April 11, 2021 - Interesting Bird Photos

Here are some interesting bird photos I took while we were in Florida this winter.

This juvenile Herring Gull was taking off with some food item it found on the beach. If you recognize the food item, I’d appreciate getting an email letting me know what it is. earlorf@uslink.net

GullHerringjuvenilewithfoodGeorgeIslandStatePark20210129

Here’s an adult Herring Gull with the head of a fish. Gulls will eat just about anything!

GullHerringwithfoodGeorgeIslandStatePark20210121

I was disappointed that I cut off one wing of this Royal Tern. But as I studied the photo, I noticed that this bird had very dark wing tips and a line of black across the back edge of its wings. That’s not what I usually see in this species. I looked it up in my Sibley Guide to Birds and found that this is typical of “juvenile” plumage. That means this bird was hatched last year and is gradually transitioning to adult plumage.

TernRoyalfirstwinternoticethefeetMexicoBeach202102054x6

As I looked more closely, I saw colored patches on the bird’s legs. Sibley also shows that during its first six months, a Royal Tern does have yellow legs and an adult has black legs. This is further confirmation that the bird is changing to adult plumage.

TernRoyalfirstwinternoticethefeetMexicoBeach202102054x6

This is a Ruddy Turnstone, a bird often seen running along the beach picking up tiny things to eat.

TurnstoneRuddywithfoodGeorgeIslandStatePark20210129

But this Turnstone got into an unusual position, almost lying down on the sand.

TurnstoneRuddywithfoodSikesCutThePlantationGeorgeIsland20210110

I finally figured out what was going on. Almost 100% of the shells on a beach are empty, but this bird found THE ONE shell that still had its original occupant, and the Turnstone was going to eat it.

TurnstoneRuddywithfoodSikesCutThePlantationGeorgeIsland20210110close

Here’s an Anhinga seen at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge. It’s a large water bird with a long, thin neck and a long tail.

AnhingamaleMarksNWR20210204

I had never seen an Anhinga lean forward, spread its wings, and fan out its tail. But now I know why the online resource Birds of the World says this bird used to be called a Water Turkey.

AnhingamalestretchingMarksNWR20210204