BIRD PHOTOS FROM MY ARCHIVES - BIRDS AT ZOO IN CHINA

   Last year in April and May Sharon and I  took a trip to China.  We visited the zoo in Chongquing, China and took these photos of the birds in the zoo.

PEACOCK

PHOTOS FROM MY ARCHIVES: ANIMALS OTHER THAN BIRDS

BIRD PHOTOS FROM MY ARCHIVES: WADING BIRDS - PART I - HERONS AND NIGHT-HERONS

   Wading birds have a preference for shallow waters, such as marshes, swamps, reedy areas, mud flats, ponds, etc.  The following birds are considered wading birds:

• Herons
• Egrets
• Ibises
• Night-herons
• Spoonbill
• Storks
• Bitterns

In this blog I have included photos of herons and night-herons; in a future blog I will give photos of the other wading birds.

   The photos below were taken at four different birding hotspots in the Naples, FL area:

• Eagle Lakes Community Park, Naples, FL (Eagle Lakes) - This Collier County park is located on Route 41 (Tamiami Trail E.) about 1/2 mile west of the intersection of Route 41 and Collier Blvd.  The park is open from 8 am to dusk every day. The park is site # 170 on the Great Florida Birding Trail.  The park has three ponds which host numerous birds, especially during the winter. Forested areas around the ponds host all types of song birds.
• J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge (Ding  Darling) - This refuge is located on Sanibel Island on the Gulf of Mexico.  It is accessed via a bridge from Ft. Myers, FL.  The refuge is site # D28 of the Great Florida Birding Trail.  Ding Darling  is an internationally renowned birding location. 
• Shark Valley, Everglades National Park (Shark Valley) - The Shark Valley section of Everglades National Park is located on Route 41 (Tamiami Trail) about 70 miles from Naples and 40 miles from Miami.  It is site # K78 on the Great Florida Birding Trail.  There is a 15-mile loop road that you can walk, bike or take a narrated tram tour.
• Naples Botanical Garden - This is a spectacular botanical garden located on Bayshore Drive about 3 1/2 miles from downtown Naples.  In addition to beautiful flowers, this is a great birding hotspot.  There are several ponds with marshes and a birding tower with a scope.

   You can download info on the Great Florida Birding Trail at floridabirdingtrail.com.

ABOVE 3 PHOTOS - BLACK-CROWNED
NIGHT HERON - EAGLE LAKES

ABOVE 3 PHOTOS - YELLOW-CROWNED
NIGHT HERON - DING DARLING

IMMATURE YELLOW-CROWNED
NIGHT HERON - DING DARLING

GREAT BLUE HERON
EAGLE LAKES

I

GREEN HERON
SHARK VALLEY

IMMATURE GREEN HERON
SHARK VALLEY

ABOVE 2 PHOTOS - TRICOLORED HERON
NAPLES BOTANICAL GARDEN

LITTLE BLUE HERON
DING DARLING & EAGLE LAKES

BIRD PHOTOS OF THE DAY: FIRST DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT OF SEASON & INTERESTING DUCKS

   This afternoon Sharon and I went for a walk in Mill Pond Park in Richmond Hill.  We saw our first Double-crested Cormorant since coming back to Canada at the beginning of April.  They are starting to migrate back from the southern U.S.  During the winter in Florida we saw plenty of them.
   We also saw some interesting ducks:  a Crested Mallard, a domesticated Long Island Duck and an immature mallard.  The three birds hung out with each other, which leads me to think that the immature Mallard might be the offspring of the other two ducks.  After all, both the Crested Mallard and domesticated Long Island Duck were  breed from the Mallard (the Long Island Duck in China a long time ago).

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT - MILL
POND PARK, RICHMOND HILL, ON
NOTE THE ORANGE LORES & THROAT &
THE DOWNTURNED END OF THE
UPPER BILL

CLOSEUP OF CORMORANT'S FACE

SIDE VIEW OF CORMORANT

ABOVE 2 PHOTOS - CORMORANT
SPREADING ITS WINGS WHILE IN
WATER, BUT NOT FLYING AWAY.

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: IMMATURE 
MALLARD,  DOMESTICATED DUCK (LONG
ISLAND DUCK) & CRESTED MALLARD.

IMMATURE MALLARD

CRESTED MALLARD - NOTICE PUFFY
CREST & CURLED TAIL