Kayaking 3-24-2025

It was an exceptionally beautiful day out today. 72° very light breeze, no humidity, wonderful.  Marium said she was not coming, but she met me halfway by driving! Nice to see her.

The Osprey, historically known as sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than 60 cm in length and 180 cm across the wings.
The Anhinga, sometimes called snakebird, darter, American darter, or water turkey, is a water bird of the warmer parts of the Americas. The word anhinga comes from a'ñinga in the Brazilian Tupi language and means "devil bird" or "snake bird".

That’s an Anhinga — often called a “snake bird.”

You can tell by:

  • Very long, straight, spear-like bill

  • Thin neck

  • Black body

  • Silvery streaked feathers on the neck

  • White patches on the upper wing

  • That slightly wild, spiky head look

And the red eye is classic in breeding plumage.

What makes this photo special

You caught it in a wing-spread posture — classic drying behavior. Unlike ducks, anhingas lack heavy waterproofing, so they spread their wings to dry after diving for fish.

Around your St. Petersburg/Tampa Bay area, they’re common in mangroves and freshwater ponds — but getting this kind of close-up detail in the neck feathers is excellent.

The Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus) is a long-lived, colonial-nesting waterbird native to North America. One of 38 species of cormorants worldwide, and one of six species in North America, it is usually found in flocks and is sometimes confused with geese or loons when on the water. The hook at the end of their beak differentiates it from the Anhinga.

This is a Double-crested Cormorant.

You can tell by:

  • Thick, hooked bill

  • Yellow-orange gular patch (throat area)

  • Stockier build than the anhinga

  • Fully dark body without the strong white wing patches

  • Webbed feet clearly visible (great detail in your shot)

Key Difference from the Anhinga

AnhingaDouble-crested Cormorant
Thin, spear-like billThick hooked bill
Silver streaked neckSolid dark neck
Long, snake-like profileHeavier, bulkier
White wing panelsMostly dark wings

This bird is likely in non-breeding or transitional plumage. In breeding season you’d sometimes see small white “crests” behind the eye (hence the name).

About Your Photo

You caught:

  • Beautiful side profile

  • Good webbed-foot detail

  • Nice separation from background

The Brown Pelican is a comically elegant bird with an oversized bill, sinuous neck, and big, dark body. Squadrons glide above the surf along southern and western coasts, rising and falling in a graceful echo of the waves. They feed by plunge-diving from high up, using the force of impact to stun small fish before scooping them up.

That’s a Brown Pelican — likely a juvenile.

You can tell by:

  • Long gray bill with large pouch

  • Overall brown body

  • Pale belly

  • Lack of the bright white/yellow head you’d see on a breeding adult

In breeding adults, the head becomes much whiter with a more dramatic color contrast. This one has that softer, chocolate-brown look typical of younger birds.

Given your Gulf Coast location, Brown Pelicans are basically coastal royalty. They patrol piers, mangroves, bridges, and seawalls — and they’re fantastic subjects when perched like this.

About Your Photo

This is actually a strong composition:

  • The pelican framed naturally by mangrove leaves

  • Nice diagonal line of the bill

  • Soft, warm light

The Yellow-crowned Night Heron’s smooth purple-gray colors, sharp black-and-white face, and long yellow plumes lend it a touch of elegance. They forage at all hours of the day and night, stalking crustaceans in shallow wetlands and wet fields. Their diet leans heavily on crabs and crayfish, which they catch with a lunge and shake apart, or swallow whole.

This is a Yellow-crowned Night Heron — adult.

You can tell by:

  • Bright red-orange eye

  • Black face mask

  • White cheek stripe

  • Pale gray body with layered wing feathers

  • Pinkish legs

  • Those thin white head plumes trailing back

Around St. Petersburg and the Gulf Coast, these are common near rocky shorelines and mangroves — especially where there are crabs. They’re crab specialists.

This is one of your stronger technical shots

What works very well here:

  • Eye is crisp and bright

  • Feather detail on the wing is excellent

  • Background separation is clean

  • Natural rock perch gives context

The Coast Guard is America’s premier Maritime Law Enforcement Agency. We are part of the Department of Homeland Security team protecting our nation and are at all times a military service and part of the joint force defending it. For over 234 years, the American people have depended on our missions and the unique value the Coast Guard provides to assure our economic prosperity and national security. With our ships, aircraft, boats and nearly 55,000 military members and civilian employees, every day we: Control the U.S. Border and Maritime Approaches

That’s a U.S. Coast Guard turboprop aircraft — and from the twin engines and high wing configuration, it appears to be a HC-144 Ocean Sentry (based on the Airbus CN-235 platform).

