I'm Getting Closer

I'm learning to take my camera every time I step out the door. Today I had it wrapped around my neck as I emptied the trash. A bird flew by me. I thought it was the feathered imp that teases me with his presence. As it zoomed past me, I realized I was seeing hawks everywhere, mostly in my imagination. I looked up from the trash can to the north, and perched on a tree top in my neighbors back yard was a very large bird. Could I be so lucky to finally get the chance to take a picture of him without the sun interfering? I made my way to Lee's drive way. It was the hawk. I snapped a few, but knew I was still too far away.

Lee's trash was out and his paper retrieved. I made up my mind. I knocked on his door. I just had to get in that back yard. My 94 year old neighbor became my assistant. He held the back door open; so the hawk wouldn't hear us. I only got a few pictures of him, before myself or the dive boming mocking birds scared him off.

The Elusive Neighborhood Hawk

He's driving me crazy. I can sense when he is the neighborhood. It not only get quiet, it gets very still outside. I've walked out the back door and he flies over my head. Friday Morning I was chasing him down in the fog. He was on the power pole, a few houses down. As I got closer, the neighbor's basset hounds started to bark. That caused him to take off. I seen him later in the afternoon, and the neighbor shut her door. He took to the air once again.

Today, he was on the pole just Southwest of me. So was the sun. This is the best picture I have been able to get of him. It not that great. I can't tell what type he is.

Out and About

We were going to take the kayak and canoe out on Friday morning. The weather didn’t look good. It was overcast and we had sprinkles. Linda called Mayra, and told her we would try next weekend. Linda then headed out the door, to do who knows what.

I prepared to work on the bathroom. An hour later, the phone rang. Mayra was calling. She wanted to hit George McGough Nature Preserve. She had never been to the park. I told her I couldn’t go, because I was working on the bathroom. Then I called back. Oh what the heck. What’s another day?

Should have worn a sweatshirt. It was 68 in the shade. Now I’m glad we didn’t hit the water .
Wasn’t much to see at McGough. The Laughing Gulls made themselves comfortable on the boardwalk. They weren’t frightened by Mayra or me.

Mayra hadn’t ever been to John Bonner Nature Park either. It is just a few blocks north, and we jumped in to her Jeep. We spent most of the time at the beginning of the birding trail. Didn’t see any birds as we walked further on the trail. It seems no one has told the birds that the trail is for them.

The Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher is a bugger to photograph. He is almost as fast as a hummingbird. The little thing finally stopped flying from branch to branch.

The Yellow-Rumped Warbler. One of the bird brain books tells me the Palm Warbler likes to forage on the ground like this bird was doing. But the half rings around the eyes say Yellow-Rumped Warbler; not Palm Warbler.

A Little of This, A Little of that

The night before Charlie went in for her operation, we had to remove water dishes. We have one in the back yard for the girls, and as you can see, once I emptied it, she turned it into a toy. Sometimes I wish I could read Susie's mind. She must think Charlie is just nuts.

The vet said Charlie drove them crazy when she first arrived on Friday morning. I know she used to make a racket when we crated her. I can only imagine the sounds she made as other dogs came in and out of the office. Once she was spayed, she settled down. Yea, the sedative and pain killlers had to help.

I think Susie actually missed her on Friday

As the vet was telling me what to do, what to look out for, he informed me that there has been a tick infestation. He exterminate the builing himself, but dogs have been coming in with tick much more this year than in years past. I couldn't be informed about this before they took her? I think I should have had the option of leaving her or not.

Dr. Mike seemed a lttle miffed about the tick thing. All I could think was, I didn't bring in ticks. I chalk it up to a bad day. He has called to check on Susie, after we've taken her in to see him.

We are supposed to keep her from jumping. Yea right. She acts like she spent a day at the spa. The little bundle of energy has only slowed down a little.

Monk Parakeets. They aren't native to Florida, but the 1960's escapees have certainly made themselves at home. My neighbor likes to feed the birds. They sit on the wire waiting for their shot at the food.

I wait with camera waiting for a flight shot. This is the only one I got. As I was waiting with camera ready, my arm got tired. I let the camera down, and they flew off.

Hit the Trail Jack

Mayra and I decided last weekend to hit Brooker Creek Preserve in Tarpon Springs. (Linda didn’t want to go. Her knees hurt, and I forgot to ask Deb. ) We were gawking at the osprey nest along US 19, that we drove right past state highway 582. We drove into Pasco county before we noticed our mistake. Whoops!!

