A young wild horse ambling up the trail on Paynes Prairie during the winter.

From the archives: a closeup of the red, heart-shaped marking atop a sandhill crane's head. #birds

From the archives: a closeup of the head of a yellow-crowned night heron, its red eye half-lidded, its nictitating membrane engaged, and a drop of water dripping off the end of its beak. #birds

One from the archives: there were a couple years there where a male western tanager wintered more or less in my yard. A windstorm chased him away and he hasn't been back, but here he is perched on a twig and leaning to his right. #birds

A pair of photos of a trio of brown pelicans diving. I like these shots because you can see how the lead pelican has rotated its body towards its left on impact to reduce the potential of injury to its trachea and esophagus. #birds

I swear the animals know my camera is in the shop. Otters swimming right beside me and a pileated woodpecker happily pecking away six feet away. I'm sure I'm five minutes from a kingfisher landing eye level right in front of me and winking dramatically.

A white ibis flying over the marsh. #birds

It doesn't take much of an excuse for me to share owl photos. A great horned owl on a live oak branch, completely surrounded by Spanish moss. #birds

An eastern screech owl face peering out from the entrance of the birdhouse it was nesting in. #birds

Another one from the archives: some tall elephantsfoot in bloom running into the background of the frame from right to left with a delta flower beetle on the blossom closest to the lens.

One from the archives: a backlit blue-gray gnatcatcher perched on a greenbrier vine, some berries clustered underneath and bokeh in the background. #birds

Ugh. Finally hit the point where I have to send my camera in to Canon to be repaired. Expect little in the way of new photos from this corner for a little bit.

A portrait of a wood stork looking over its shoulder slightly at the camera. #birds

A pair of great blue herons intertwining their necks just after one flew in carrying a stick for the nest, which it is depositing here. The nesting sites have all been quite busy for months now. #birds

A pair of bald eagles in a mostly bare cypress tree, one on top pointing to the right, the one on the bottom facing away from the camera. #birds

A white ibis preening in some nice backlighting, its nictitating membrane covering its eye. #birds

A black-crowned night heron flies over the marsh against a backdrop of trees with the purples and oranges of sunrise poking through. #birds

A white-eyed vireo, perched on a twig in a sapling with its head tilted slightly up. I love those eyes. #birds

A brown pelican stares down a reddish egret as it swims by in a tidal pool early in the morning. #birds

A piping plover--adorned with some tags around its legs--standing in the sand at the beach. #birds

A young roseate spoonbill standing in shallow water next to some scrubby vegetation in the early morning. #birds

A male pine warbler sits on broken limb jutting out of a pine trunk against a green background. #birds

Undeniably the third-best species of bird, the semipalmated plover. #birds

The sun poking up over the horizon at Fort De Soto beach, beyond the ships and bridge.

A Forster's tern gives its feathers a shake while standing on the beach. #birds

This was the first time I'd ever photographed rare birds in a popular location, and I truly hated the experience. I don't usually mind other photographers being present, but when everyone is photographing the same bird, it gets obnoxious fast. Groove-billed and smooth-billed anis at Fort De Soto.

A man walking down the trail under a low sun on the other side of the marsh during a very foggy morning.

A male hooded merganser flying over a pond with his hood up. #birds

A male belted kingfisher on a perch over a marsh. #birds

Everyone's favorite member of the cuckoo family, a smooth-billed ani looks over its shoulder while perched in a shrub. #birds

A photo of an American kestrel perched high on a treetop, taken from down below. #birds

A female eastern bluebird, perched on a chain-link fence with her head tilted. #birds

A brown pelican flying past some purple clouds in the early morning. #birds

A reddish egret tosses a freshly caught minnow in the air, as it stands in a pool over its reflection in the early morning. #birds

An osprey carries nesting material through a blue sky. Just barely fit the bird in the frame it was so close. #birds

A closeup of an American bittern's face looking towards the camera, half-hidden in shadow. #birds

A Forster's tern just after a dive--it came up empty--water droplets flying everywhere. #birds

A snowy egret wading through the surf just after sunrise. #birds

As I was photographing the reddish egret, this piping plover ran out next to me, pausing briefly so I could take its picture. Note the bird is shy both of its feet. Ran along the sand just fine, however. #birds

A reddish egret hunting over its reflection in a tidal pool just after sunrise. I really thought the colors were lovely. #birds

A river otter stretching its body to climb into the water at sunrise.

An eastern phoebe looks over its shoulder back at the camera as it perches on a dried-out shrub branch. #birds

A green heron looks over its shoulder as it clings to a reed in the middle of the marsh. #birds

A brown pelican flying through the air over the coast. #birds

A pair of male lesser scaups swim past in a pond. #birds

A male hooded merganser swims past with a female just behind him in the background. #birds

Starting the new year with a sora wandering through the marsh in search of breakfast. #birds

Close up of a tricolored heron with its head feathers ruffled while having a neck scratch. #birds

Favorite images of 2025, Day 31: A northern harrier soars over a marsh, displaying her tail feathers, legs, and belly. #birds

A red-breasted merganser swimming in a pond. A lifer for me. He has some patchy dark feathers and a bright red eye, marking this bird as a juvenile male. #birds