You can see:

  • “USCG” clearly marked on the wing

  • Red Coast Guard panels on wings and tail

  • Twin turboprop engines

  • High-mounted straight wing (great for low-speed patrol)

Around your area (St. Petersburg / Clearwater / Tampa Bay), these are commonly seen doing:

  • Coastal patrol

  • Search and rescue overwatch

  • Fisheries enforcement

  • Training flights

Air Station Clearwater is one of the Coast Guard’s busiest aviation units in the country, so it makes sense you’d see this overhead.

Common Grackles are blackbirds that look like they've been slightly stretched. They're taller and longer tailed than a typical blackbird, with a longer, more tapered bill and glossy-iridescent bodies. This one is taking a bath.

That’s a Boat-tailed Grackle — and a great behavioral shot.

You can tell by:

  • Glossy black plumage with blue-green iridescence

  • Pale yellow eye

  • Long, keel-shaped bill

  • Coastal habitat (very common around Tampa Bay)

The iridescence on the neck is showing nicely — that teal sheen is classic when the light hits just right.

What makes this image strong

  • Low shooting angle — eye-level with the bird (excellent)

  • Waterline perspective adds drama

  • Droplets on the feathers tell a story

  • Background nicely blurred

This feels intentional and patient — not a grab shot.

Among the most elegant of the herons, the slender Snowy Egret sets off immaculate white plumage with black legs and brilliant yellow feet. Those feet seem to play a role in stirring up or herding small aquatic animals as the egret forages. Breeding Snowy Egrets grow filmy, curving plumes that once fetched astronomical prices in the fashion industry, endangering the species.

That’s a Snowy Egret — and this is a very nice frame.

You can tell by:

  • Pure white plumage

  • Black bill

  • Yellow lores (the yellow patch in front of the eye)

  • Bright yellow feet (“golden slippers”)

  • Fine breeding plumes on the head and chest

Around Tampa Bay, they’re constant companions along shallow edges and mangroves.

What works very well here

  • Elegant walking pose — that lifted leg is classic stalking posture.

  • Clean dark background — really makes the white pop.

  • Nice reflection in the water.

  • The bubble in front adds a small storytelling element.

  • Feather detail is holding — which is not easy with a white bird.

You controlled exposure well. Snowy Egrets can blow out quickly.

Mallards are large ducks with hefty bodies, rounded heads, and wide, flat bills. Like many “dabbling ducks” the body is long and the tail rides high out of the water, giving a blunt shape. In flight their wings are broad and set back toward the rear.

Mallard drake in full breeding plumage.

You can tell by:

  • Iridescent emerald-green head

  • Bright yellow bill

  • Rich chestnut breast

  • Gray body

  • Black tail with the curled “drake feather”

  • Orange legs

Even though they’re common, they’re not easy to photograph well because that green head either goes dull or blows out depending on angle. You caught the light nicely — the metallic sheen is visible without turning flat.

What works well

  • Good feather detail on the gray body

  • Nice separation from the background

  • The green head has dimensionality

  • Wing position adds some shape and depth

Humans
The American oystercatcher is a shorebird species that is easily identified by its long, bright reddish-orange bill, yellow eyes, and distinct red eye ring. These features are a contrast to the deep black-colored head, brown and black backside, and white belly. The wings are characterized by a white “V” shape, which can be seen as they are in flight. This large shorebird can reach 18 inches (45.7 centimeters) in length and a wingspan of 32 inches (81.3 centimeters) (National Audubon Society, n.d.). Since it is one of the largest and heaviest of our shorebirds, the oystercatcher is unmistakable. It is striking in appearance: dark-brown, black, and white, with a bright red bill. When in flight, a diagonal white stripe in each wing forms a V-pattern. Behavior The American oystercatcher is one of a few bird species that feed primarily on mollusks.

This is an American Oystercatcher — one of the most striking shorebirds on the Gulf Coast.

You can tell by:

  • Bold black head and upper breast

  • Bright orange-red bill

  • Yellow eye with red orbital ring

  • Clean black-and-white body pattern

  • Stocky, thick bill built for prying open oysters and clams

Around Tampa Bay and the barrier islands, these are iconic birds — especially on sandbars and oyster beds.

What makes this image strong

  • Excellent low angle — you’re almost at water level again.

  • The orange bill and eye absolutely pop.

  • Soft background water gives clean separation.

  • Subtle reflection adds depth.

  • Good detail in the white chest (not blown out).

This has a calm, coastal feel.

I spoke with some of my Canadian friends who live six months of the year here on Bear Creek. They may not come back next year because of the political climate, for one thing they now have to every 30 days report to the government.

Canadians who visit the US for more than 30 days will be required to register with authorities, as the Trump administration tightens migration rules amid soaring tensions between the North American neighbors.

The new requirement, effective from 11 April, will harden enforcement of an existing law, which states that all foreign nationals 14 years old or older who plan to stay in the US for 30 days or more must register with the authorities.

They feel that Costa Rica and other places will accept them better so they are thinking of selling and try somewhere not in the US.