View allAll Photos Tagged FalconFamily
American Kestrel (adult male) sitting on an Osprey platform eating a Dragonfly, Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve, Henderson, Nevada
Lately I've been thinking about birds ... especially the birds that are found in the extreme south of the US. One of those birds that many who don't live in those areas might never see is the crested caracara.
A few years back, I spend some time with one of them. I remember specifically because I had just purchased a new car with a very large sunroof opening. I couldn't wait to trial using my car as a blind and shooting out of the roof. LOL. I had watched this one as it was hunting for food ... guess that there wasn't any carrion around for an easy feast. See, that's the easiest way to find them.... smack in the middle of a bunch of vultures "cleaning up". But this one was surveying the landscape before it, looking for some insects, lizards, or small mammals to prey upon. It is, after all, part of the falcon family. I've always been fascinated by their odd beauty. That crest on their head, that orange looking cere, that hooked beak, as well as its erect stance. They're usually a bit skittish as well, though sometimes they give you a great encounter to observe them. Oh, by the way, the sunroof worked great to shoot from, since it never heard doors opening and closing, so it stayed put and acted as it would naturally.
Yes, I do consider myself lucky to have such a variety of birds here in Florida ... though I do miss my big mammals out west for sure. Until I get back out there though, I always have my birds. :-)
A member of the falcon family, the caracara is a strong flier but spends a lot of time on the ground, scratching or digging for insects, or hunting around shallow ponds or marshes for turtles, snakes, frogs or fish. Caracaras occasionally eat larger animals such as rabbits and cattle egrets and a pair will sometimes work together to subdue these larger prey. Caracaras may also be spotted on fence posts or utility poles along highways where they scan roadways for road killed raccoons, opossums or armadillos.
Crested Caracara is a resident of the prairies and range lands of south-central Florida.
At one time, caracaras were common in the prairies of central Florida, but their numbers declined as favored habitat was converted to housing developments, citrus groves and improved pastures. Today, both the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service list the caracara as Threatened. This species is most abundant in a six-county area north and west of Lake Okeechobee (DeSoto, Glades, Hendry, Highlands, Okeechobee and Osceola counties). Their stronghold is privately held ranch land, and biologists are working with landowners to better understand the needs of caracaras and the many wild animals dependent on these upland prairies.
I found this one perched on a fence post along "The Old Peavine Road" in Osceola County, Florida.
As I sit here on the morning of December 20th, I can't help but wonder ... where did the time go? I mean, we're less than 2 weeks away from 2017!!! Is it just me, or did this year just fly on by?
2016 was a bit of a different year for me. While I had the opportunity to go to many beautiful places, I had to forgo Alaska. Rest assured, it is in the plans for 2017. What I did get to focus on a bit more is photographing the wonderful places to be found in Florida ... many just a few short hours from the metropolis of south Florida.
The crested caracara, a scavenger-like bird often found feeding on carrion, is a local favorite of mine. It's often referred to as the "Mexican eagle", though it actually belongs to the falcon family of birds. I love to watch it as it hobbles around on the landscape as it hunts for food. Often, it will find a nice wooden fence post to perch itself for some enhanced viewing of its surroundings. To me, this caracara looks to be deep in thought ... sort of like me as we wind down 2016.
A new blog post will be published tonight, but if you haven't read the last one, which features the caracara and some owls (and of course more), you can click on the link and it will take you there.
www.tnwaphotography.wordpress.com.
Thanks for stopping by. :-)
© 2016 Debbie Tubridy / TNWA Photography
EXPLORE Highest Rank #261
I've been meaning to post this shot for about a week now - so here it is.
This Crested Caracara (Caracara cheriway or Caracara planus) is a member of the Falcon Family of birds. It's a beautiful bird, which measures ~23" in length, has a wingspan of ~50", and can weigh up to 3.5#. It is a bird of prey, feeding on carrion, as well as other small animals an insects. They are sometimes found in competition with the vultures (or our friend Alan) for road kill along the roads. Once plentiful, they are now threatened in Florida seconday to habitat loss. They build their own nests, as opposed to other Falcon family members, and live in the open grassland or prairie environments. South Florida is one of only a few places in the US where they can be seen (TX and AZ also). It's estimated that there are only ~400 adult caracaras in Florida.
They are quite the beautiful bird - especially when perched on the top of a tree in gorgeous light.
I have been in search of one of these birds in the wild for some time now, so this weekend was special for me.
This is my first caracara shot EVER !!!!
Thanks for visiting my photostream and especially for your comments.
Rain, rain, rain! That's all we seem to be getting in Florida these days and today is no exception. Though on the day that this particular image was taken, it was much more than rain.... it was more of a torrential downpour, complete with thunder, lightning, the entire inclement weather package. During this weather, I was making a 5-hr drive home and my cell phone coverage was sketchy. I tried to focus on the positive and what I could control.
So as I drove home, I decided to take a "photography and wildlife friendly" route. As I drove through the pounding rain, I thought to myself "there's no way there will be anything out in this". Every so often the rain would stop for 5 minutes or so, the opportunities for shooting were limited. Then all of a sudden I saw a crested caracara just sitting on one of the fence posts which line the roadside.
As I began to capture a few images of it, I noticed how unaffected by my presence it was - just sort of chilling out in between the storms. Now I have always been fascinated by caracara, aka the "Mexican Eagle", for its funky appearance and attitude. There was something about this one - with its wet feathers - that made it more intriguing to me and its markings were quite beautiful.
It was at that point that I realized that I had found what I was supposed to find... for I was in the same place as this amazing bird.... just hanging out trying to make the most of my day in the midst of the stormy weather. Funny how that works. Immediately my spirits lifted and I soon observed other things around me that I hadn't seen before, sort of a heightened awareness. That's what I love most about photography, nature photography especially.
Well, I hope that as I head out, in the rain, that I can remember the feeling that I had on this day and find the beauty and uniqueness in everything around me (you know, between the raindrops).
Hope that everyone has a great day and thanks so much for stopping by to view. Catching up soon, so thanks for your patience as well.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.
Join our #FalconFamily in wishing our Soldiers luck on their deployment in support of #OperationFreedomsSentinel in #Afghanistan.
#10thCAB will provide essential combat aviation operations and unmatched aerial support to ground forces for our partners and allies in country.
#FlyToGlory!
U.S. Army photos by Sgt. Keegan Costello.