Ornithologists and native peoples usually name birds for an outstanding feature. Have you ever wondered why the Red-bellied Woodpecker is called red-bellied when that feature is not obvious? We see Florida’s most common woodpecker as it is climbing a palm tree, telephone pole, or on our backyard feeder eating seeds, nuts or fruits. We usually…

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Aren’t these Black Skimmers graceful gliding over the water in tandem? How did photographer Thelma Eliza Gatuzzo using a Canon 5D Mark III and 100-400 lens catch this fluid pose, wings raised high? Skimmers fish in tidal shallow waters within 6 feet of land where small fish concentrate at low tide. When a fish touches…

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As this Roseate Spoonbill’s landing gear is extended and about to touch down, all its marvelous feather-pattern markings are visible…the intense scarlet upper wing and tail, the body plumage brighter pink, while the upper breast, neck, and back are white, and with yellow shoulder patch. Only slightly visible are the recurved scarlet feathers on the…

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While two biologists were checking the status of a known nest tree, State Biologist Tim Towles confirmed the presence of Crested Caracara nestlings with his Canon PowerShot SX50x Stabilized 24-1200 mm Zoom lens. Because nests with repeated human visitation often fail, they stayed 90 feet away and minimized the time spent in the area to…

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