Birdwatching: Orlando birds

Birding Abroad: Orlando (USA)

5/9/2018

One day birding in Orlando, USA.

During my vacation in Orlando (USA) I also booked a birding tour. After I did some birding trips in both Central- and South-America, I was kind of curious to know what kind of birds are living in North-America. My bird guide for the day was Kathryn Dow, also an enthusiastic birder and photographer. This is how my day went by:

First of all, I always like to travel light. So instead of carrying my 500 mm lens with me, I only brought my iPhone and a telephoto lens. It was the first time that I used one so I was also curious how the end result would look like.
First photo: a pair of American Wood Ducks, but only the male was in full focus.
Second photo: a Mallard resting on some logs. He was in the middle of the pond.
Third photo: a Gray Catbird seen between the bushes. Interesting ... a bird named cat!!!

The birds were surely challenging me. Hiding between bushes or sitting in a tree. Yes, with a camera, no problem. With a phone, it calls for some patience.
First picture: a Carolina Wren seen calling
Second picture: Red-shouldered Hawk scanning the area
Third picture: a restless Red-bellied Woodpecker was practically hugging the tree
Fourth picture: an energetic Black-and-white warbler was seen from time to time

This was one of the four places I visited to see some great birds; the Mead Botanical Gardens in Winter Park (Florida). Nice, quiet and not too crowded. From time to time we came across some birders and photographers, all doing their own thing.

On our second stop, we went a bit out in the open. No hiding under a tree, but luckily the sun wasn't that cruel to us either.
First photo: a Tricoloured Heron was trying to catch something near the watergate.
Second & Third photo: Common Gallinules. They were seen in abundance, even with young ones.

We also saw a Limpkin passing by. The first time I saw a Limpkin was in Tambopata, Peru (2015). I knew that it also lives in Suriname, but so far haven't met one yet.
Common Grackle were also seen everywhere, but they never wanted to be photographed. Finally one was volunteering for me.

This was such a lovely occasion:
In the first photo we see both an adult and juvenile White Ibis, right behind a Roseate Sponebill. I got even luckier when the Roseate Sponebill posed for me in the second photo and in the third photo the White Ibis.

This was Orlando Wetlands Park in Christmas (Florida). Also not so crowded, it was one of my favorite stops too. The view was so mesmerizing. From time to time I just wanted to enjoy from this view. Afterwards we had 3 more stops:
- the Richard Grissom Memorial wetlands (Viera wetlands) at Viera (Florida)
- the Viera wetlands storage ponds (click ponds) at Viera (Florida)
- and the Merritt Island National wildlife refuge at Merritt island (Florida)
The last stops we saw the wildlife from our comfortable seat inside the car. Around that time it started to get a bit hot to stay too long outside.