Stolen moments

It's been a bit since I posted, actually the last time I blogged was on the morning of my husband having a health episode. Life seems to have a mind of its own and I can honestly say that it is quite beyond my ability to control or fix for that matter. In any event - I am not here to gather sympathy but rather to say that I was able to steal some precious moments for myself and I chose the beach as my peaceful getaway.
I took a long walk along Bowman's Beach and took advantage of those lovely early morning hours and it was just what I needed, come along and enjoy those short respite with me.....

The birds were certainly not in great numbers but the few that I did see brightened my day - the Ruddy Turnstone always has a striking appearance.

Since it is Sea Turtle season I can't really be surprised when I come across a crawl however it always lighten me up and makes me smile.....

and another - this one a quick turnaround....Loggerhead Sea Turtle judging from the alternating gait.

The Sanderlings were stealing the show though with their bright summer plumage

And unfortunately that was all the time that I had - it was short but very sweet. On my way back across the little bridge I ended up with another encounter....

A mother Manatee with her young one...how sweet is that!

 

Gulfside Park in Sanibel

I purposely took time away from the hustle bustle that the island has been experiencing with the spring break which of course brought in a lot of folks to enjoy our beautiful beaches and weather - I took an early beach walk and was totally entertained by the birds and distracted by the shells - what a great way to start the day!

I arrived just before sunrise and was able to capture the sun as it started to peek up from behind those buildings across the way.

Here's something that I don't see too often - an Octopi, unfortunately it expired.

A Ruddy Turnstone in its perfect environment.

An Eastern Willet

A Snowy Egret in the beginning stages of breeding plumage - its lores and feet are more orange and will turn even brighter to almost red.

A Lesser Black-backed Gull - they look so sharp with their 'tuxedo' and bright white shirt on.

The Sanderlings were feeding in quite a frenzy.

This one caught a small shrimp.

The perfect clam size for this Ruddy Turnstone.

A Black-bellied Plover.

And of course Gulfside Park wouldn't be right without its Plover enclosure.

I saw a total of 5 Snowy Plovers, two of which were banded.....

soon they will be mating and that's a good thing.

Beachside

If you read my last post you saw that it was dedicated to the Royal Terns and the behavior I observed - I felt that it was so special that it deserved its own spot. This post is about everything else that I encountered, so come along and see....

I arrived at the beach just as the sun was rising - it made a perfect backdrop for this Sargasso Mat.

Not too long ago I discussed the small capsules that had washed up on the beach and here is a perfect example of what it looks like when it is still part of the Sargasso mat. The Sargassum provides a home to an amazing variety of marine species. Turtles use sargassum mats as nurseries where hatchlings have food and shelter. The mat also provides habitat for shrimp, crab, fish and other marine species that have adapted to this 'floating algae'.

Back to shore - the local Brown Pelicans were quite busy feeding - this young one came to investigate.

An adult Brown Pelican is getting quite colorful with its yellow head and reddish bill.

Now my attention is being drawn to this seashell mat - oh my! So much to do and see and so little time it seems.

And more birds to observe - there were at least a dozen Forster Tern mixed in with the Royal and Sandwich.

There were also quite a few dog walkers on the beach and as such the birds/terns found themselves being constantly displaced.

A small group of Sanderling managed to find a spot to rest away from the 'walking zone'.

Here's a fun picture - I always love to come across similar species side by side as it provides me with more study/comparison between the two....a Sandwich Tern in the back, a Forster in the front.

A Lesser Black-backed Gull was definitely a head above the rest.

My favorite couple - the Royal Tern side by side - also note to the right, another opportunity to compare the Forster, Sandwich and Royal Tern.

More Sanderlings.

A Ghost Crab - this fellow must be in its 3rd year because his borrow was way up the beach by the vegetation.

As I passed the Ghost Crab I came upon a couple who were eyeing a Common Loon that was sitting on the sand - their first reaction was that we needed to call CROW. Before doing so I gingerly approached the bird to see if it was injured - well, this Loon did not like the fact that I was getting closer and all of a sudden he attempted to stab me with its bill - it must have been pretty comical to see me skipping and jumping while trying to avoid his jabs - good thing I'm still quick on my feet. The Loon safely retreated to the ocean.

Well, that was quite a bit of excitement for one day and I'm getting hungry....time for lunch.

Banded birds at the beach

It's officially the start of the Snowy Plover nesting season - so, off I go to the Gulfside Park beach to check things out.

Some of the Snowy Plovers have been banded, this particular lady got her blings as an adult in 2009 in Sanibel.

This little fellow was banded just recently on the East End of Sanibel.

This area of the beach had 8 Snowy Plover, this one is not banded.

Another banded Snowy Plover - this one got its bands last month around the Lighthouse of Sanibel.

My friend Elaine is admiring this beach art which was done on the edge of the roped off area for the Snowy Plovers.

Nearby - a Lesser Black-backed Gull is spotted.

No wonder Sanibel is known as the seashell capital of the world.

Within the shells - treasure can be found such as this Spider crab which looked comical with its two barnacles on its back.

A Red Knot! It liked to hang out with the Willets.

Kites are not my favorite since they look like a predator to the beach birds - but this one, being a sea turtle, I make an exception.

Then we saw some Sanderlings that were also banded....

the only information I have so far is that Sanderlings are banded in Canada - who knew that they came from my country! Oh Canada!

All in all, I'd say it was a great day revisiting the Snowy Plover - I look forward to another season with the hopes of successful fledglings.