images by date of photo
Read MoreRanger, the Red-tailed Hawk ~ Buteo jamaicensis ~ Huron River and Watershed, Michigan
Note tethering and perching gear for this rescued beauty of nature.
RangerRedTailed Hawkbirdcaptive birdButeo.jamaicensisraptorshrill cryoldest known 30 yearsred tailbroad round wingsshort wide tail2nd largest buteo hawkresidentshort distance migrant
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Chrystal Cemetery ~ Chrystal, Potter, Pennsylvania
"The moment one gives close attention to anything, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself." ~ Henry Miller
Chrystal CemeteryPotter CountyPennsylvania
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Red-Bellied Woodpecker Takes the Peanut ~ Melanerpes carolinus ~ Huron River and Watershed
“Great photography is about depth of feeling, not depth of field.” ~ Peter Adams
Redbellied WoodpeckerMelanerpes carolinusbarred backsred capoldest12 yearspale bellyred napeclings to tree barkundulating flight patternbird
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Blue Jay with Peanut and Friend ~ Cyanocitta cristata ~ Huron River and Watershed
"Taking pictures is like tiptoeing into the kitchen late at night and stealing Oreo cookies.” ~ Diane Arbus
Blue JayCyanocitta cristataHuron River and WatershedMichiganbirdsongbirdcomplex social systemtight family bondsfondness for acornssometimes migratorymimi calls of hawkstool userblueoldest known 26 yearsprominent crestbold black necklacebold white wingbarwings tail barred wblackabundant near forest edgesknnown for intelligenceoften mate for lifecommunicate vocally wbody languageimmense vocabularyexcellent mimicsgular pouch
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Mama Sandhill Crane and Her Endearing Canada Gosling ~ Branta canadensis and Antigone canadensis ~ Kensington Metropark, Michigan
10 days later and never leaving the other's side.
Canada GoslingCanada GooseBranta canadensisSandhill CranefamilyKensington MetroparkMichiganbirdsgoslingwaterfowlbirdadopted goslingunlikely pairingon the wingfaunaanimalnaturewildlifeadoptedHuron River watershedAntigone canadensis
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Family ~ Adopted Canada Gosling, Mama Sandhill Crane, and Papa Sandhill Crane keeping watch over his family ~ Branta canadensis and Antigone canadensis ~ Kensington Metropark, Michigan
"Sandhill Cranes with Canada Goose Gosling"
Canada GoslingCanada GooseBranta canadensisSandhill CranefamilyKensington MetroparkMichiganbirdsgoslingwaterfowlbirdadopted goslingunlikely pairingon the wingfaunaanimalnaturewildlifeadoptedHuron River watershedAntigone canadensis
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Family ~ Adopted Canada Gosling, Mom Sandhill Crane Stretching, and Brother Sandhill Crane Colt ~ Branta canadensis and Antigone canadensis ~ Kensington Metropark, Michigan
"Sandhill Crane Plays Mother Goose to Adopted Gosling at Kensington Metropark"
Canada GoslingCanada GooseBranta.canadensisSandhill CranefamilyKensington MetroparkMichiganbirdsgoslingwaterfowlbirdadopted goslingunlikely pairingon the wingfaunaanimalnaturewildlifeAntigone canadensisHuron River Watershedadopted
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Adopted Canada Gosling and Mama Sandhill Crane ~ Branta canadensis, Antigone canadensis ~ Kensington Metropark, Michigan
"This Sandhill Crane Couple Adopted Baby Goose"
Canada GoslingCanada GooseBranta.canadensisSandhill CranefamilyKensington MetroparkMichiganbirdsgoslingwaterfowlbirdadopted goslingunlikely pairingon the wingfaunaanimalnaturewildlifeAntigone canadensisHuron River Watershedadopted
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Adopted Canada Gosling and Mama Sandhill Crane ~ Branta canadensis, Antigone canadensis ~ Kensington Metropark, Michigan
For the dear adopted gosling who touched so many of our lives in his sweet earnestness to keep up with and protect Mama and Papa Sandhill Crane and Brother Colt and for the unwavering and loving devotion of Mama and Papa Sandhill Crane to both of their young ones. "Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air, are heading home again." ~ Mary Oliver
Canada GoslingCanada GooseBranta.canadensisSandhill CranefamilyKensington MetroparkMichiganbirdsgoslingwaterfowlbirdadopted goslingunlikely pairingon the wingfaunaanimalnaturewildlifeAntigone canadensisHuron River Watershedadopted
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Fluffy Northern Cardinal ~ Cardinalis cardinalis ~ Huron River and Watershed, Michigan
“What I like about photographs is that they capture a moment that’s gone forever, impossible to reproduce.”
