Tag: Eco Pond

Reddish Egret Dance at Eco Pond

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I decided to head back down to Eco Pond on Monday morning to spend some more time trying to photograph the birds.  Last time I was there I had to rush off and leave before the birds had really become very active.  This time I could stay until it got too hot or the birds left whichever happened first.

Just like on Saturday, there were about the same number of birds and variety of birds.  Although this time I also saw a pileated woodpecker.  The pileated woodpecker looks like woody woodpecker the cartoon with the tall triangular pointed red head.  I would have like to have captured him in flight but he never got close enough.

I did get some more shots of the lone reddish egret fishing/dancing across the pond.  The reddish egret was very active this morning and was using all of his fishing tricks to catch breakfast.  He did his dance across the water as well as his raised wings pretend shade trick.  It was if nothing else entertaining to watch.

The roseate spoonbills still were not very active and just sat across the pond on the dead branches before eventually just flying away.  I will give it a few more weeks before trying back to see if more birds have arrived and the activity level increases.

Before heading home I also walked some of the Coastal Prairie Trail at the south-west end of the flamingo campground.  I plan on coming back when I have the time and energy to walk the entire length.  All in all it was a good morning of photography and time spent in the Everglades.

Click on the thumbnails for the full image.

Everglades National Park Eco Pond 2014

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Had the pleasure of being asked to give a presentation to the Focus on Parks Miami Dade youth group about my photography and passion for Everglades National Park.  The presentation took place at the Anhinga Trail in Everglades National Park.  The group consisted of about 20 middle school children who were going to be spending the next two (2) days in Everglades National Park learning about the ecosystems, conservation and photography.  This was many of the children’s first time visiting the Everglades and they were excited to see the birds, alligators and other wildlife up close and personal.  The Focus on Parks Miami Dade is a six (6) week program that visits various parks throughout Miami-Dade County and gives each child a camera in which to capture their experiences and teach them about photography.  I am glad I got to be a part of their first visit to Everglades National Park.

I have not had time lately to make it out to the park so I decided to take advantage of my time in the everglades by running down to Eco Pond around sunrise prior to meeting with the kids at 10:00 AM.  Last time I checked on Eco Pond was back in December and there were almost no birds to speak of.  This time there were a good number of Roseate Spoonbills and snowy egrets, with the occasional cormorant, tri-color heron, reddish egret, king fisher, ibis, duck and osprey.  However, the birds have still not shown up in large numbers as they have in years past.  Hopefully, they are just late this year due to the warmer weather and higher water levels.

Unfortunately, I did not get to stay very long and due to the cooler morning the birds were not very active.  The Roseate Spoonbills for the most part sat stationary on the nearby driftwood.  The Reddish Egret was the most active bird in the bunch and as a result I was able to get some good shots of him flying around and fishing.  In order to make it back to the Anhinga Trail I had to leave  just as the birds started to become more active and start feeding.   Captured two decent shots of some birds in flight.  I really like the reddish egret shot.  I have a few more I may go through and post later.

 

Eco Pond, Cypress Dome and Pine Glades Lake Sunset

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Had a free day and decided to get up early and head down to Everglades National Park.  I decided to start at Eco Pond in the morning to see if the birds were active and then work my way back north.  Today was a good bird day.  Eco Pond was full of Roseate Spoonbills, Snowy Egrets, Great Herons, Tri-Color Herons, Pelicans and the ocassional overflying Osprey.  They were also very active foraging around in the shallow water for fish and other food.  One thing I noticed was how low the water in Eco Pond had gotten since my last visit.  The East Side of the pond is almost completely dry.  I got a few good shots of some landing Roseate Spoonbills.  The one I captured was a juvenille spoonbill.

After the birds left Eco Pond I walked around and found a some osprey nests but they were not very active.  I left Flamingo and started heading back north.  My next stop was Snake Bight.  I brought my bike and rode the path down to the end of the trail.  I saw a few birds along the way but nothing motivated me to stop and get out my camera.  At the end of the trail is a boardwalk.  The tide was out exposing a large mudflat.  A few birds were around but nothing better than I had already shot.  I did note that this might be a good sunset location and may come back to try it out before summer officially arrives.

After Snake Bight I stopped by Mahogany Hammock to look for some barred owls but not were willing to show themselves.  I kept driving north to a Cypress Dome I found a few weeks back.  I hiked into the Dome and took some photos of the blooming Bromeliads.  They were everywhere in the dome.  I also came across the same water moccasins I saw during my last visit.  One of the moccasins was not very happy and tried to bite me.  Luckily I was out of his reach.  I still got a few good shots of him before I left.

My next stop was another cypress dome farther north called Movie Dome.  Last time I hiked into it the water was still about a foot deep or so.  This time it was completely dry except for a shallow pool in the middle of the dome.  I walked around the dome but did not take any pictures this time.

My last stop was Pine Glades Lake for a sunset.  I captured some sunrays that were streaming from the sun giving the shot a unique look.  Pine Glades Lake is one of my favorite sunset locations in Everglades National Park.  After the sunset I headed home.  On the way home I got a suprise panther sighting.  This was my first panther sighting since I started coming to the park almost 8 years ago.  The panther was walking the main park road and slipped into the bushes when he saw me coming.  It was too dark to try and use the camera but it was still great to witness a free roaming panther.

Everglades Sunrise, Birds in Flight and Cypress Dome Walk

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I went out last week to capture a sunrise down in Flamingo, Florida.  I took a few reflection pictures across the water as the sun came up.  After the sunrise I went to Eco Pond to try and capture some bird in flight pictures.  The birds have started to thin out after reaching a peak a few weeks ago.  There were still a good number of Roseate Spoonbills, Egrets, Heron’s and other birds but not like there had been the last few weeks.  I ended up with a few I liked.

After the birds stopped performing, I started heading back toward the park entrance.  I made one last stop to explore a cypress dome I had never walked into before.  It was a great find and I plan on going back to try and take more pictures there in the future.  Inside the cypress dome, I found resident gators, birds, and three water moccasins.  I also found numerous orchids of different varieties including some very large and rare cigar orchids.

 

Eco Pond Everglades National Park

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I am not much of a bird photographer opting to primarily focus on Landscapes and Nature shots in general.  However, I had someone request a Roseate Spoonbill in flight/action shot so I decided yesterday to give birding a try.  I have never tried to capture birds in flight before but was excited for a new challenge.  I checked the weather, got up early and headed to a place called Eco Pond to see if the Roseate Spoonbills were active.

Eco Pond is a very shallow (primarily less than 1 foot) pond with an island in the middle of it.  Birds of all types love this spot to wade and feed in the shallow water and along the shorelines.  There are even some nesting Ospreys that occupy one of the taller trees on the island.

Yesterday, the pond was full of activity with more than 100 hundred birds actively feeding or flying.  There were probably more than 25 Roseate Spoonbills which at least gave me a good statistical chance of getting the shot I had come here for.  I took about 150 shots and ended up with about 20 decent photos.  I got a few good Roseate Spoonbill in flight shots but had to crop them to get what I was looking for.  I will be test printing them to see if they will work or if I need to try again next week.  Either way I had a good time and learned a lot about capturing birds in flight.  It also made me realize I need to invest in some new glass if I am going to start shooting birds or wildlife on any consistent basis.  My equipment is primarily geared toward things that are standing still and do not get frightened if you get close to it.  These shots were taken with the Canon 55-250 Kit Lens.