catandturtle

The new boardwalk at Orlando Wetlands provides amazing access to nesting Roseate Spoonbills. I made it out there last week to enjoy some time with one of my favorite birds.

This first nest was high in a palm tree. The mom was resting in the shade, and I didn’t realize she had babies until they popped up in a frenzy begging for food. Baby spoonbills eat regurgitated food straight from the parent’s bill. So there is often a clamoring of small spoons pointed at Mom’s face. Sometimes I think Mom is lucky that she doesn’t get her eye poked out.

I had my 2x teleconverter on the Beast that afternoon. This nest was farther from the boardwalk and thus farther away from the paparazzi of photographers. I watched and laughed as the babies learned to flap their wings. Those flight feathers are coming in quickly!

What happens when you put your 2x on your 600mm lens? The bird flies right in front of you, and you are too close to focus! That’s how I got this next shot. I liked the close up of the adult bird’s red eye.

All phases of nesting were going on that afternoon. In the treetops above me, adult birds were foraging for nesting material. They would fly in, test branch after branch until they found a loose one, and then fly off to take it back to the nest.

Once at the nest, the stick is proudly presented to the bird’s partner. Then the birds both hold it while they maneuver it into place. It takes a lot of effort and patience to build the perfect spoonbill nursery!

Once they pair up and start building their nest, the adult birds stick together pretty closely. I caught many of them napping together. I guess they were guarding the nest to make sure nobody came and stole their sticks! I watched this pair for a long time as they threw their bills in the air and performed other courtship behaviors. Then the male hopped on her back and…well, let’s just call it a piggy-back ride.

After several weeks of careful incubation, tiny spoons appear in the nests. This nest was over my head, and the babies didn’t pop up very often. But gosh they were cute when they did! My camera went click-click-click when this little guy showed himself and gave me a big yawn.

As the sun set, the golden light was gorgeous on the pink birds. Some of the adults flew to sentry point posts on top of palm trees trunks. It’s impressive how they can keep watch with their eyes closed (my cat has this super-power also).

All in all it was a great afternoon. But wait, there’s more! As cute as the pinkness was, there was a nest of tiny Great Egrets that also distracted my camera. The babies were just a few days old. When Mom stood up, the chicks would pop up and fight with each other. They were vicious! It’s a good thing they are so cute.