10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 7, 2016

While on a tour of Rookery Bay near the Florida Everglades, I was reminded of this lovely personality trait once more. Unlike many other estuaries in this part of Florida, Rookery Bay is protected by the Estuarine Research Reserve system, and remains almost entirely undeveloped.

Florida 141

Florida Mexico Protection Pelicans 141

10,000 Birds

MAY 22, 2019

Linking the mainland of the Florida Panhandle to the barrier island of Navarre Beach, half the bridge structure slopes to the water as sandy edges and sea wall. And yet, on the bridge the birds are relatively protected from the dogs, beach-goers, and predators that frequent their traditional habitats along dunes.

Florida 113

Florida Protection Eggs Hunting 113

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 2, 2015

Birding in Florida is unique in that so much of that state’s plenty is evident even to the casual observer. I’ve spent the last week in southwest Florida. It’s a family vacation, sure, but there’s always time for birding and in Florida, the birding often finds you.

Owls 198

Owls Tenant Florida United States 198

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 6, 2014

It is used as an extra level of safety for the eye and allows the creature that has it to still see while affording its eyes an additional amount of protection. The membrane provides protection, but it also allows the eye to be moisturized without the bird loosing sight. … Terminology anatomy bird anatomy nictitating membrane'

Sharks 200

Sharks Reptiles Mammals Florida 200

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 11, 2019

” As Communications Director for Audubon Florida, I wanted to both digest their findings and reflect on what their conclusions mean not only as a birder, but as an environmentalist as well. Audubon lists many ways we can take action to reduce climate change, but I especially appreciate Audubon Florida’s model ordinance toolkit.

Florida 115

Florida Science Fox Protection 115

10,000 Birds

JUNE 4, 2013

Broward County has one of the highest densities of Burrowing Owls in Florida. The Florida sub-species of Burrowing Owl is now classified as a threatened species in Florida and it is one of the rarest sub-species of Burrowing Owls. This is unfortunately an all too common problem for these owls in Florida.

Owls 233

Owls Florida Raised Coyotes 233

10,000 Birds

MARCH 14, 2022

This spurred her to pursue a career in environmental education and wildlife nature tourism as a park ranger in Texas and as the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail Coordinator with Florida Fish and Wildlife. The marine protected area status was designated in 2013.

South Africa 263

South Africa Mice Albatross Africa 263

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 14, 2019

Marks, which covers 68,000 acres in Florida. After all, the refuge was established in 1931 to protect the wintering grounds of migratory species, and my head has already filled with dreams of crisp, cool hikes, trusty binoculars over my shoulder. Summer birding isn’t the best season here at St.

Wildlife 124

Wildlife Alligators Raccoons Deer 124

10,000 Birds

MARCH 29, 2016

The magnificent, adorable, and dangerous breeding season for both shorebirds and seabirds along the Florida Panhandle. While I walked, parallel to the saltwater, I saw three Florida Department of Environmental Protection staff members putting up the “do not cross” signs that cordoned off dunes from trespassing by us humans.

Florida 100

Florida Deer Eggs Protection 100

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 11, 2015

I have now officially moved to the Emerald Coast of Florida, a beautiful region on the Florida Panhandle. I am within one of Florida’s sub-tropical zones, and my birding experiences have expanded, with life birds galore. As part of my new job I work on Okaloosa Island, separated from the beach merely by the dunes. Snowy Plover.

Florida 157

Florida Mice Birds Breeding 157

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 25, 2017

We felt awash in blues as our tour boat skirted the waves to anchor near a shallow sand flat off of Key West, Florida. I was on a workshop field trip, learning about marine protected areas as my group snorkeled on one of the area’s famous coral reefs. Mangrove island near Key West.

Pelicans 100

Pelicans Sharks Florida Groups 100

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 22, 2014

Back in January, when I was enjoying my attendance at the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival down in Florida, I had an enchanting encounter with our national bird , the Bald Eagle. Also, note the eagle’s nictating membranes protecting its eyes from damage. I can’t imagine being plucked alive can feel good.

Bald Eagle 232

Bald Eagle Eagles Wildlife Florida 232

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 3, 2018

Mom became especially enraptured with the baby alligators we spotted – less than a foot long, they basked in the grass next to their mothers, or crawled atop her back and tail for extra protection. To me, they are the most spectacular bird in all of South Florida. I don’t blame her.

