Estero Bay Preserve

It has been almost a year since I visited the Estero Preserve, reports of several ducks and other species made me itch for a visit.

Before heading there I made sure that I was prepared for the hike - water in the trails and insects in the air - we armed ourselves with boots and bug spray, two of us were glad to have a head net because the deer flies were in great numbers.

A beautiful sunny sky with a rainbow greeted us as we entered the preserve....our first stop....pond..

This is the pond where the American Wigeons have been seen, so....we quietly approached the pond...

because the ducks are known to be skittish and fly off if they are disturbed.

Well, not only did we have Wigeons but also Northern Pintails - sweet!

Not long after that the ducks took flight....we were glad to have been able to see them before they left for the day.

We traveled another mile or so before finding the second pond....

This pond is much larger than the other one and as you can see a lot more species....

Lesser Scaup, Ruddy Ducks and Buffleheads - oh my!

After exploring the big pond we ventured toward the Bay - walking gingerly on different types of terrain - we spotted small peeps....can you see them?

How about now? Isn't it amazing how well they blend in?

Semi-palmated Plovers are one of my favorites.

My birding partners and where we've been....don't you just love the expanse of this property? I highly advise not to venture alone, the trails are not well defined and one can easily get lost without a good sense of direction. Also, some areas are really muddy and very easy to sink in and loose your boots if you're not careful.

Another sweet spotting today: American Avocet.

A Dunlin receiving some sweet notes from a Semi-palmated Plover.

A group of Western Sandpipers.

A Greater Yellowleg.

One more area to venture through water and mud before reaching the edge of the shore.

Positioned by the shore we could see how many White Pelicans were across while a whole group flew above our heads.

Also, quite a few American Avocets far off.

These two were very close to us....what a nice gift!

This was indeed a very sweet visit and I look forward to return and explore the sparrows and rails territory.

What will you see when you visit? Check my E-bird List for the species we saw, also within that list you can click on "map" to see where it is. Happy Birding!

Duck, Duck, Ducky!!

What a spectacular day! Yesterday was my second outing with the Caloosa Bird Club and it certainly was a memorable one ..... again! The day started out at Eagle Lakes Community Park in Naples and concluded at Sugden Regional Park - also in Naples. We had a nice group and saw a collective count of 70 or so species....sorry the numbers are vague now - note to self....make more notes.

After a picnic lunch, a bunch of us agreed to follow Vince to Oil Well Road in Immokalee....well, that really topped the cake with a big cherry on top. 

Well, before I get ahead of myself - let's take a look at some of the photos from the Parks in Naples.

One of our first sighting was actually a Northern Flicker - way up - a life bird for me, too bad that I couldn't get his photo.....maybe next time.
The usual fare was seen all around - the Common Gallinule didn't mind posing and so did all the Grackles -  some folks were hoping to see the Cowbird which had been at that location previously....but not this time around.

Then we gathered up in the parking lot and got our directions for the next stop...the Sugden Regional Park.

This was a very lovely setting - very peaceful in comparisson to all the bikers/runners that we encountered in the Eagle Lakes Park.

My very first sighting of "Ruddy Duck".

Aren't they lovely?
Don't let the amount of photos fool you because there were close to 70 species seen at those two parks and it was a great outing - Thank You M.Mulheim for leading our group.
My E-Bird List - combined sighting for both parks.
Now, this is where it gets really ducky....

Quite a few White Pelicans....they brigtened up the place like a light bulb.

Not visible from any of my photos - was the fact that there were literally thousands of Coots in the back portion by the shoreside.

Avocets! I was so happy to see them. I had been wishing to spot Avocets since I first set my eyes on them - over a year ago.....I wanted to add them to my Lee Co.....but, hey, I'll take this anyday.....even in Collier Co. :)

The Avocets in flight - shortly after a raptor flew over.

The funny - odd - thing, was that the group in flight was lead by a Black Skimmer. That is what is so exciting about birding....you think you're looking at something you thought you knew when all of a sudden you realize that it's something else entirely.....don't know about you, but I love surprises like these.

The Northern Shoveler were in the midst of many other ducks.

Before long - 3 Bald Eagles came flying overhead and this caused many flocks to rise up and fly off - generating clouds upon clouds of beating wings....it was just BEAUTYfull to see and to hear too....wow!

Blue-winged Teal.

The general view from the road - where we had all set up our scopes. Too bad that my equipment doesn't allow me to get better photos from afar, but hey, that's okay....I'm just glad that I had the opportunity to see it all and to capture the few bits that I did.

I am glad that I went the extra mile - literally - to go and see those ducks.....many of them were put on my Life List.

Check out my E-Bird list to see all the ducks that were spotted on that trip.

A big Thank You to Vince for showing/sharing his knowledge and spots where the birds/ducks are....this make for happy birding.