January 26, 2017. Late afternoon landscpe at Circle B Bar Reserve, Bartow, Polk County, Florida, USA

Took this portrait shot of the Wood Stork on the Alligator Alley Trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Photographed the Great Blue Heron on the side of the Reflecting Pool located in the Bok Tower Gardens on Iron Mountain near Lake Wales in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Photographed the Anhinga perched on a dead head in the Banana Creek Marsh off of the Eagle Roost Trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve located in the City of Lakeland in Polk Country Florida U.S.A.

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American White Ibis in the Banana Creek Marsh in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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A pair of American White Ibis resting under a Palm on the shore of Lake Parker in Lake Parker Park located in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Osprey with a successful catch photographed from the observation deck on Lake Hancock off of Alligator Alley Trail in Circle B Bar Reserve located in Polk County Lakeland Florida U.S.A.

The ospreys’ extensive breeding range extends to all the continents except South America (where it occurs widely in winter) and the Antarctic. The North American population declined greatly after 1947 because of the eggshell-thinning effects of DDT residues but began to recover after the pesticide was banned in 1972. Exterminated from the British Isles by 1910, the osprey reappeared there as a successfully breeding species in the 1950s and is now firmly reestablished in Scotland. Britannica

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Photographed the Eastern Phoebe out at Circle B Bar Reserve located in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Photographed the Green Heron (Butorides virescens) off of the Eagle Roost Trail in Circle B Bar Reserve located in the City of Lakeland Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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The female Northern Cardinal munching on seeds she plucked from a nearby shrub along the Alligator Alley Trail in the Banana Creek Marsh in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Mute Swan on Lake Morton in the Lake Morton Park and Greenbelt located in Downtown Lakeland in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Queen Butterfly feeding on the pollen from a Scarlet Milkweed flower along the Acorn Pass trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Northern Cardinal searching for insects in the brush along the Alligator Alley Trail in the Banana Creek Marsh in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Eastern Gray Squirrel skirting around for food on the lawn in the Bok Tower Gardens on Iron Mountain near Lake Wales in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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American Alligator in Hancock Lake photographed from the Alligator Alley Trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve located in the City of Lakeland Polk County Florida U.S.A.

American alligators are large crocodilians found only in the United States. They can grow to be more than 12 feet (3.6 meters) in length and weigh as much as 1,000 pounds (450 kilograms), with males being slightly larger than females on average. The animal’s dark skin is armored with small, bony scales called scutes.

A long, powerful tail helps propel the animal through water, as do webbed feet. They are cold-blooded and depend on the natural world around them to provide warmth. To do this, they will bask in the sun or dig holes in mud to trap heat. Although American alligators can be hard to miss while basking on the shore, they can look eerily like logs when floating in the water.

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Photographed the Black Vulture on the Herons Hideout Trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Roseatte Spoonbill out at Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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The male Painted bunting (Passerina ciris) is often regarded as the most beautiful and spectacular of all North American songbirds. Their heads are a deep, but bright blue and their backs are green and they have a red breast and under parts.

Although males are brightly colored they are difficult to spot in undergrowth as their coloring makes excellent camouflage. Females and immature males are yellowish green and green being darker on their backs than their under parts and are also well camouflaged.

Painted Buntings have two different breeding populations in the USA. One stretching along the South Eastern seaboard from North Carolina down to central parts of Florida. This population migrates spending winters in southern Florida and possibly parts of the North West Caribbean.

The other population is located westerly from the above and found in parts of Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas and into parts of Mexico. This population migrates to southern parts of Mexico and Central America to spend winter.

Sometimes the flocks may become associated with those of the Indigo buntings who are close relatives and interbreeding may occur. They are also similar to Lazuli buntings.

Painted buntings prefer to inhabit regions of dense brush, thickets and the edge of woods and can be found in gardens and hedgerows in suburban areas. They feed mostly on seeds and insects foraging on the ground or in the branches of bushes, thickets and trees.

I found this male in my backyard in Polk County, Florida.