8300 acres promised to offer otters, bear, dear, fox and etc. As we drove into the park, the vultures were circling along with the Osprey. After walking the 4 mile loop, you can see what we seen. Several Golden Silk Spiders. We heard the eagle and the hawk, but they were no shows. Nothing but mosquitos seemed to fly within our eyes. Of course I forgot mosquito repellant.


We then figured we’d check out John Chestnut Park on the way back home. We didn’t get out. Just checked to see if there was a good area to put in the canoe and kayak. The barbecues were making us hungry.

I tried calling Linda, but she wasn’t home. So we decided to head out in search of some place to eat. We ended up crossing the Dunedin causeway and found ourselves at the entrance of Honeymoon Island State Park. Mayra paid the $5.00 to enter and we headed for the cafe. Food!! Fish and Chips never tasted better. And you couldn’t beat the the view.

We then went in search of the nature trail. As we turned towards the parking lot, Mayra spotted a snake in the road. Mayra stopped the her Jeep in the middle of the road, and we jumped out to get a picture of it. Nothing like seeing an Eastern Diamondback Rattle Snake in the wild. Absolutely beautiful. Good thing Linda wasn’t with us. She would have screamed like a girl.

I was trying to take a picture of a woodpecker with my Minolta (I figured I should use up some of my film), when we a man walking his pit bull came upon us. “There’s two owls in a pine just to the right. Follow me.” We took of with him and with white pit bull, with the black patch over her left eye.

I’ll tell you the Great Horned Owls are hard to spot. He kept pointing and talking about the second one. “It’s in the same tree. See it?” Not really. It took a while to spot it.
The best picture I could get with the digital camera of the Great Horned Owl. I'll have to wait until tomorrow to see what I captured on film

I was taking a picture of the Monarch Butterfly, when the phone rang. Linda was calling. We had running water in the laundry room. It was time to come home.

Back to Jungle Prada

Deb and Mayra had gone to Jungle Prada without us one weekend, and spent time with the manatees. Mayra wanted to go back.

We didn’t see manatees or dolphins this Sunday. We did see these bozos speeding through the area we had seen the manatees. No wonder the gentle giants have scars all over their bodies.

We decided on 9:00 AM. Linda realized, we hadn’t turned the clocks back. She didn’t want to wait another hour. I’ happy I bought hoodies in Raymond, WA, earlier this year. It was cold out there this morning.

I was taking pictures of the terns. I kept clicking in hopes of getting a bird in flight. I got the picture. But I also go this picture. I was focused on the bird, when I noticed something in the back ground. It is a fish in flight. Click on the picture and you get a better view.

I did get a picture of a tern flying.

A we got closer to the rockery that serves as a bird sanctuary, we could smell a foul smell. The turkey vultures were flying above. We didn’t see what they were trying to get.

We did see nesting Herons. Like this one coming in for a landing. The pelican didn’t seem to happy with him.

One would pick up twigs, and hand off to the other.

A Ruddy Turnstone. Gets its name from turning stones over to look for food.

Late for Work Again

I was going to be on time. Then I noticed this guy in the parking lot. I should learn to leave my camera at home.

I thought finding the names of birds is difficult. You should give dragonflies a try.

I Wish I Had Four Hands.

High tide wasn’t until late afternoon. What is one supposed to do? Hit the inter coastal. Right before you get to the bridge on Walsingham, there is a turn off next to George McGough Nature Park. We had planned to enter the inter coastal there, but Linda didn’t like the idea. She had a far better one - Keegan Claire Park in Indian Rocks Beach.

It’s not a large park. I think it has 4 parking spots. But it has beach access. We carried the canoe and kayak to the beach and off we went.

(I know. I was in my kayak on Sunday, and now on Thursday, I’ m just getting around to posting pictures. Hey it takes me a while. Sometimes to figure out what bird is which. I sometimes sit here with 3 different books, and still hit the internet to make sure I’ve named the bird correctly. )


One bird I didn’t have to spend time on was the Yellow Crowned Night Heron. He was every where.

Kayaking with a dolphin. That was just fun. I can’t row and take pictures at the same time. He was swimming right next to me. When I stopped to get the camera ready, he took off in another direction. I felt abandoned.

This little Snowy Egret wasn’t angry. It think he was just cold. I was wishing I had brought a jacket. It must have been in the lower 70’s when we first hit the water. (Sorry to offend all of you in the north. That’s cold when you get accustomed to 90 degree weather.)

I never realized how close the 3 nature parks are. We passed McGough, Bonner and Indian Rocks, and the birds were just having a great time. There must have been some good eats in all that mud. I snapped the Roseate Spoonbill swallowing something.


I don’t understand how so many pelicans can sit in the mangroves. I sat in the kayak as more and more of them continued to fly in. The little bird sanctuary had plenty a room in the mangroves for them to spread out, but they just wanted hang out close to each other.

