Jetty Park 1/20/14

I headed out to Jetty Park on Monday morning, hoping to find the Purple Sandpiper that has been hanging out on the rock jetty the past few weeks. This Little Blue Heron was on the rocks near a group of people fishing.

This immature Brown Pelican was resting on the rocks.

Along the fishing pier we saw two Green Turtles foraging along the rocks.

As we made our way down the pier we saw one adult and one juvenile Great Black-backed Gull. There were numerous Ruddy Turnstones looking for scraps. We reached the end of the pier with out any sign of the sandpiper. As we made our way back, I saw the Purple Sandpiper emerging from behind a large rock along the south side of the rock jetty that runs parallel to the pier.

We found the sandpiper just in time...just as my son's patience were being to expire as he really wanted to get to the beach and play in the sand.

There was one large group of gulls and terns on the beach. The gulls were limited to small mix of Ring-billed and Laughing gulls. I counted 80 Royal Terns and only 5 Black Skimmers.

Jetty Park 1/20/13

We went to Jetty Park early Sunday morning to see if the Razorbill reported Saturday afternoon was still around. I felt hopeful as we pulled up and saw a small crowd of people checking out some action in the channel. It turned out to be a submarine navigating its way out of the port, which was pretty cool to see, but not quite as cool as a Razorbill would have been...

Gulls never seem to let any birds (or people) eat in peace. If a bird is brave enough to return to the beach with its catch, they can be sure a hot pursuit is imminent. As we walked out on the jetty, we saw this Ring-billed Gull getting a taste of its own medicine as it was relentlessly tagged teamed  by a Great Black-backed Gull and immature Herring Gull (I think).

The Ring-billed Gull didn't seem intimidated and held on to its meal.  I lost sight of them after a few minutes, so I missed the final outcome.

I saw this Bonaparte's Gull floating close to the rocks along the jetty. These handsome birds look similar to the Laughing Gulls that heavily populate the area year round.

This Royal Tern didn't seem to the Sanderling that was foraging underneath him.

There is always a large group of Skimmers at Jetty Park. The flock can usually be seen resting on the beach. A few of the Skimmers decided it was feeding time, and put on quite a show as they skimmed back and forth along the beach.

A Few More Beach Birds

We spent another morning at Jetty Park on Friday. Not only did we enjoy a beautiful morning, but there were plenty of birds to enjoy as well! 

Black Skimmer

This Black Skimmer looked like some of us feel by Friday! While it looks like this Skimmer may have crashed and burned, it is actually just resting. That large bill gets heavy!

Black Skimmer

Black Skimmer

Last week there was quite a bit of skimming action going on, but this week, with the exception of a few joining the group, the Skimmers were all resting. I counted 32 of them with 8 being juveniles.

Willet

This lone Willet was practicing its one legged balancing skills.

Magnificent Frigatebird

This juvenile Magnificent Frigatebird took a brief break from soaring the high skies to make a low pass along the beach where the large group of Terns, Gulls, and Skimmers were resting.

After a quick check of the beach action, the Frigatebird was gone. This is the second Frigatebird I've seen at Cape Canaveral in past month.

Red Knot

This nonbreeding Red Knot was foraging in the swallow tide with two others. Other birds that we observed include Royal Terns, Sandwich Terns, Least Terns, one Long-billed Dowitcher, one Semipalmated Plover, and numerous Sanderlings.

Beach Babes

My tot and I took an early morning jaunt to the beach yesterday. He fit right in as there was quite a variety of youngsters around. We counted around 50 Black Skimmers on the beach, with about 5 of them being juveniles. The Skimmers were resting most of the time, but occasionally they would go out  for a quick skim.

The beach was most heavily populated with terns, including numerous Royals, a handful of Sandwiches, and one Forster's. Several of these juvenile appeared to demonstrate behaviors that parallel those of our young children. This young Royal was definitely making its needs known...."mom, I'm hungry!"

"MOMMM, I'M hungry!!!"

This young one had to touch everything it could get its bill on. From this angle, it looked like the tern was attempting to assault the sandpiper. (note~the Sandpiper's identify has been concealed for its own protection).

This lone Forster's Tern, which, as you can see, is much smaller than a Royal Tern, just kept to himself.

This juvenile Sandwich Tern wasn't up to much.

This is also a juvenile Sandwich Tern (I think) but it had some interesting looking legs that were orange and black.

And the mini birder finding his own birds.

Sandwiches on the Beach

This past weekend I went to Jetty Park a little after sunrise and got a chance to enjoy a few Sandwiches on the beach. 

One of the first birds I spotted as I made my way to the beach was a Magnificent Frigatebird circling the sky above the inlet. This is the second one I've seen over the past week as I also saw one near the Sebastian Inlet. Numerous Ospreys and a few Black Vultures were also soaring the skies. 

I was most excited to see a few Sandwich Terns that were standing proudly among the Royals.

Sandwich Terns are handsome looking, medium sized terns.

This Laughing Gull discovered a healthy-looking breakfast in the surf; a washed up bone!

Thanks for stopping by!

Great Balls of Fire

We headed out of the house a little before 5:30 am yesterday morning to watch the launch of a Delta rocket. We landed at Jetty Park in Cape Canaveral, where there was a lot going on to keep us entertained during the three hour delay.

A pre-sunrise walk on the jetty.

A cruise ship coming into port.

                                                           
                                                           The sunrise from the beach.

A Skimmer skimming the shoreline.

Terns touching down.

A Laughing Gull soaring the skies.

A small crab putting up a fight.

Finally, the Delta rocket launching!