– Karl LagerfeldfaunaNorthern CardinalCardinalis cardinalisbirdredHuron River WatershedMichigansweet whistlenonmigratorysongbirdstate bird of 7 statesmale black mask and throatlike sunflower seedsmales spread wings to protect young from sun
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Panoramic view from the upland hill and forest at the corner of Highup and Hunter roads, Jasper, Steuben County, New York
My ancestor, Jacobus James Quick, V, born 1797, his wife, Lucy Glosson, born 1808, and one of their children, Sylvenus Quick, born 1833, are buried along with several of the Marlatt family in the small Marlatt Cemetery on the edge of the forest just behind me. This might have been their view.
"Geographically, Jasper is located in the southwest part of the county, and contains 31,300 acres of land. The surface is a hilly and broken upland, some of the elevations reaching more than 2,000 feet above tide water. The streams are small brooks, and the soil is slaty, gravelly and clayey loam. From the hills of Jasper, in years past, there has been taken a quality of stone specially adapted to the manufacture of grindstones, but remote from the railroads of the county, and from commercial centers, the natural resources of this town have never been fully developed. Its inhabitants are, and for all time during the period of its history have been farmers; earnest, honest, steady and hardworking husbandmen, who, notwithstanding the disadvantages of location and the difficulty attending successful cultivation of the land, have succeeded in establishing for themselves a satisfactory and even comfortable condition of affairs, and the town today ranks well among the best farming sections of the county. The settlement of Jasper was begun in 1807, while the territory formed a part of the original town of Canisteo. The pioneer seems to have been Nicholas Brotzman, sr., or Prutzman, as once known, who came from Tioga County, Pa., and penetrated the dense forests that bordered on Canisteo River and Tuscarora Creek, until he reached the spot where he afterward lived. This pioneer was a German, and was perhaps was one of the most persevering of the early settlers in this whole region. His cabin was built near Marlatt's Corners of later years."
~ Landmarks of Steuben County, New York. Edited by: Hon. Harlo Hakes, Assisted By: L. C. Aldrich and Others. D. Mason & Company, Publishers, Syracuse, New York, 1896landpanoramauplandforestJasperSteuben CountyNew Yorklandscapefarmtreescloudsskyhills
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Cascading Color ~ Hermitage, Mercer County, Pennsylvania
“Flowers don’t worry about how they’re going to bloom. They just open up and turn toward the light and that makes them beautiful.” ~ Jim Carrey
naturecascadingfloracolorflowersfloralplantsgardenHermitageMercer CountyPennsylvaniapink
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White-breasted Nuthatch ~ Sitta carolinensis ~ Huron River and Watershed, Michigan
“The reason birds can fly and we can't is simply because they have perfect faith, for to have faith is to have wings.” ~ J.M. Barrie
Whitebreasted NuthatchSitta carolinensisHuron River and WatershedMichiganbirdshort tailed birdblack caprusty spots on bellyclings to tree barkmoves at odd anglesperch upside down on treeslargest nuthatchgray blue on backwhite face and underpartshoodbirds of mature woodssmall bird with big voiceon the wingfauna
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Barn Swallow ~ Hirundo rustica ~ Huron River and Watershed, Michigan
"In many parts of the world, having Barn Swallows nesting on one's property is considered a sign of good fortune or a harbinger of spring. Legend has it that Barn Swallows consoled Christ on the cross by trying to remove the crown of thorns from his head and attempting to divert those coming to arrest him in the Garden of Gethsemane. Stories are told that Barn Swallows got their forked tails because they stole fire from the gods to give to the people, and their central tail feathers were shortened when they were burnt off by a firebrand hurled by a wrathful deity. Other legends have it that cows will give bloody milk or go dry if anything inopportune happens to the Barn Swallows nesting on a farm; lightning may even strike a house if a Barn Swallow nest is removed." ~ Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Barn SwallowHirundo rusticabirdblueon the wingfeathersbillcolbalt bluetawny belowagile flyerdeeply forked tailnests almost exclusively on human built structureswinters in Southern Hemispheresparrow sized swallowrusty throat and foreheadwhite spots under tail seen only in flightfeed almost exclusively in flightlong distance migrantfauna
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Cedar Waxwing ~ Bombycilla cedrorum ~ Huron River and Watershed