Near Reliance, Tennessee

Tricolored Heron stalking prey in the Banana Creek Marsh along Heron Hideout Trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve located in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Queen Butterfly photographed feeding on Shepherd's Needle (Bidens pilosa) flowers along the Acorn Pass trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Little blue herons inhabit fresh, salt, and brackish water environments in Florida including swamps, estuaries, ponds, lakes, and rivers . In the U.S., the little blue heron can be found from Missouri, east to Virginia, down to Florida, and west to Texas. In peninsular Florida they are relatively common and widespread but somewhat rare in the Panhandle. Outside of the U.S, the little blue heron can be found in Cuba, both coasts of Mexico and Central America, down into central South America.

I found this one in Polk County, Florida.

One of the three Raccoon kits that was very curious to what I was doing off the Alligator Alley Trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Glossy Ibis photographed out at Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Blue on Green

Little Blue Heron has an eye on his next meal in a sea of duckweed in the Banana Creek Marsh in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Photographed the male Black Swallowtail off of the Heron Hideout Trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve located in the City of Lakeland in Polk Country Florida U.S.A.

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Great Blue Heron up in a Cypress tree in the Banana Creek Marsh off of the Alligator Alley Trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve located in the City of Lakeland in Polk Country Florida U.S.A.

Barred Owl out on a limb at Circle B Bar Reserve located in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

The barred owl (Strix varia), also known as the northern barred owl, striped owl or, more informally, hoot owl or eight-hooter owl, is a North American large species of owl. A member of the true owl family, Strigidae, they belong to the genus Strix, which is also the origin of the family's name under Linnaean taxonomy. Barred owls are largely native to eastern North America, but have expanded their range to the west coast of North America where they are considered invasive. Mature forests are their preferred habitat, but they can also acclimatise to various gradients of open woodlands. Their diet consists mainly of small mammals, but this species is an opportunistic predator and is known to prey upon other small vertebrates such as birds, reptiles, and amphibians, as well as a variety of invertebrates.

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Downy Woodpecker searching for grubs on a dead tree in the Banana Creek Marsh in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Painted buntings occur in two geographically distinct breeding populations: a western population that ranges from northwest Florida to Texas, including Oklahoma and parts of Mexico; and an eastern population limited to coastal areas from North Carolina to northern Florida, and inland along large rivers. Two subspecies are recognized based on geographic distribution, migration patterns and timing of molt (shedding of feathers). Painted buntings in Franklin, Gulf, Bay and Wakulla counties of the Florida Panhandle may be an expansion of the western subspecies or an overlap of occurrence. Genetic studies are needed to determine the range of the two subspecies, or if they are so dissimilar that two separate species should be designated. Florida is the only state with a breeding and wintering population.

Painted Buntings are eagerly awaited winter visitors. The males’ brilliant colors contrast strongly with the more demure green females, but both are pretty secretive, so not that easy to spot in foliage. While the females exclusively feed the young in the nest, males take over feeding once a second brood is started. Northeast Florida’s coastal areas are home to the state’s largest breeding population, where singing males can be found between April and August.

I found this male in Polk County, Florida.

The Guardian of the Marsh

Great Blue Heron on guard in his area in the Banana Creek Marsh off of the Marsh Rabbit Run Trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Tufted Titmice look large among the small birds that come to feeders, an impression that comes from their large head and eye, thick neck, and full bodies. The pointed crest and stout bill help identify titmice even in silhouette.

Tufted Titmice are acrobatic foragers, if a bit slower and more methodical than chickadees. They often flock with chickadees, nuthatches, and woodpeckers and are regular visitors to feeders, where they are assertive over smaller birds. Their flight tends to be fluttery but level rather than undulating.

You’ll find Tufted Titmice in most eastern woodlands below 2,000 feet elevation, including deciduous and evergreen forests. Tufted Titmice are also common visitors at feeders and can be found in backyards, parks, and orchards.

I found this one in my backyard in Polk County, Florida.

The Red-Bellied Woodpeckers are among the most abundant types of woodpeckers in Florida with a year-round population.

They’re characterized by their light grey heads and underparts with reddish caps extending from their bin to their nape in males or from the red patch on the nape in females.

