Saturday, December 31, 2011

Roseate Spoonbill and Limpkin

Roseate Spoonbill
hanging out with a Limpkin
last day of the year

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Eastern Phoebe

end of the year
by the Gulfport docks
Eastern Phoebe

Monday, December 26, 2011

American Wigeon

a surprising treat
an American Wigeon
day after Christmas

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Bald Eagles

Christmas sunset
high above the graves
Bald Eagles

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Coyote

this Christmas bird count
coyote at the golf course
eyes Canada Geese

Friday, November 25, 2011

White-winged Dove

family outing
Dad falls on his back looking
at the White-winged Dove

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Black-and-white Warbler

A winter warbler came this afternoon

To the same oak one’s been to every year

Since I’ve been looking. I watched him for awhile.

His black-and-white feathers give him his name.

He circles trunks and limbs to hunt for food.

He catches insect larva crawling there.

The pattern on his back makes him blend in

With ridges and depressions in the bark.

Sometimes he can’t be seen until he moves

Around the trunks to disappear in back.

The imagery of feathers on his back

Is not the random marks like on oak trees,

But quite precise. He wears a short-tailed coat

Or maybe it’s a shawl half down his back

With alternating stripes, wide on the sides.

Below the stripes are bold and more distinct

Much like the four that crown this warbler’s head.

He’s often upside down, and I have read

That his hind toes and claws are extra long

To help this pose, I guess, or help him hunt.

I’m glad he came to Florida today

Because cool weather can’t be far behind.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Pear

my lunch pear today
looks so delicious

Friday, November 4, 2011

Limpkin

cool November morning
wet Limpkin

Friday, October 28, 2011

Pine Warbler

Pine and Palm Warblers
scatter throughout the oak grove
October morning

Lark Sparrow


Lark Sparrow
harvesting the last seeds
in the sandy lot

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Tennessee Warbler

all puffed up:
Tennessee Warbler
on a cold morning

Chestnut-sided Warbler


  on the young female
  a slight blush -
  Chestnut-sided Warbler

Monday, October 17, 2011

Bay-breasted Warbler

grounded by weather
fueling on beauty berries
Bay-breasted Warbler

Monday, October 10, 2011

Friday, October 7, 2011

Veery

October Veery
heading south of the border
rests in Florida

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Pectoral Sandpiper

county dump puddle
Pectoral Sandpiper pair
join the Killdeer flock

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Priarie Warbler

September thunder
withered mangrove
deer moss and Prairie Warbler

Friday, September 9, 2011

Empidonax Flycatcher

wet morning
Empidonax Flycatchers
in two parks

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Blackburnian Warbler

out of the oak top
a Blackburnian Warbler
leaps into the void

Friday, September 2, 2011

Prothonotary Warbler

       the fall term begins
       Prothonotary Warbler
       at the library

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Northern Parula

high in the canopy
shaded from the August sun
a Northern Parula

Monday, August 15, 2011

Yellow Warbler

after a brief rain
steamy August afternoon
a Yellow Warbler

Willet

Willet
such precise movement
in the bay-shore grass

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Bees

a hollow palm trunk -
Red-bellied Woodpecker gone
bees swarming around

Friday, July 29, 2011

Spotted Sandpiper

the smell of the bay:
a Spotted Sandpiper flies
out of the salt marsh

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Alexandrine Parakeet


perhaps a lost pet
Alexandrine Parakeet
disturbing my nap

Friday, June 17, 2011

Fort De Soto June

a Yellow-billed Cuckoo,
Glades Morning-glories, and Saltmarsh Mallows:
Fort De Soto June

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Black-bellied Plover

looking so golden
the Black-bellied Plover flies
to show he isn't

Brown Thrasher

June heat
the Brown Thrasher
is not singing

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Limpkin

pond-side wildflowers -
the Limpkin walks carefully
to avoid blossoms

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Young Great Crested Flycatcher

in the low branches
young Great Crested Flycatcher
diving for ground bugs

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle breakfast
for two full-grown chicks:
Saturday morning squirrel

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Swainson's Thrush

could this Swainson's Thrush
have come up from Mexico?
 -- Cinco de Mayo

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Tufted Titmice



when in a large group
they become very vocal:
the Tufted Titmice

Oven Bird



even Oven Birds
in a certain slant of light
can be colorful

Blackpoll Warblers


exam week morning
a flock of Blackpoll Warblers
by the campus lake