Sunday Drive

We have lots of American Goldfinches in our backyard. They aren't very colorful this time of year.

We took a ride out to Cedar Key for some of Tony's famous clam chowder. It was beyond delicious! Afterwards, we drove around the island where I spotted this Belted Kingfisher sitting by the Gulf. I've been trying to get a decent picture of this bird for several years - but they never sit still long enough. This one did. It's funny because my sister (http://quilterb-bethsblog.blogspot.com/2012/11/finally-kingfisher.html) just took some fabulous pictures of the same bird.

This one must be a male as I don't see a brown stripe.

This pier has seen better days but the many birds didn't care. I just think it's a neat picture.

Cedar Keys

Another of our adventures with my visiting sister Beth was to Cedar Keys on the Nature Coast of Florida. It is about an hours drive west from Ocala. Our first stop was to Shell Mound just before crossing the bridge onto the main Island and the small fishing village of Cedar Key.

The Black Skimmers were plentiful - lined up on one of the small sand mounds out in the water.

Air boats are a real problem. Yes, they look like a lot of fun - but they are a menace to plants, fish, birds and other aquatic life, especially in the rivers. We watched as this boat scared away all the birds. In the rivers, they run over the plants and destroy habitats.

As the Black Skimmers returned, we noticed other black and white birds - American Avocets! This is the first time we've seen Avocet at Cedar Key - and it was a Life Bird for Beth. Beth was able to get a decent picture of a Marbled Godwit - but I did not, so you'll have to check her blog.

On the Island, we headed to the docks just as this Seaplane was coming in for a landing. ...and just as Tidewater Tours was heading out for a trip to the islands. A quick pee stop and we were on board the pontoon boat.

Don't you love this pair of twin Double-crested Cormorants?

We saw thousands of Cormorants - in the air, on the shore, sitting on signs and lining all the islands. They are NOT endangered!

This shot was purely accidental. I was trying to get a picture of a dolphin when this Common Loon popped up right in front of the boat where my camera was aimed.

After lots and lots of pictures of splashes, I actually got a couple of pretty good pictures of dolphins!

I think they were following the boat.

I'm sure this one was smiling.

This is probably my best shot.

This is the top of the lighthouse on Seahorse Key. The island is open to visitors only a couple of days a year - and this was not one of the days.

Close to shore, we saw a couple of Horned Grebe. This one looks like he is playing with a small snake.

His partner wants to play too.

Too late - the snake is gone.

One of the islands is home to a large group of White Pelicans - and an even larger group of Cormorants. We were able to get quite close - and both Beth and I took dozens of pictures!

Back on land, we were excited to spot this Great Horned Owl. We pulled the car over and jumped out for a picture. Oh well, maybe next time. But even a plastic owl couldn't dampen our spirits. After a delicious meal at Tony's (yes, of course I had their award-winning clam chowder!) we headed back to Ocala. I think Beth enjoyed her day - I know I did!

Back in Colorado

Bill and I arrived safely back to our summer home in the dry skin, broken nail, lifeless hair, nose bleed state of Colorado. Our first day home it snowed.

Our yard was a complete disaster. Those of you that know us know that our back yard is usually our pride and joy with soothing water features, beautiful gardens and a comfortable patio. It'll take a lot of work to get there this year!

The fish did not make it through the harsh (and very dry) Colorado winter. The bubbler that delivers life-saving oxygen and keeps the water from freezing stopped working, delivering a death sentence to my Goldfish.

Two days after arriving back, I had a dozen women over to play Bunko so I had to focus my attention on moving around the dust inside the house. Hopefully, no one looked too closely. We had a great time, as always, but I never could have gotten ready without the help of my good friend, Nancy. She made the dessert (yummy heath bar cake) and came over early to help set up the tables. She is a great hostess and even served the cake and coffee while I caught up on all the latest gossip.

We had a fabulous cross-country trip and I have lots of pictures to share in a future blog. I'm so far behind I still need to finish-up with our last couple of weeks in Ocala!

Our Spring Break visit with grandson Zachary was much too short - but we kept him plenty busy! Over Easter weekend we took him for a surprise trip to Cedar Key...

and an airplane ride over the barrier islands! Zach sat up front with the pilot on the small 4 seater Cessna.

The views were magnificent!

I think Zach enjoyed the ride! Afterwards we went to Tony's for clam chowder and toured the Cedar Key Museum. I hated to put Zach back on the plane - but we needed to pack-up and get ready to head west and Zach needed to go back to school.

