Are you going to eat all of that?

Birding Longboat Key, Florida

...continued from the American Brown Pelican post.

This young American Brown Pelican had to fight for every fish he caught, but he was strong willed and did not lose one fish to the pesky gull trying to steal them away! The gull would sit on top of the pelican's head and wait for the water to drain out of the pelican's gular pouch hoping to nab a fish as the pelican opened his bill to swallow his catch down, but this pelican was very patient, and he would sit in the water with his bill closed until the gull was far enough away, then he would tip his head up and swallow the fish down!

...such a patient little pelican...and the thieving gull was patient too, never losing hope of stealing a fish out of the pelican's gular pouch!

You could see the fish moving around in the pelican's gular pouch, but he refused to swallow them until the gull was out of stealing range!

American Brown Pelicans

Birding Longboat Key, Florida

...continued from the Great Blue Heron post.

I'm trying to finish up the photos I took from our spring birding trip to Longboat Key, Florida. Back then, there was no gushing oil well, and the pelicans were all safe...

Once again, I snagged these shots at Quick Point Nature Preserve. I was on the observatory deck and the pelicans were diving all around. It was fantastic watching them dive over and over.

Two Great Blue Herons face off in a threat display.

Birding Longboat Key, Florida

...continued from the Joe Cool post.

Evening was falling quickly and the sun’s light was nothing more than a rosy wash over the waters at Quick Point Nature Preserve when Rick, Matty and I arrived to enjoy the last few minutes of the day. A flock of Ibis, several Little Blue Herons and Snowy Egrets, and a single Great Blue Heron were fishing in the shallows. The water was still and the birds were quiet until a second Great Blue Heron decided he wanted to fish right where the first Great Blue Heron had set up camp. As he coasted in for a landing, First Heron immediately showed his displeasure by spreading his wings and raising his head in a warning.

First Heron wasted no time defending his territory and immediately went into a threat display.

...he really does look taller, bigger, and scarier!

First Heron was vehement in his display, and walked around in this posture eyeing the interloper.

Second Heron as he coasted in. You can tell he knows he's up to no good! ;-)

As soon as he landed, Second Heron answered back with his own threat posture, but he wasn't quite as convincing.

He spread his wings...

...and lifted his head, but never quite as high as First Heron.

...a feeble attempt at best! He soon flew off.

First Heron victorious!

Rick, Matty and I really enjoyed watching this behavior. At first we wondered if the two herons were engaging in courtship behavior, but their body language soon let us know it was a threat display. At the heronry in Cincinnati, we've seen a lot of courtship displays in the trees, but we were never lucky enough to witness threat postures and displays because the birds are too timid to fish near humans. I love Florida birds...

Great Blue Heron mug shots...

Birding Longboat Key, Florida

...continued from the Osprey post.

...you know I can never resist a head-on shot. What a mug!

I don't think the colors in this photo are nearly as nice as those in Rick's photos (click here for that post), but they make great mug shots! ;-)

...could you look the other direction now Mr. Blue? Thank you.

This guy was incredible, and obviously soooo NOT from Ohio. He stood and posed and then posed some more. In Cincinnati, he would have squawked and flew off in mortal terror if I had even turned my head towards him at 100 feet. I found him next to my car in the parking lot at the Quick Point Nature Preserve. He almost seemed to greet me with a smile as I walked toward the car. After our photo shoot, I climbed in the car, and he was still standing there when I looked in the rear-view mirror when I left! I love Florida birds...

...am I dragging this Longboat Key trip out or what!! These photos are from back in April, but they're fun, so I thought I'd squeeze them in. For all the Longboat Key bird photos, click here.

The Osprey at Quick Point Nature Preserve...

Birding Longboat Key, Florida
...continued from the Black-bellied Whistling-Duck post.
If you've been to Quick Point Nature Preserve on Longboat Key, Florida lately, you've probably seen this fellow. He was there every time I visited, usually in this tree or the tree at the far end of the first pond. He was very chatty, and I liked that!

Ospreys always look just a bit surprised to me. It's probably because they lack the heavily pronounced supraorbital ridge above their eyes that hawks and eagles have. The pronounced boney structure tucks the hawks and eagles' eyes into shadow, giving them an intense and fierce look, not the "who me?" look that sometimes pops to mind when I look at an Osprey. (Click here for an older post that explains the supraorbital ridge and how it helps eagles and hawks.)

...and look at those talons! Who needs a supraorbital ridge when you have feet super strong and lethal...and specialized too. All four toes are the same length on an Osprey's foot, and the outer toe is reversible, almost like an opposable thumb, which helps the Osprey grasp fish. In addition, the pads of the Osprey's feet are very scaly and covered in spicules, or spines. These unique adaptations turn the Osprey into a fish hunting machine. Slippery fish rarely wiggle free once an Osprey has latched on, and an Osprey's capture rate of 40 percent (some studies show higher) exceeds the success ratio of other raptors.

"That's what I'm talking about..." says the majestic Osprey. In addition, an Osprey's talons are curved like fish hooks and are rounded, instead of grooved like other raptor's talons. Once more, uniquely adapting them to catching fish for a living.

City Osprey! This Osprey was eating his prey on top of the electric wires lining a fairly busy street that paralleled the ocean. He didn't care about trees and green leaves, he had the gulf sweeping out in front of him, and that's all that mattered...

Sources:

"Birds of Prey: Majestic Masters of the Skies," by Paul D. Frost

"Birds of Lake, Pond, and Marsh: Water and Wetland Birds of Eastern North America," by John Andrew Eastman

Also...John Briggs (Birding in Maine blog) recently posted a detailed entry on Ospreys. You might want to check it out for more info.

...this is a painting I did in December '09. I'm just including it here for reference because it clearly shows the supraorbital ridge above the American Bald Eagle's eye. The shadow cast by the overhanging boney structure is fun to paint...I love the power in that eye!

A Red-bellied Woodpecker eating a salamander (or lizard)...

Birding Longboat Key, Florida

...continued from the Great Blue Heron post.

...now that's not something I see everyday. As a matter of fact, it's the first time I've ever seen it at all! I was birding at Quick Point Nature Preserve on Longboat Key when I heard this Red-bellied Woodpecker tapping at the bark in the tree above me. It was a duller thud than usual, and when I looked up I found out why. He was also pulling at something stretchy. As I focused in with the camera lens, I was surprised to find the "something stretchy" was a salamander. A totally new sight for me. Our woodpeckers tend to stick to the bugs and berries. We have salamanders in Cincy. Lots of them, but they are mostly on the ground or in the creeks. In Florida, they are everywhere--and fair game for a Red-bellied Woodpecker.

After lodging the salamander under the bark, he began alternately tapping and tugging at him. Does anyone know what type of salamander this is likely to be? I haven't a clue.

At first I didn't know if he was eating the salamander or just playing with him. After a while I could tell he was most definitely eating him. The salamander seemed to be dead throughout the ordeal. I didn't see him trying to crawl away. Most of the time he was lodged under the bark.

...this was not a quick process. The woodpecker had to work for his dinner...

...such a strange sight for me, but I guess Florida birders see woodpeckers eating salamanders all the time.

After tugging him loose here, he shoved the salamander back into the crevice in the wood and started pounding away at him again. I didn't get to see how long it would take him to eat all of the salamander (or if even if he would) because a guy with truckload of mulch drove up underneath and scared him away. A little before that a female flew in for a bite, but the male chased her away. I guess he wasn't in the mood for sharing!