"Some birds are not meant to be caged, that's all." ~ Stephen King
Bombycilla cedrorumCedar WaxwingHuron River and Watershedbirdwingsfeatherstailred wax dropletseat berriesfaunaonthewingwaxy red secretionsspecializes in eating fruiutprominant crestpale hellow bellymediumsized birdsocial birdshort to longdistance migration
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Red-bellied Woodpecker ~ Melanerpes carolinus ~ Huron River and Watershed, Michigan
"To confine our attention to terrestrial matters would be to limit the human spirit." ~ Stephen Hawking
Redbellied WoodpeckerMelanerpes carolinusbirdMichiganwoodpeckerHuron River and Watershedred capbillswingsfeathersbeakwoodson the wing
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Sandhill Crane, Keeping Watch over His Family ~ Antigone canadensis ~ Huron River and Watershed
"Magic birds were dancing in the mystic marsh. The grass swayed with them, and the shallow waters, and the earth fluttered under them. The earth was dancing with the cranes, and the low sun, and the wind and the sky." ~ Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
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Mom Sandhill Crane Teaching Her Adopted Canada Gosling ~ Branta canadensis, Antigone canadensis ~ Kensington Metropark, Michigan
"The Goose that Thought He was a Sandhill Crane"
Canada GoslingCanada GooseBranta.canadensisSandhill CranefamilyKensington MetroparkMichiganbirdsgoslingwaterfowlbirdadopted goslingunlikely pairingon the wingfaunaanimalnaturewildlifeAntigone canadensisHuron River Watershedadopted
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Northern Cardinal, Male ~ Cardinalis cardinalis ~ Huron River and Watershed, Michigan
"May you come to find comfort in and remember ~ cardinals appear when angels are near. So go now, sit outside and drink your tea. Keep a look out for the little red bird ~ it is there your loved ones will be." ~ Victoria McGovern
CardinalCardinalis cardinalisbirdHuron River and Watershedredwingsfeathersbillbeaktailnonmigratorydo.not.moltprefer sunflower seedssongbirdstate bird of 7 statesprominent crestthick billblack maskmalelongtailed16 different calls
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Snowy Egret ~ egretta thula ~ Eastern Seaboard
“Photography is an austere and blazing poetry of the real.” ~ Ansel Adams
Snowy EgretbirdEgretta thulabeachshoreEastern SeaboardFloridaseasideseashoresea coastwhite plumageblack legsyellow feetcurvy plumesshorebirdoldest17 yearsheron mediumsizedlongslender billspear fishwaterbirdforagermigratory
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Red-bellied Woodpecker ~ Melanerpes carolinus ~ Huron River and Watershed, Michigan
“Your photography is a record of your living, for anyone who really sees.” ~ Paul Strand
Redbellied WoodpeckerMelanerpes carolinusbirdMichiganHuron River and Watershedwoodpecker
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Spring ~ Huron River and Watershed
"Just living is not enough...one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower." ~ Hans Christian Anderson
springspringtimeHuron Riverflowerspinkflorablooms
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Sanderling ~ Calidris alba ~ New Smyrna Beach, Florida
"May your love be firm, and may your dream of life together be a river between two shores - by day bathed in sunlight, and by night illuminated from within. May the heron carry news of you to the heavens, and the salmon bring the sea's blue grace. May your twin thoughts spiral upward like leafy vines, like fiddle strings in the wind, and be as noble as the Douglas fir. May you never find yourselves back to back without love pulling you around into each other's arms." ~ James Bertolino
SanderlingCalidris albabirdNew Smyrna BeachFloridasandbeachwaterwingsbeakbillAtlantic OceeanAtlantic Seaboardseaseasideseashoresea coastcoastlinecoastal beachcoastpeepssandpiperobsessive wave chasersextreme longdistance migrantsbreed on high Arctic tundrausually monogomouswidespread shorebirdstout black billpopulations declining
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Windswept Snowy Egret ~ Egretta thula ~ New Smyrna Beach, Florida
"It is never too late to go quietly to our lakes, rivers, oceans, even our small streams, and say to the sea gulls, the great blue herons, the bald eagles, the salmon, that we are sorry." ~ Brenda Peterson
windsweptsnowy egretEgretta thullaelegantheronwhite plumageyellow feetplumesNew Smyrna BeachFloridabeachcoastwatersandshellswingsbirdblack billbeakfeathersAtlantic OceanEastern SeaboardAtlantic Seaboardseaoceanmay run the waves to foragethreat is habitat loss
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Willets ~ Tringa semipalmata ~ New Smyrna Beach, Florida
"I have a room all to myself; it is nature." ~ Henry David Thoreau
