The day after Thanksgiving was Yellow Friday at Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive. The landscape is covered in burr marigolds – it’s beautiful! Plus there were some great yellow birds.

Yellow Warblers are typically found in Central Florida during spring and fall migration. But this year, a Yellow Warbler seems to be wintering at the Crazy U. I spotted him high in the treetops between Palm Warblers. It took a few minutes for him to come out in the open for a photograph.

Flocks of ducks are also here for the winter. Among the Blue-winged Teals and the Ring-necked Ducks were a bunch of American Wigeons. They spent most of the morning with their heads under the water, but they did briefly pose for the camera.

Nearby, a Belted Kingfisher flew in to a tree branch. This is a female, as she has rusty spots on her stomach. She stood watching over the marsh until she spotted a fish, then she took off and grabbed it from the water.

There are so many Fulvous Whistling-Ducks at Lake Apopka these days! The sky is full of them. They are really pretty when you see them up close near the trails.

A Vermilion Flycatcher has been seen regularly at LAWD for the past few weeks. I didn’t see her on that particular day, but as I watched for her, I spotted this Swamp Sparrow. He stayed mostly hidden in the reeds but hopped out for a quick photo op.

This Eastern Phoebe knew it was Yellow Friday. She showed off her yellow parts as she posed in front of the fields of yellow flowers. She waved goodbye as I left and congratulated me for visiting the wildlife drive instead of the mall! :-)