They’re remarkably noisy when compared to some other woodpeckers, but that also makes them quite easy to spot even for beginners!

The Red-Bellied Woodpeckers are quite easy to attract into your bird feeder using a variety of nuts as well as sunflower seeds. In winter, you can also add suet to your feeder, which they love!

Found this male in my backyard in Polk County, Florida.

Broke out my old Canon SX60HS to capture this one.

The colorful painted bunting occurs in two geographically distinct breeding populations: eastern and western. The eastern population is limited to coastal areas from North Carolina to northern Florida, and inland along large rivers.

The male painted bunting (Passerina ciris) is one of the most brightly colored songbirds in North America. The French name for the species, nonpareil (without equal), refers to its distinctive purple, blue, red, yellow and green plumage. Males attain adult plumage when two years old. Females are a yellowish green and resemble subadult males. The male’s song is a variable high-pitched warble.

Painted buntings occur in two geographically distinct breeding populations: a western population that ranges from northwest Florida to Texas, including Oklahoma and parts of Mexico; and an eastern population limited to coastal areas from North Carolina to northern Florida, and inland along large rivers. Two subspecies are recognized based on geographic distribution, migration patterns and timing of molt (shedding of feathers). Painted buntings in Franklin, Gulf, Bay and Wakulla counties of the Florida Panhandle may be an expansion of the western subspecies or an overlap of occurrence. Genetic studies are needed to determine the range of the two subspecies, or if they are so dissimilar that two separate species should be designated. The breeding range of the eastern subspecies in Florida extends along the northeast coast from the state line south to Cape Canaveral and inland along the St. Johns River. Eastern painted buntings winter in south Florida, Cuba, Jamaica and the Bahamas. Florida is the only state with a breeding and wintering population.

This male is one of Six (male and female) that have been visiting my yard for the past Several years.

A clear-voiced singer in the treetops in southern woodlands. Yellow-throated Warblers return very early in spring to the pine woods and cypress swamps, where they may be seen foraging rather deliberately along branches high in the trees. In the Midwest, they are typically found in riverside groves of sycamores. During the winter in Florida and other tropical areas, they are commonly seen creeping about in the crowns of palms, probing among the fronds with their long bills.

They feed on mostly insects. Feeds on many insects including beetles, moths, caterpillars, grasshoppers, crickets, flies, mosquitoes, ants, scale insects, aphids, and others; also spiders.

Found this one in my backyard. Polk County, Florida.

Known affectionately as Butter-Butts, Yellow-rumped warblers, (Setophaga coronata), migrate south in the winter. These flocks of Florida snowbirds can be found in mangroves, scrub, forests, or your yard.

Their winter diet consists of fruit from shrubs such as wax myrtle, juniper berries, poison ivy, and poison oak as well as many seeds including those from goldenrod and beach grasses.

The yellow-rumped warbler ranges over most of North and Central America, breeding in the summer throughout most of the Rocky Mountains and along the far northern reaches of the continent. Come fall, it migrates in huge numbers, flying south to Florida and warm spots beyond. Not all yellow-rumps make the trip, however. Their ability to eat and digest certain wax-covered fruit allows them to spend the winter as far north as New England or even into Canada.

There are two distinct forms of the yellow-rumped warbler, the wax myrtle, predominant in the east, and Audubon's, which tends to hang in the Rockies and is rarely seen in the east. Myrtles, however, will winter along the Pacific Coast. They've also been known to roam as far as Alaska, Siberia and Europe.

Another one of my yard birds.

Polk County Florida.

The Green Heron, also called the Green-backed Heron is a year-round resident of Florida. Found in both fresh and saltwater marshes, ponds, lakes and rivers where it fishes by wading or standing motionless on a branch, log or aquatic plants close to the waters surface.

Green Herons are unique in that they will often drop insects, bits of twigs and other small objects onto the water surface to attract small fish which it then catches with a quick thrust of its beak.

Adult Green Herons have a body length of 19 inches with a wingspan up to 26 inches.

I found this one in my backyard (canal) in Polk County Florida.