WilletTringa.semipalmatabirdshorelinebeachAtlantic OceanAtlantic Seaboardseashoreshellsdistinctive wing markingsshorebirdpiercing callwinter colorslongleggedstraightbilledcoastlinecoastcoastalwatersandeggs apparently tastyoldest known willet least 10 yearsheavy barring on breastheavy motting on backfeed day and nightshort to longdistance migrantsandpiperblack and white stripe on each week only during flight
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Close-Up of a Woodstork ~ Mycteria americana ~ New Smyrna Beach, Florida
Mycteria americanaWood StorkNew Smyrna BeachFloridawaderbirdsoars on thermalsbalheaded birdjust over 3 feet tallharbingers of spring and birth in mythologyoldest recorded was 20 yearsmassivelong heavy curved billwhite birdblack flight feathersscaly headfootball shaped bodyuncommon in U.S.federally threatenedtántalo americanotantale d'amérique
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Snowy Egret ~ Egretta thula ~ New Smyrna Beach, Florida
"It seems to me that the natural world is the greatest source of excitement; the greatest source of visual beauty; the greatest source of intellectual interest. It is the greatest source of so much in life that makes life worth living." ~ David Attenborough
egretSnowy EgretNew Smyrna BeachFloridaoceanseabeachbirdAtlantic SeaboardAtlantic Oceanheronwhite plumageblack legsyellow feetcoastbreeding plumes once worth twice the cost of goldwhite heronsometimes chase prey through the waveswater birdforager
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Hooded Merganser ~ Lophodytes cucullatus ~ Huron River and Watershed
Hooded MerganserLophodytes cucullatusHuron Riverduckcrestedcavity nestingnicitating membraneoversized headchestnut flankdiving birdusually silent
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Brown Pelican ~ Pelecanus occidentalis ~ New Smyrna Beach, Florida
"And to lose the chance to see frigatebirds soaring in circles above the storm, or a file of pelicans winging their way homeward across the crimson afterglow of the sunset, or a myriad terns flashing in the bright light of midday as they hover in a shifting maze above the beach -- why, the loss is like the loss of a gallery of the masterpieces of the artists of old time." ~ Theodore Roosevelt
brown pelicanFloridaPelecanus occidentalisNew Smyrna BeachonthewingEastern SeaboardFaunaAtlantic Oceanseasdebirdsinuous neck flight echoes wavesplunge divecomeback thanks to pesticide regulationsoldest recorded age 43 yearsgiant billseabirdstockygraygrownyellow headwhite neckcoast birdawkward gait on landmasterful flierhighly social
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No Boundaries
“I like geography best, he said, because your mountains and rivers know the secret. Pay no attention to boundaries.” ~ Brian Andreas
Indian RiverFloridaNew Smyrna Beachriverwaterskycloudsdockripplesboundaries
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Big Sky ~ Indian River, Florida
"Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tune without the words and never stops at all." ~ Emily Dickinson
Indian RiverFloridacloudsweathersunsetNew Smyrna BeacheveningEastern Seaboardatmospheremeteorological conditionsclimate
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Black Vulture ~ Coragyps atratus ~ Canaveral National Seashore, Florida
black vultureCoragyps.atratusCanaveral National SeashoreFloridabirdblack plumagebare black headpoor sense of smellfierce family royaltymost numerous vulture in Western Hemisphere34 million year old fossilssilvery patches on undersideAtlantic OceanAtlantic Seaboardfollow Turkey Vultures to foodmonogamousbeneficial scavenger
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Forster's Tern, in non-breeding plumage ~ Sterna forsteri ~ New Smyrna Beach, Florida
Forster's TernSterna forsteribirdbirdinflightnonbreeding plumageNew Smyrna BeachFloridawingsbeakshorelinecoastseasideseashoreternwaveswaterskyAtlantic SeaboardEastern Seaboardonthewingfaunamediumsized ternmasked banditcommashaped black ear patch in winterplungerSpecies of Moderate Concern
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Osprey ~ Pandion haliaetus ~ Canaveral National Seashore, Florida
OspreyCanaveral National SeashoreFloridaPandion haliaetusbirdbirdinflightAtlantic OceanEastern Seaboardoceanraptorhawkreversible outer toewingsanglerbird of preybone breakerwhite underpartswhite head with brown lineconservation success storyhooked black beak
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Low Tide
"Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst." ~ Henri Cartier-Bresson
low tideseasideseasea coastseashoreseascapeAtlantic Oceanwatertideplantssea levelsealevel fluctuationbeachbeach frontsandy beachNew Smyrna BeachFloridacoast plantsseaside gardenshorelineshoreflora
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Ring-billed Gull ~ Larus delawarensis ~ Lake Michigan
