One of the Roseate Spoonbill nests that thrived this year at Orlando Wetlands Park was buried deep in a palm tree. It was far enough from the boardwalk that I needed my 600mm lens with 2x teleconverter. The babies were pretty big before I started to get good pictures of them.

The chicks are so cute! This guy is starting to get a spoon-shaped bill. He proudly stretched his wings while Mom preened nearby.

There were three babies in the nest. As the sun started to set, the babies woke up and started to pester Mom for dinner. She had her beak full with three spoons. In the meantime, Dad kept bringing in sticks for the nest.

Dad would fly in holding his big stick prize, and he’d pause to show it off to his wife. She’d throw him a quick look like, “Seriously? I’m kind of busy here.” Dad didn’t understand. In the pre-kid days, when they were building the nest, she praised him for every stick!

Here he brings a very big stick. He’s trying to win the next Big Stick Contest! His kids are so busy with supper that nobody even turns to greet him. How sad.

He ended up placing the stick himself while Mom regurgitated for the youngest chick. I’m not sure how nobody loses an eye with these sorts of feeding habits!

It’s hard to express the frenetic feeding with still images. Here’s a short video of the nest, with all the frantic head-bobbing. I never get tired of these guys!

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A post shared by Jess Yarnell (@catandturtle_photography)