Peaceful Waters

Every year we enjoy a get-together with one of my classmates from New Jersey. We stayed together from Kindergarten through High School graduation. He and his wife usually spend February in Florida on Hutchinson Island in Palm Beach County a couple of hours north of our Broward County home. We meet for an early dinner at a steakhouse "in the middle," giving Mary Lou and me the excuse to do some birding on the way up. This year we made our first visit to  Peaceful Waters Park in Wellington, not far from the restaurant.

Peaceful Waters is aptly named, as we had a little trouble finding it, tucked away in the corner of a much larger sports complex. Although we asked some other visitors where it was, they only knew about the various soccer games that were underway on the several fields. We parked near a sign that said "Wetlands Parking," but there were no arrows to point the way, so we simply walked in a direction opposite to all the crowds. On our way we met a couple coming back and they confirmed that we were on the right path, adding "You'll really like it!" So true.

A well-maintained boardwalk meanders through the park's wetlands under heavy clouds. We had a few light showers, but the cloudy conditions produced soft light, ideal for photography:



Before we even entered the boardwalk we saw a Sandhill Crane walking along the berm that encircles the park:



The crane stretched its leg gracefully, like a ballet dancer getting ready for a performance:



I got a couple of nice portraits. The first demonstrates the crane's binocular vision:





Then we saw a second crane, tending and guarding a nest containing eggs. We learned they were about ready to hatch:





The crane settled down to continue incubation:



The park is rich with wildlife. One of my favorite birds is the Purple Gallinule:



The gallinule's long toes enable it to walk across the lily pads:



Dancing cross-step!



The gallinule shows off its "Bigfoot:"



A Common Gallinule is reflected on the calm surface:



A Tricolored Heron forages among the water plants:



Nearby, a Little Blue Heron seems to have an "attitude:"



A pair of Blue-winged Teal swims by...



...and a pair of Mottled Ducks are in courtship mode:



A Great Egret fishes next to a bed of blooming Pickerel Weed:



Another Great Egret hunts for lizards in the shrubbery along the berm:



Two male Boat-tailed Grackles compete for "King of the Cypress snag:"



On our way out, we saw one of the cranes walking along the perimeter fence:



A Loggerhead Shrike was perched on the fence rail:





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Linking to Misty's  CAMERA CRITTERS,

Linking to Eileen's SATURDAY'S CRITTERS,

Linking to GOOD FENCES by Tex (Theresa). 

Linking to SKYWATCH FRIDAY by Yogi, Sylvia and Sandy

Linking to WEEKEND REFLECTIONS by James

Linking to BirdD'Pot by Anni

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday by Stewart

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Please visit the links to all these memes to see some excellent photos on display

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