The Wonderful, Amazing, Colorful Birds of Florida's Wetlands

Haven't posted any birding shots here for quite some time - of course birding is something I love to do and usually am out every weekend unless I'm out of town, so I've shot thousands of bird photos since the last time I posted. ; One thing that struck me when I was thinking about posting some more bird shots here was the incredible variety of colors our tropical birds have down here - both the native birds and those that migrate through. ; So I thought I'd post some of the more colorful birds one can find down here...hope you enjoy!

Starting with my newest bird on my life list, spotted for the first time this weekend - a lovely male blue grosbeak in full breeding plumage:


The lovely vibrant yellow prairie warbler, with his distinctive black face markings:


The beautiful and powerful red-shouldered hawk:


Mostly browns and earthtones, the least bittern has lovely patterns that make him colorful:


The bandit-masked common yellowthroat...certainly not as common in appearance as his name implies:


One of the most colorful waders, the purple gallinule has more than just purple:


Florida's most iconic colored bird, the roseate spoonbill, who stands out like pink neon in the green swamps:


The boldly colored yellow-throated warbler:


And the all-yellow-bodied, beautiful, and rare prothonotary warbler:


They're invaders to our area, but beautiful none-the-less - the Egyptian goose:


The very common palm warbler becomes much bolder when he takes on his breeding colors, and grows that bright rusty cap:


Another invader who has made Florida a comfortable home...the monk parakeet:


This sneaky shy ground bird rarely comes out of the shadows, but when he does, the bold striped patterns come out, especially the orange band on the head...this is an ovenbird:


Always one of my favorite ducks, the black-bellied whistling duck stands out with the white wing patches, brown and black body, and pink feet and bill:


One of the ultimate prizes for bird photographers, the always-desirable and amazingly colored male painted bunting:

 

Thank you Michael. ; There really are some amazing colored birds out there - even the 'plain' birds like blue jays, cardinals, and robins have some great bold color...and some of the wetlands and migrating birds down here like the painted bunting you mentioned are even more colorful, taking on 3, 4, even 5 colors at once! ; The bunting and gallinule both have 4 or 5 clear colors on them, so those have long been favorites of mine. ; Some of the more exotic parrots and parakeets can get pretty colorful too, which we have in abundance down here as invasive species.

 

Thank you Jeff & Harry. ; And thank you John - indeed the colorful little birds are one of those things I didn't pay much attention to until I got into wildlife photography about 10 years ago - I had probably seen more than a few of those in my yard and didn't pay them any mind, other than the occasional 'hey, check out that yellow bird'. ; Now I know their names, and which ones are migrating vs local. ; Those painted buntings have been favorites of mine since my first shots of one, about 3 years ago. ; I was amazed when I finally got to see this elusive bird...but they seem to be much more populous lately, and I've now seen them at 5 different locations in two counties, including my main local wetlands where that shot was taken, where they used to be rare visitors - they are now present at the park in the half-dozens or more, and for a good 6-7 months of the year (used to be only in the months of September and April when you'd be told to look for them - now it's September through the entire winter and through April). ; I'm happy for it too, they really are beautiful little birds!

 

The climate issue is the one thing I truly dislike about living down here - but I deal with it to get some of the other benefits - aside from a paying job, of course! ; Beaches, birds, bikinis, boating, swamps, Disney, greenery, and latin culture are all positives about the place...and with so many expats from NY, NJ, MA, MI, PA, etc, we get the good northern food too. ; Just have to deal with the 6-8 months in the middle when it's mid-90s and humid as a steam shower. ; But that's when you go in the ocean or jump in the pool, and enjoy the birds (the ones in the bikinis). ;

 

great shots Justin!

And, I cant wait for the summer heat!! There is nothing prettier than a June Summer Sky in Florida at about 2pm

 

Thank you Craig and Peg (Hey, it rhymes!).


Like you Peg, I think I had seen them a few times before I was into photography, but didn't really understand what it was I was seeing - I too thought it was some escaped pet from someone's cage! ; Only when I got into bird photography and was told to be on the lookout for the painted bunting did I learn it was actually a local wild bird!

 

Many thanks Scott. ; I don't post as many of my bird shots here because I don't know how tolerant everyone would be of so many birds - I am out every weekend shooting, and have thousands of shots a month of birds. ; Of course, these were some of the most colorful ones over the past 6-8 months or so.

 

Great stuff, Justin. ; Keep shooting out there. ; It seems like all we have here are robins and cardinals, although I know there are more than that.

 

Many thanks all. ; I guess I'll occasionally post some more birds then!