River Wildlife

Gators on this trip

We spotted these two on Blue Creek, just off the St Johns River, FL. I found it intriguing since the small gator is resting his head on a large turtle. Someday it will be on the gator’s menu…

The turtle didn’t like us getting so close and decided to leave.

A few days later we spotted this one on the river bank. It was fairly large. I would guess at least 9 or 10 ft.

But the biggest treat was to spot this huge gator at one of our favorite anchorages.

It has a very broad back, a very large head and a lot of “gator tail”. One of the specialties on the menus around here. So I’m not going to mention where we spotted it.

Just as I switched from photos to video it headed into the water and I missed the action.

Is it grinning at me?

Immature Black-Crowned Night Heron?

I spotted this bird while taking Raisin ashore. It was sitting on another dingy. It didn’t seem worried as I motored past, but when I came back it had moved to the other side of the run at Silver Glen Springs, FL.

In my “Field Guide to the Birds East of the Rockies”, I found 2 birds that might fit.

I believe it is the Immature Black-Crowned Night Heron.

My guide doesn’t have a photo..just a drawing, and both immature Yellow-Crowned and Black-Crowned Herons look similar, the beak on this bird most closely resembles the beak on the Black-Crowned Heron.

I had a great time watching it. For a moment I thought it was going to dive in and grab something.

I will be watching at dusk to see if I can spot an adult. They look like beautiful birds…ones that I have never seen.

Nature’s Clean-up crew

While cruising back to Lake Monroe, FL, I spotted a flock of vultures. It isn’t unusual to see them sitting in a tree, but when they are on the ground it usually means they are feeding on something.

At first glance it appeared they were sitting on a log, but it did seem unusual so we turned around for a better look.

We were right to double check…it is definitely a gator. August 15 thru Nov 1 is hunting season.

It’s possible it died of natural causes but with the season open……..not likely.

I know they are dangerous…and the big ones especially so…but I sure hate to see all the big old gators killed off. Many of the problems are caused by people who feed them and they start associating people with food instead of being wary of them. During breeding season it’s best not to hang around their territory. Many people hunt them for the meat, hides and the extra money to keep the family going. I have no problem with that. I’ve done it myself in the past.(though not with gators). Not a fan of “trophy” hunters, though.

Fall Colors

I know it’s hard to believe..but we do have fall in Florida.

It was really pretty on parts of the St Johns River.

It’s nothing like you see in the NE…but the colors are pretty against all the green.

An Anhinga with trash around it’s beak

Our friends, Debbie and George, have a beautiful pond. Many ducks call it home. Many more wild ones come in daily to feed. Blue Herons and Anhingas also frequent it.

This Anhinga showed up and has stayed a few days. They realized there was a problem. I took some pictures this afternoon, so we could get a look at what is on it’s beak.

It almost looks like rags or something with knots in it.

The bird was quite a distance away and the pictures aren't very good.

They contacted someone who knows how to handle a situation like this. They will try to net it when it gets a bit weaker. They don’t want to chase it away, it might not get any help then.

For some reason it cant get it off it’s beak and that means it can’t eat. I will let you know how they make out getting it free.

This is one of the reasons we carry nippers and bags for trash when we are out in our dingy. We once saw an Anhinga with fishing line trailing behind, as it flew past, and decided we’d start gathering all the fishing line that is left in the bushes etc. We have to take our dog ashore each evening and morning…while out..we cruise the waters edge looking for “stuff”.

Check out the “Pick it up” button on the right….just click on it. This is why you’ll find it on all my blogs.

Red Dragonfly

I need some help on this one. I’m not sure what kind it is.

A very pretty reddish brown.

It didn’t seem afraid. I was able to row right up to it.

It was a bit more reddish than the pictures show. There looks to be a dark line down the top of the body.

It was about the size of a Meadowhawk, so possibly a Cardinal Meadowhawk? Not a real bright red though, more of a deep reddish orange. Pretty…whatever it is.