Alligators 113

Alligators Sharks Turtles Chickens 113

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 9, 2023

Fortunately, Singapore is not Florida, where Mr. DeSantis would probably have the two birds described in a paper culled (though the paper talks about “aberrant” behavior, which is a phrase Mr. DeSantis would probably feel comfortable with). They have been found nesting in two of these boxes, producing five chicks in three years ( source ).

Rhinoceros 126

Rhinoceros Singapore Transported Hunting 126

10,000 Birds

MARCH 26, 2014

The students of Umatilla Middle School in Florida recently installed its first ever “Sandhill Crane Crossing” sign. The kids there were worried about the fate of the threatened Florida Sandhill Crane so they got together and decided to do something about it.

Mississippi 169

Mississippi Endangered Species Florida Washington 169

10,000 Birds

JULY 11, 2017

Though I had driven past the Lower Suwanee River National Wildlife Refuge a half dozen times in my trips about Florida, I had not yet stopped, and I hummed with excitement as we drove down one of the forested refuge roads. We had hit state and nationally protected areas, and now were ready for Cedar Key city gems.

Florida 134

Florida Wildlife Fish Game 134

10,000 Birds

APRIL 18, 2017

In Florida, the Least Tern is a state-designated threatened species; the interior populations are federally endangered. There are a few simple rules to follow to protect the birds and their nests: Keep your dog on a leash – I love dogs, but sometimes their enthusiasm gets the better of them. Young Least Terns enjoying some shade.

South America 102

South America United States Protection Pelicans 102

10,000 Birds

JUNE 28, 2016

I have seen dozens of Snowy Plovers and other shorebirds along the Emerald Coast of Florida, but until last week I had never seen their chicks! Still, it’s a good sign that the parents successfully protected them through this stage, and I cross my fingers that they’ll both make it to adulthood.

Eggs 100

Eggs Long Beach Abandoning Abandonment 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 27, 2017

From Florida to Maine and back again I toured urban forests, marshes, estuaries, and more, stopping along the way to visit family and friends. Little seemed to have changed, other than a brand new LEED-certified environmental center that had been built near the terminus of the protected area. A view of low-tide.

Virginia 100

Virginia Blackbirds 2013 Protection 100

10,000 Birds

APRIL 18, 2021

The finders of an adult Barred Owl brought to Kathryn Dudeck in Georgia thought he had a wing fracture, so they wrapped the entire bird in the plastic protective wrap used by landscape companies and taped it up. ” “A nestling American Robin in a bucket of water,” wrote Jane Neville, now in Florida. By a lawyer.”

Transported 278

Transported Wildlife Rehabilitation Bats Opossums 278

10,000 Birds

MARCH 27, 2020

Twenty-five-year-old Luna Burke is risking everything to smuggle a homicidal Bald Eagle out of her husband’s private zoo in Florida, reunite the bird with its mate, and get them both to an eagle sanctuary in Canada. I didn’t know the set up required for a black bear, or how high a Florida panther can actually jump.

Wildlife Rehabilitation 252

Wildlife Rehabilitation Bald Eagle Eagles Wildlife 252

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 25, 2015

Black Terns do not breed or over-winter in Florida, they merely migrate through on their way to Central and South America. I adore all protected areas along the barrier islands. I’ve seen Forster’s Terns and Common Terns , but one particular species was fast becoming a nemesis bird: the Black Tern. It was maddening.

South America 160

South America Breeding Florida Protection 160

10,000 Birds

MAY 12, 2016

The bridge may seem an odd place to nest, but last summer this was one of the most successful colonies on the Florida Panhandle. While protection efforts are underway on the beaches, I am gratified that populations can still survive on non-traditional nesting grounds!

Eggs 100

Eggs Florida Mexico Protection 100

10,000 Birds

MAY 11, 2013

First off, Audubon of Florida reports that counts indicate more Roseate Spoonbills are nesting in Florida Bay (between the mainland and the Keys) this year than last year, although those numbers are still lower than in the last decade. What do all these birds have in common? They’re (at least partially) pink.

Michigan 147

Michigan Chile Tennessee North America 147

10,000 Birds

APRIL 19, 2016

It turns out that there is an example of this with wading birds in the Florida Everglades. This example is important because it appears that the protector species, not just the protected species, gains a benefit, the latter having been documented many times before.