Black Swan visiting Lake Mirror Park in Downtown Lakeland in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Photographed the Gopher Tortoise strolling back to it's burrow at the Bok Tower Gardens on Iron Mountain near Lake Wales in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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The Great Crested Flycatcher is an aggressive Tyrant Flycatcher, nesting in a variety of woodland and suburban habitats. From exposed perches it searches for insects and vigorously defends its territory against intruders. Most of the Great Crested Flycatcher's diet consists of flying insects, such as beetles, flies, wasps, katydids, and dragonflies, although fruits of the elderberry, wild cherry, and blackberry are eaten by both adults and young.

In Florida, males begin to settle on their breeding territories in late March or early April. Egg laying takes place during April, May, or June. Great Crested Flycatchers are probably single-brooded. Fall migration is from mid-August to mid-October.

I found this one in my backyard in Polk County, Florida.

Photographed the male Blue-winged Teal in the Banana Creek Marsh out at Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Phew! Now that was a close call!

The Tricolored Heron was being chased by an Anhinga in the Banana Creek Marsh off the Heron Hideout trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve located in the City of Lakeland Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Black-bellied Whistling-Duck on the trunk of a tree in the Banana Creek Marsh in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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A common hawk in the eastern United States, the red-shouldered hawk exists all over Florida.

Not to be confused with the larger red-tailed hawk, the red-shouldered can be identified by its black and white banded tail and wings and by its call – a whistling sound which is imitated by blue jays. Adult hawks have a brownish red chest, but many Florida residents have paler head and chest colors.

Hunting from perches over water or in the woods, these hawks prey on mice, frogs and snakes and use the same nest years after year, if available. Females produce 2-4 pale bluish eggs and babies leave the nest after about six weeks. Interestingly, crows will mob attack this bird to drive it away, and the Great-horned owl will sometimes eat baby hawks from nests.

Red-shouldered hawks have adapted to human’s development and may be seen in wooded areas even in the city.

I captured this one in my backyard as it was trying to catch the resident rat that lives there.

It had tried before, but missed. The hawk shows up just about everyday day looking for the rat.

It ignores the squirrels and other birds and they ignore the it. I don't know how long it will ignore those big fat squirrels.

I call this guy "Blackbeard" after the pirate.

He is an apparently older Male Northern Cardinal who looks as though he has had a rather interesting life. (Notice his beak)

He has a black beard, a broken beak and a "Rough Life" appearance. All he needs is a peg leg, and an "Eye Patch".

All things considered he seems to be doing very well.

He is also one of my Yard Birds.

Polk County, Florida.

Photographed the female banded Snail Kite in the Banana Creek Marsh in Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

The snail kite breeds in tropical South America, the Caribbean, and central and southern Florida in the United States. It is resident all-year in most of its range, but the southernmost population migrates north in winter and the Caribbean birds disperse widely outside the breeding season.

Source: Wikipedia

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An American Purple Gallinule feeding cautiously in the Banana Creek Marsh in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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Osprey feasting on it's catch of the day up in a Cypress tree in the Banana Creek Marsh off of the Heron Hideout Trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve located in the City of Lakeland in Polk Country Florida U.S.A.

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The well-named Yellow-throated Warbler shows off its bright yellow throat in the canopy of forests in the southeastern United States. It hops up branches, working its way high into the canopy probing for insects in crevices and clumps of pine needles, much like a Brown Creeper or Black-and-white Warbler. Unlike those birds, the Yellow-throated Warbler is gray above with a black triangle below its eye and a white eyebrow. It is also one of the few warblers that can be found during the winter in the U.S.

Many warblers migrate from South America to Canada each year, but Yellow-throated Warblers are almost homebodies by comparison. They nest farther south than most warblers, winter farther north, and are even year-round residents in parts of the southern U.S.

I found this one in my backyard. Polk County, Florida.

"In Explore"

Queen Butterfly feeding on the pollen from a Shepherd's Needle flower along the Shady Oak trail in the Circle B Bar Reserve in the City of Lakeland in Polk County Florida U.S.A.

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