I love the picture of them taking off. Some woman had gotten out of her kayak and walked the sand bar. She got a little to close for their comfort. She did me a favor. I’m always trying to get that shot of birds in flight.

Woodstork were on the prowl for food as we turned rowed toward the Indian Rocks Nature Preserve.

The Gulls were a little feisty. This one wouldn’t leave the poor Ibis alone. The other Ibis hung out together, and no gulls bothered them. This one decided to go it alone, and he was harassed.

I told you it takes me a while to figure out what some birds are. It’s these little shore birds that drive me crazy. The Spotted Sandpiper doesn’t look spotted. The non breeding feathers are just gray.

So are the feathers of the Willet. I’m not completely sure of this bird. But I can’t find anything else he could be.

The identity of this bird was easy. He fits the description. Non breeding: back speckled gray, short straight bill and big black eyes. He was very difficult to get a clear shot. Not that he moves too fast , or that he wouldn’t let me get near him. He blends into the mud. I use the view finder on my camera, and some times I would lose him. The camera’s auto focus often focused in on everything but the bird.

Once I again I left the water as a tormented soul. The call of the Belted King Fisher mocked me. Like the previous weekend, they flew past me at such speed, I had no chance of getting a picture.

My Picture

For those who wonder what I look like, this picture is for you.

We dress up for Halloween, at least some of us do. I was the only one on the team. To me it is another opportunity to wear jeans. Just throw on a mask, off to work I go. No ironing!!!

Fred Howard Park

We were all to meet at Panera Bread at 6:30 AM. Forget getting a bagel for the road. They don't open until 7:00 AM. But we were still in the parking lot at 7:00. Mayra had to rush home and retrieve her camera. It seems Deb showed up at Mayra's at 5:30 AM.

We hit the road shortly at 7:00 for Tarpon Springs. Driving through downtown Clearwater I got the creeps. There were men and women walking the streets, wearing white shirts and black pants. I kept thinking about the Charleton Heston movie Omega Man. It was about a group of people that all dressed a like, and could only come out at night, because radiation poising made the sun their enemy.

Fred Howard Park has 2.5 miles of marked kayak trail. Deb, Linda, and Mayra decided they had had enough and headed in to St. Joseph Sound. (only one person can paddle throught the mangrove tunnels, and it seems both wanted to paddle. Which caused them to row into the mangroves. Linda didn't like the idea of fiddler crabs in the canoe.)

It was a really overcast day. The weather was the right temparature to be on the water, but the over cast sky caused nothing but trouble with my autofocus. I had noticed the camera's limitations when I was in Washington State, but I had thought it was me. It was a brand new camera back then. After today, I've come to the conclusion it doesn't focuw well with grey skies.

While trying to capture a picture of a Belted Kingfisher, I caught a picture of a Wood-Stork in flight. There weren't a lot of animails or birds. I thought early in the morniing on a cool days we would have seen more wild life.

I'll continue tomorrow. I can hardly keep my eyes open. Linda drank 1/2 case of beer Saturday, and her snoring was louder than my table saw. I need sleep

Frogs for Frank

Frank is the lizard in the Rescuers Down Under. There is also a certain person that reminds me of Frank, but I will not mention her name. She doesn't like the nickname. She does like Frogs.

I can tell you, it isn't easy to take pictures of frogs at night. Even though the camera throws out a light, it is only for a second. I had to guess where to point the lens. I thought I was only taking a picture of one frog. Each time I took a picture, I was surprised by what was revealed in picture review.

Pig frogs are every where.

Frank I hope you like the pictures.

Strange Bedfellows

Tonight Susie was chewing on her Kong Toy. Charle had already retrieved the goodies from hers. She was sitting on the love seat coveting Susie's Kong toy. Susie jumped up on the love seat and went after Charlie. Now Charlie won't leave my lap. It's really hard to type with a 12 pound puppy in your lap.

As you can see from last Sunday, they were just the best of friends.

Just Don't Do It

If you have a few tiles falling off the wall, take my advice. Glue them back up, add a little grout and forget about them. My simple tile job, has be come a complete bathroom make over. It’s also the reason why have posted any pictures lately.


I did spot this big guy roaming around neighborhood. Strangest thing, Charlie will sit and watch the bushy tailed rats (squirrels) walking on power lines in the backyard. But this juvenile woodstork didn’t catch a second of her attention.

Weeki Wachee

Blame it on Tim Dorsey or Carl Hiaasen. They both describe old Florida in their novels. Tim Dorsey’s main character in his novels is a history loving serial killer. Serge Storms travels around Florida pointing out historical points of interests to his drugged out side kick Coleman.