Alligators 115

Alligators Leopards Rabbits Protection 115

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 17, 2016

This Bald Eagle, photographed by Corey, was after Blue-winged Teal in Florida, not Atlantic Puffins in Maine. In what appears to be good news for the Gunnison Sage Grouse (depending on which environmentalists you ask), a federal proposal suggests new protections. Look out below! Fear not—the film has just been released on DVD. (In

Bald Eagle 100

Bald Eagle Puffins Pigs Eagles 100

10,000 Birds

MARCH 15, 2016

It was a warm afternoon on the Florida Panhandle, and my husband and I were exploring the recreation areas of Eglin Air Force Base, which is the size of Rhode Island. I liked seeing the management – it meant the habitat resembled the fire-dependent forests that once covered this region of Florida. Red-cockaded Woodpecker.

Woodpeckers 101

Woodpeckers Rhode Island Florida Endangered Species 101

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 31, 2012

And while finding snails is not difficult for a long legged bird that is not afraid to wade into alligator-infested marshes it is difficult to extract the yummy snail meat from its protective shell. There is no other bird quite like a Limpkin for which the snails of Florida are very grateful! It’s tricky to get the meat out!

Alligators 162

Alligators Meat Florida Collecting 162

10,000 Birds

MARCH 22, 2016

Baltimore Orioles spend their winters in Florida, Central, and South America, and migrate north to breed in much of the Eastern United States. In 1882 the legislature passed special provisions to protect the bird, decades before the passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.

Maryland 103

Maryland Baltimore United States Legislature 103

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 9, 2016

The added publicity – the bird now appears on Aruba currency and stamps – will draw attention to needed conservation and protection efforts. Though not based on the Aruba populations, the movie portrayed a group of friends from Florida trying to save Burrowing Owl habitat from destruction.

Prairie Dogs 101

Prairie Dogs Tortoises South America 2006 101

10,000 Birds

APRIL 4, 2017

Sure, I can see most of the birds in the Bahamas while living within Florida, but not in such stunning surroundings! The land sits atop limestone, beaches protected by the third largest barrier reef in the world. Mom looking for sand dollars.

Bahamas 100

Bahamas South Carolina United States Florida 100

10,000 Birds

JUNE 17, 2015

Units are located along both sides of the river and serve to protect and provide a wide variety of riparian habitats for birds, fish, and other wildlife.” It encompasses over 70,000 acres spread out between Wakulla, Jefferson, and Taylor counties, and includes about 43 miles along the Gulf Coast of northwest Florida.” v=sk_5pt9OTLA.

Fish 143

Fish Wildlife Hunting Louisiana 143

10,000 Birds

JUNE 7, 2013

Much like how Everglades National Park flanks the western border of metropolitan Miami, Florida, Saguaro National Park flanks both the eastern and western outskirts of Tucson, making for easy access to residents and tourists alike who spend time in that city.

Arizona 163

Arizona Tucson Miami Shelters 163

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 18, 2015

The money is intended to create and protect national parks, areas around rivers and lakes, national forests, and national wildlife refuges from development, and to provide matching grants for state and local parks and recreation projects.

Legislation 173

Legislation Montana Wyoming Idaho 173

10,000 Birds

JULY 8, 2013

More than 50,000 Sandhill Cranes stop to feed while migrating during the fall and winter between Wisconsin and Florida. So, please, take a couple of minutes from your day to take action to help protect this magnificent and wild creature. Tennessee started a festival around the event, just for wildlife watchers.

Tennessee 229

Tennessee Hunting Hunters Wisconsin 229

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 8, 2015

Pelicans are protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. It has been estimated that more than 700 adult and immature pelicans die each year in Florida alone from entanglement in sport-fishing gear. The species reached pre-pesticide numbers by the late 1990s and was fully delisted in 2009.

Pelicans 157

Pelicans North America Peru Chile 157

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 6, 2012

On 26 January 2012, my first full day in Florida for the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival, I had a mission for the evening. The refuge, which was created to protect the now extinct Dusky Seaside Sparrow , is not normally open to the public, which helps keep the rails and other wildlife from being unduly bothered by the public.

Florida 158

Florida Wildlife Groups Mammals 158