we see a Pileated Woodpecker!

I don't usually bother with the Grey Squirrels - but this little guy was just so cute!

This was the day of the Carolina Wrens - they were everywhere singing their little hearts out!

We wanted the kids to see Alligators - up close and personal - so we spent a day at Paines Prairie. Even this Boat-tailed Grackle is showing beautiful colors!

All of the usual herons, egrets and ibis were there - including this Snowy Egret. You can see that he is growing his breeding feathers.

Ms. Cardinal with a dirty beak. She's been playing in the mud.

The kids saw lots and lots of huge alligators - and this baby one.

This might be my best picture of a Palm Warbler.

I finished the quilt with the vegetable theme. I named it "Eat Your Veggies." It is a gift for an avid gardener.

The house is quiet now that our company is gone, but we had a great visit. The grandchildren were a delight. We will see them again in less than a month when we return to Colorado for the summer.

Meadowlarks at Sunset

Now that the time has changed, Bill often goes to the RC flying field after dinner. Tonight I joined him. It was still a little too windy to fly so we did a little bird watching.

The Eastern Meadowlark is one of my favorite birds. I love their bright yellow chests and their song is beautiful.

This one was singing his little heart out.

The Purple Martins have returned. OTOW sets out rows of houses to welcome them back.

This must be a male and female enjoying the sunset as I was.

It was almost dark - but I had time for one more picture - a Palm Warbler. Some of Bill's friends arrived just as the sun was setting and the wind died down for the evening. I headed home while he took his night plane out for a spin.

OTOW Unique Birders at Paynes Prairie

My sister, Beth is here for a week and we're having a wonderful time. I have lots of pictures from our various adventures that I will get posted soon - I promise.

On Thursday, Bill and I took her with us birding with the OTOW Unique Birders to Paynes Prairie. It was a beautiful warm and sunny day. We met the rest of the group at the big tree in the Health & Recreation Center parking lot at o'dark-thirty to arrange car pools. Anne joined us and the delightful ride was a preview for the rest of the day.

The La Chua Trail into the prairie and the observation deck is about 1 1/2 miles one way. It begins in a lovely wooded area with huge Live Oak trees draped with Spanish Moss where we parked our cars. Just past the pay station ($2 per person) and the porta-pottie, we observed this Osprey sitting on a mess of a nest high atop the high power tower. On each side were Great-tail Grackles. One was terrorizing a Red-belliedWoodpecker that we could see only with binoculars.

In the trees were several Cardinals, both male and female - and boy are they getting red! Looks like Spring will come early this year.

Past the Alachua Sink and the hundreds of alligators in the pond and along the bank, the trail follows the river bed. Since it has been so dry, we saw just a splash of water compared to what has been there in past visits. The usual birds were present: Belted Kingfisher, Anhinga, Double-crested Cormorant, White Ibis, Snowy Egret, a Little Blue Heron and this Great Heron. We also saw what looked like a grey hawk in the bushes. I took lots of pictures - none of which were good enough to publish, but good enough to ID the bird as a Black-crested Night Heron.

This American Kestrel must be a resident as I think I see him in the same spot every visit - overlooking the water and the boardwalk.

Along the trail, a juvenile Northern Harrier flew overhead, behind trees, into the bushes and low over the scrub keeping us company.

It was a special treat to see a group of Sandhill Cranes close to the trail. We were able to get as close as I've ever gotten - and I took hundreds of pictures. They are large, magnificent birds with incredible coloring. I just couldn't get enough.

The bright red on their heads is amazing! ...and look at that orange eye and long black beak!

Elegant. I see why their feathers were so valued for ladies' hats in the 1920's.

Back at the observation platform, we saw lots of Red-winged Blackbirds - but no wild horses, feral hogs, bison or Whooping Cranes as in years past. We rested for a short time before beginning the walk back.

Overhead, more and more Sandhill Cranes were flying in. The cranes on the ground called to them and we enjoyed the loud chorus.

I told you I took a lot of pictures. They were just so beautiful - I couldn't stop!

Back on the boardwalk, lots of Palm Warblers flitted in the bushes.

I was surprised to be able to get a couple of fairly good pictures as they usually aren't still for very long!

After our walk, we drove to the 43rd Street Deli (or was it the 42nd Street Diner?) for a delicious lunch, more great company and our bird count. It was a delightful day with my sister and the Unique Birders!

Unique Birders

Today the On Top Of the World (OTOW) Unique Birders had their first field trip of the season. A dozen birders met at the nearby Shalom Park at 8:30 this morning. The weather was cool, but the sun was shinning and the skies were bright blue. Anne Merrick lead the trip down and around the various garden paths that criss-cross the well-manicured grounds.

It was difficult getting our resident birding expert Norm Lentz (far right) to put down his binoculars long enough to take this group shot.

This is the underside of a Yellow-throated Warbler. It's a lousy picture - but it sure shows how this small bird got his colorful name!

Action shot! We watched this Eastern Phoebe for quite a while while he scooted around looking for insects on a dead limb. According to Donald and Lillian Stokes' Field Guide to Birds, "25% or more of phoebe nests are parasitized by cowbirds."

Another shot of the Eastern Phoebe sitting high and mighty.

I believe this is a Palm Warbler. Norm adds "This [Palm Warbler] is a good, crisp representation of the Western (Brown) variant in non-breeding plumage. The Eastern variant is yellow in all plumages. Both are common in Florida during the winter (non-breeding) season."

He was shopping in the moss and it looks like he has some stuck on his beak.

This looks like a Northern Parula - but that wasn't on our list, so it probably isn't. * Norm confirms my identification and Northern Parula Warbler has been added to our list.



I love the adorable Tuffted Titmice.

It was difficult getting a good shot of this Red-bellied Woodpecker with the sun in the background.

The State Bird of Florida, the Northern Mockingbird. We saw quite a few on our walk. This one was enjoying the beautiful bright purple berries on the Beautyberry bush.

I thought I was going to have to crawl under the bushes to get a decent shot of this Brown Thrasher. He was hunting in the leaves for a meal of insects, lizards, snakes, or berries.

The Eastern Bluebirds are not as blue this time of the year as they are in the Spring - but they are still beautiful. We have lots of them in our backyard.

After our walk we went to the Oasis Restaurant for brunch, and compiled our list of the 25 birds seen on our walk. Nice outing! Thanks everyone!