Blame it on the developers. In the eight years I’ve been down here, I’ve seen the view of the Gulf of Mexico disappear from Gulf Boulevard. Mammoth condo building are replacing the beach bungalows that were built in the 40’s, 50’s and 60. Indian Rocks and Indian Shores are quickly losing their beach community charm, while Clearwater Beach strives to be a clone of Miami Beach.

Sunday was just another beautiful Florida day. Steve and Lisa had told us they would be here around 3:00 PM. We had time to drive up to see the Weeki Wachee mermaids. We had talked about seeing them, before the park becomes another thing of the past.

Oh you are wondering about mermaids.

For the last 60 years, along US highway 19 you can stop and see a mermaid show. Today it cost 23.00 and an additional 3.00 for parking. (They also have a small water park. The yearly pass wouldn't be bad if you lived in the area.) It’s not only a chance to see old Florida, but to see a part of America before the interstate helped wipe out the Mom and Pop places along America’s highways.

Sunday the Production Was Hans Christian Andersen’s Little Mermaid. The story wasn’t as interesting as the athleticism of the participants. These young people even lip sink to the songs while they are under water. (I know Blogger is trying to make it easier to upload video to the pages. Video would really allow you to see just how amazing this show is.)

The Sea Witch made her appearance, and the little girl sitting next to Linda, grabbed Linda’s arm and didn’t let go, until the witch was gone.

We didn’t take the canoe, because we needed to be back by 3:00. We did take a half hour boat ride ride. The first one left at 10:15 AM. The park opens at 10:00 AM and there was a mad scramble for the dock. We passed a couple, when Linda said she needed to use the bathroom. I watched that same couple board the boat as were told it was filled. “next departure is 11:45, after the mermaid show”.

We walked around the park. Took a few pictures. Like this one of Linda. That took up about 20 minutes. Linda was determined we weren’t going to miss the next ride. She had us standing in line 1 hour before they would begin to load the next boat. At least I can say I wasn’t bored. The eastern sky gave us a lightening show, while the fish lazily swam around the clear water.

I couldn’t believe how clear the water was, or how shallow it is. Because of the drought, the river is 3 1/2 feet below normal, according to the guide. If you look at the black spot on the cypress tree's trunk, that is the water mark during normal years.

Missed Steve and Lisa. We were a half hour late getting home. Ask Mayra or Deb, we are never on time.

Saturday August 25th

It was like rowing on glass. There wasn’t a breeze blowing if you exclude the wind bags in the canoe. (This will surely draw the ire of Deb and Mayra. Linda knows nothing of the internet. I’m feeling a bit impish tonight.) We had at 50% chance of rain, in the afternoon, and thunder claps in the distance of the Gulf of Mexico. The low tide at Boca Ciega was 1.8 and high tide would be sometime around 11:00 AM.

The wildlife was still also. Only seen a couple of Osprey. Usually in the mornings we see a couple in the air looking for food. Saturday it was the one in the tree that caught our attention. I don’t think he liked us being so close to his fishing hole.

He wasn’t the only want that wanted his privacy. Just below I spotted the Green Heron. I tried to gently maneuver myself into position for a picture, when I heard, “what do you see?” The solitary bird took for cover in the mangroves. I’d like to blame it on the people in the canoe, but I most likely drifted to close. I think I need an anchor.
I soon heard Mayra cry out, “look Mick.” I followed her finger, and a Roseate Spoonbill had just landed in the the Mangroves. I rowed over to the little island to get a shot of this juvenile.


The canoeists headed for the other side of the island, while I rowed towards a bird I spotted high in the mangroves. I finally got a good shot of a Yellow-crowned Night Heron. I also got spotted a very photo shy juvenile. None of the pictures came out very well. He kept moving deeper into the mangroves

One minute Mayra was rowing and the next the oar was in the water. Good thing it floats. Linda was feeling testy and refused to go back for it. (I don’t have a picture of the three in the canoe; so I thought I would use this picture to represent Linda. This bird looks like he was having a bad day too. Linda gets this way each year, when the seasonals at work get let go for the year.)

I’m renaming Mayra. She shall be called Hawk Eye. She spotted this lure hanging in the mangroves. The boater didn’t have a chance to get it. The nice thing about kayaks, you can get up close. Now I have to decide what I want to do with my little trophy.

No dolphins or manatees were seen.

A family of Double-crested Cormorants too a saturday swim.

Another Double-crested Cormorant takes to the air.

We were greeted at the canoe launch by a Cloudless Sulpher. He’s supposed to be yellow, but as you can see he picks up the green from plant. Yes Deb, another butterfly picture.