Birding at Cedar Key

The town of Cedar Key is a quaint fishing village on the Gulf Coast, about 50 miles southwest of Gainesville. The Cedar Keys are a group of barrier islands that are Federally protected bird and wildlife sanctuaries.

This picture was taken from the dock where we were waiting to depart on a birding trip through the marshes with expert birder Captain Doug. The birds flying over the hotels are Black Skimmers.

A large flock of Black Skimmers.

I caught this pair as they were flying to sit on the hotel roof with the rest of the gang. Note that their lower bill is longer than their upper. They feed by flying low and skimming the water with their lower bill.

The ever-present Ring-billed Gulls.

Once we were out in the boat, I saw more shore birds than I ever saw in South Florida. There were hundreds of huge White Pelicans.

The distinctive black markings on their wings show only when they fly. I was amazed how close we were able to get to them.

Oystercatchers were everywhere. It was high tide and every inch of every available sand bar was covered with shore birds.

Oystercatchers and Willets. The Willets also have a very distinctive black and white wing pattern when they fly.

Willets, Willets and more Willets - but note the bigger bird with the long downward curved bill. It is a Wimbrel.

Another Wimbrel. The two smaller birds facing in the same direction as the Wimbrel are, I believe, a Short-billed Dowitcher (center) and a Dunlin.

A little of everything - can you name them all? I can't!

A couple of the sand bars were wall-to-wall Ruddy Turnstones.

Captain Doug promised us Plovers and we found these way out on a secluded beach. The one on the right is a Semipalmated Plover. I'm not sure if the other two are also Semipalmated or another plover.

Close-up of the Semipalmated Plover showing the necklace that goes all the way around.

I didn't expect to see a Loon on this trip!

The larger bird with the long black and pink bill is a Marbled Godwit.

We saw a couple of Bald Eagles during our 3 hour trip.

Back on land, I saw this Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.

We met another couple on our trip, Linda and Graham, and joined them for dinner at Tony's. Tony has won the gold ribbon for his clam chowder two years in a row - and after eating it I sure understood why! It was the BEST clam chowder I've ever had. Bill had fresh raw oysters and he said they were delicious. We have a new favorite place to eat!

We had a great day at Cedar Key - and I can't wait to go back.

Road Trip

Yesterday, Bill and I drove over to the quaint island of Cedar Key on the Nature Coast to see if they still had the best grouper and raw oysters in Florida. They did.

On the way we stopped for a short hike at one of the parks along Route 24. This may look like a birdhouse, but I think it is actually either a bat house or a butterfly house - but don't tell this Great-crested Flycatcher. I like the muted colors in this shot.

My sister has been taking beautiful pictures of butterflies lately - so I was inspired to try my hand.

I chased this one for quite a while - as he flitted from flower to flower.

He was prettier than my picture shows. Guess I'm going to have to find a butterfly guide so I can identify them. Maybe I'll just ask my sister.

Over at Cedar Key, the Forster's Terns are already in their winter plumage. The one in the middle must be running for Governor. I will be so-o glad when Election Day is over!

In the summer, the black across the eye covers the top of the head and the bill turns bright orange with black on just the tip. While we sat on the back deck of the restaurant eating our dinner, we were entertained watching them dive headfirst into the water over and over to catch small fish.

The Laughing Gulls also look quite different this time of year. Since this one still has brown on his wings, he may be a second year juvenile. They get their breeding plumage with an all-black head in the third year.

The common Royal Terns were everywhere - and quite vocal. They look semi-bald in the winter but come spring he will grow a beautiful head of jet-black hair.

Naturally, we also saw lots of Brown Pelicans doing what Pelicans do - just stand around and groom their feathers.

I've joined the Shutterbugs Photography Club here in OTOW and one of our current challenges is to take pictures of trees in Shalom Park for an exhibit in March. I was at the park when the gates opened at 8:00 AM hoping to get some decent shots with the early morning light.

I would like this one better if it had a cute raccoon or two sticking their heads out of the hole. I do like the colors behind the tree.

This is probably my favorite shot of the day - but I'm really not thrilled with any of them. Trees just stand there. I've asked Bill (he's the one with the artistic eye) to go over with me and give me some pointers.

How could I resist this cute squirrel? He looks like he's wearing a clown nose for Halloween.

Trees are homes for all the birds and critters that I do like to photograph - so that's probably the way I'll proceed with this challenge.