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Thursday, October 8, 2020

Walking the Levee Trail

The Levee Trail provides access to the Bar Ditch Trail which traverses the wildest part of the Wounded Wetlands. The latter trail is now under about a foot of water, shortening the walk but inviting more careful exploration. Spending more time at "sit spots" along the levee, I get a bit less exercise as well as some nice finds.

A feisty Brown Thrasher:




Migrants, including bright male Cape May Warblers...




...and less conspicuous females and immature birds of the same species:


Yellow-throated Warblers...



...which seem to advertise their names:


American Redstarts are hard to follow as they move erratically in the trees...


...sometimes offering only a quick click as they blaze away like wildfire:


This demure redstart is probably a female. The immature male is very similar but usually shows more of an orange tint:


Northern Parulas nest just to the north and are early arrivals during fall migration. These are males:



Females lack the red breast markings:


Active and acrobatic Black-and-White Warlbers do not nest locally but are sometimes seen here during breeding season. This could be an adult female or first year male:


This is an adult male on September 29, 2020:


In spring, the adult male is more boldly patterned with black markings (April, 2020):


Palm Warblers arrive a bit later and many stay here for the winter. Their long legs are an adaptation for feeding on the ground:


Prairie Warblers are back:


This male Scarlet Tanager was a bonus bird this past week. The male sheds his scarlet coat for a green one:


On my way home yesterday as I emerged from the high brush at the trailhead, I cautiously looked around before walking out into the open. Occasionally I surprise a mammal such as a rabbit, Raccoon, deer or Bobcat. This time I almost missed seeing a Coyote which had stopped to answer the call of nature:


When finished with doin' business, it continued across the gravel road:


We are in the heart of the wet season. Cloud formations can be very entertaining. Can you see this poor guy being knocked out by one  thief while the other sneaks off with his stolen horse? (or is it a rooster or a seahorse?


A record number of tropical storms have developed this year. Thankfully, south Florida has been spared a direct hit so far. Morning walks have been interrupted by "pop-up" showers associated with some of them.  Storms brewed rapidly before sunrise on October 3:


This was the scene to the south 25 minutes before sunrise on October 5. The clouds formed rapidly and I had to cut the walk short.


I got to the exit gate only minutes before the deluge:


= = =  = = =  = = = =  = = = = =

Linking to:

Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections

Saturday's Critters

BirdD'Pot

Camera Critters

All Seasons

Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Natasha Musing

Our World Tuesday

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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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27 comments:

  1. Wow wonderful bird photos of birds I will never see. Those sky shot are amazing, very special, especially if one has a great imagination 😊

    Keep safe and take care Diane

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  2. Beautiful birds, fantastic landscapes, perfect pictures at the right time, you are a master!
    Congratulations and thanks for sharing.
    Have a good weekend.

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  3. Funny shot of the coyote. Beautiful sky captures, and the shot of the Yellow-throated Warbler with it's head up is wonderful!

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  4. Great skies and birds! Love the Black-and-White Warblers!

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  5. You´ve had some worderfull skies lately.

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  6. You see so much there but I know you get out every day too. That's what I tell people about the things we see...when you get out more, you see more. We saw a Coyote on the trail this week and a week ago saw the American Redstart for the first time. Love seeing all the Warblers that are showing up now! Enjoy your weekend!

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  7. I've never heard of a black-and-white warbler before. Very lovely. Most amazing sky shots I've ever seen. Almost makes me want to move to Florida...almost :)

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  8. I love the blue sky and clouds reflected on the water.

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  9. Hello Kenneth
    the hurricanes are threatening and sometimes have fatal consequences, we here in Germany can sometimes follow in the local news how the storms raged. But before the disaster strikes, there are very beautiful cloud formations in the air like the "" seahorse "" Well and the coyote .. that is pure wildlife :-)
    Greetings Frank

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  10. beautiful skies and interesting wildlife - you always make Florida look so gorgeous

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  11. Wow! Such wonderful photographs! Stunning skies and beautiful birds.

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  12. Beautiful migrant portraits today Ken.
    Happy weekend, and thanks for joining us at I'd Rather B Birdin this week.

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  13. Your bird photos are always amazing, loved to see. Also the skies look miraculous.

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  14. It has definitely been a little damp on the trails lately!

    You've really recorded some wonderful photographs of fall visitors. Beautiful Cape May images. I can't find one anywhere.

    The "skyscapes" are really spectacular!

    Here's hoping our new week brings us all fair weather and good birds!

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  15. That last one with the sun tainting the clouds is interesting. And the yellow crested bird is lovely...poor coyote tho! He needed some privacy...

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  16. My dear friend Kenneth! That Thrasher photo made me gasp! It's just so beautiful and striking! I also love the black and white warblers. I think its my first time to see warblers on those colors in a picture.

    Thank you so much for always joining Timeless Thursdays Kenneth, I really appreciate it everytime :)

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  17. What a great set of pictures - I am in favour of sit spots - although 'any spot not in my suburb' would be great at present!

    Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

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  18. Interesting - the coyote looks charcoal gray in the first shot, brown in the next. Is it the same animal?
    Thanks for linking up at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2020/10/the-fungus-is-among-us-mushrooms.html

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    Replies
    1. @NCSue-- It is the same Coyote but I think the first one was in the shade and the second photo out in the full sun. I should have corrected the temperature of the light to make the second photo look cool and darker.

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  19. The brown Trasher and black and White Warbler's have such a definite design on their feathers! Hubby and I were both admiring your stunning and mesmerizing skies in Florida! All Seasons appreciates your posts beyond words! Hope you are doing well, and have a lovely rest of the week!Jesh

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  20. You made me think of the American Pie song and "Drove my Chevy to the levee." That song was popular when I was a teen and used my Mustang to drive to the canal banks in Central California on weekends to party. - Margy

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  21. Such incredible avian wonders, Ken. I had the good fortune of catching some glorious ones in the mountains, included the black headed jay, whistling thrush, a bunch of kingfishers, humming birds and so on so forth.

    Managed to see a Himalayan squirrel, pin martins and a barking deer too. Very exciting indeed.

    I'm so thrilled to see you at #WW with me at natashamusing.com

    See you next week, Wednesday. I'm live 1st and 3rd Wednesday now. And you can link up anytime in the next two weeks gap. :) I'll share you post and spread some blog love.

    Thank you. Arigato!

    Have a blissful week!

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  22. Love the black & white warbler! Such colorful birds. It seems like we mostly see LBBs here in the west. Wish I was birding when we had our sailboat in Florida.

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  23. Another post full of wonderful feathered friends! The skies and the coyote are bonus shots!

    Your link at 'My Corner of the World' this week is greatly appreciated!!

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