Ringbilled GullLarus delawarensisacrobatyellow bill with black bandbuiltin compasspale eyesyellow legsomnivoreground foragerbirdon the wingLake MichiganwaterfaunaGreat Lakes
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The Patrol ~ Indian River North, Florida
Indian River NorthFloridaBrown Pelicansbirdssignpatrolfaunaonthewing
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Little Blue Heron ~ Egretta caerulea ~ Port St. Lucie, Florida
"i'm very happy being me, although sometimes I'd love to be a bird so that I can fly." ~ Joy Fielding
blue and purple birdEgretta caeruleaaigrette plumeswhite during first stage of lifeoldest known 13 years plusLittle Blue HeronGarceta AzulAigrette bleuedaggerlike billsmall heronpurple maroon headdark blue bodybirdwateryellow eyesstand and wait predatorfaunaEastern Seaboardspecies of High Concern 2rain
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Flying Dragon Waterfall ~ Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens ~ Delray Beach, Florida
waterfallcascadewaterfallssteepinclinecataractshowertorrentoverflowingchutedownfallgushstreamflowplungedownrushwatercoursespoutfalling streamrushtumblespillMorikami Museum and Japanese GardensDelray BeachFloridanature
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Great Blue Heron ~ Ardea herodias ~ Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Coral Gables, Florida
Great Blue Heronin flightriverFairchild Tropical Botanic GardensCoral GardensFloridabirdArdea herodiasslow deep wingbeatsbluegray plumagetucked in necklong legspowder downnight visionoldest24 yearsmassive silhouettelong orangish billblack crownhead plumeslargest North American heronwild black stripe over eyedaggerlike billwaterrocksreflections
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Royal Terns (with Laughing Gulls) ~ Thalasseus maximus ~ Port St. Lucie, Florida
Royal TernThalasseus maximusgreatest sea fisherman Ancient Greekbirdredorange billblack cap during breeding seasonlives on the coastonly found near salt waterseabirdwebbed feetmore streamlines than gullsblack legs patchy in winterAtlantic OceanPort St. LucieFloridasandseacoastsasidediving birdfiercely defensive of nest and youngocean beacholdest 30 years banded in North Carolinashort forked tailinflightfauna
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Little Blue Heron ~ Egretta caerulea ~ Port St. Lucie, Florida
"i'm very happy being me, although sometimes I'd love to be a bird so that I can fly." ~ Joy Fielding
blue and purple birdEgretta caeruleaaigrette plumeswhite during the first stage of lifeoldest known 13 yearsLittle Blue HeronGarceta AzulAigrette bleuedaggerlike billsmall heronpurple maroon headdark blue bodybirdwaterAtlantic OceanAtlantic Seaboardoceanseaseasiderocksyellow eyesstand and wait predatorfaunaEastern Seaboardspecies of High Concern 2016
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Leap of Faith ~ Brown Pelican ~ Port St. Lucie, Florida ~ Pelecanus occidentalis
“Wings are like dreams. Before each flight, a bird takes a small jump, a leap of faith, believing that its wings will work.” ~ J.R. Rim
Pelecanus occidentalisBrown PelicanPort St. LucieFloridaoversize billsinuous neckplunge diversoldest pelican 43 yearsseabirdin flightleap of faithstretchy throat pouchsurf updraftsstrong swimmersEastern SeaboardAtlantic OceanAtlantic Seaboardseasideseacoastrockswatersquadrons echo motions of wavesseaoceanbrdnaturefaunaanimal
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Brown Pelican, Juvenile ~ Port St. Lucie, Florida ~ Pelecanus occidentalis
“Taking pictures is savoring life intensely, every hundredth of a second.”
~ Marc RiboudPelecanus occidentalisBrown PelicanPort St. LucieFloridaoversized billsinuous necksquadrons echo motions of the wavesplungediversoldest pelican 43 yearsseabirdinflightstretchy throat pouchsurf supdraftsmasterful fliersstrong swimmersEastern SeaboardAtlantic OceanAtlantic Seaboardseaoceanseacoastwaveswaterbird
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Pair of Wood Storks in the Rain ~ Mycteria americana
"Let my soul smile through my heart and my heart smile through my eyes, that I may scatter rich smiles in sad hearts." ~ Paramahansa Yogananda
wading birdWood Storkscaly headMycteria americanabald headed birdFloridaPort St. Lucieblack and white wingslongleggedwetland birdswamp habitatsoar on thermalsuncommon in U.S.federally threatenedprimarily not migratoryEastern Seaboard
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Bird Flying High ~ Eastern Seaboard
"Bird flyin' high
You know how I feel
Sun in the sky
You know how I feel
Breeze drifting by
You know how I feel...."
~ Songwriters: Gladys Knight, Al Claiborne, G. Garcia, Edesio Alejandro Rodriguezwingssunlightbird in flightskycloudsbirdoceansea
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