On Guard

Tree Swallows are such gorgeous birds. I can't help but fire off a few shots when opportunity knocks. The irridescent blues are irresistible.

Eastern Towhee

I've seen 2 Towhees this spring, but came up with only one o.k. photo, and luckily you can see the red eye.

The Eastern Towhee has red eyes across most of its range, but the towhees in Florida and extreme southern Georgia have pale straw-colored eyes. Eye color is variable from southern Alabama to southeastern North Carolina, with the most variability in Georgia and coastal South Carolina. This pattern may reflect the fact that the pale-eyed form, which was isolated when Florida was an island during the Pleistocene era, is now coming back in contact with the red-eyed form of the mainland.
Source: All About Birds

Splish Splash!

I haven't taken a shot in over a week, so I am into the last of my reserves...This photo was interesting because of the timing...The bill just breaks the surface in an attempt for morning breakfast...

White-breasted Nuthatch

A common bird of deciduous forests and wooded suburbs, the White-breasted Nuthatch can be seen hopping headfirst down the trunks of trees in search of insect food. It frequents bird feeders and takes sunflower seeds off to the side of a tree, where it wedges them into a crevice and hammers them open. (Source: All About Birds)

Coopers Hawk

A medium-sized hawk of the forest, the Cooper's Hawk specializes in eating birds. It is built for fast flight through the obstacle course of trees and limbs. Dashing through vegetation to catch birds is a rather dangerous lifestyle. A recent study found that 23 percent of all Cooper's Hawks examined had healed fractures in the bones of the chest, especially of the furcula or wishbone. A Cooper's Hawk captures a bird with its feet, and will squeeze it repeatedly to kill it. It does not bite the prey to kill it in the fashion of falcons, but holds it away from its body until it dies. It has been known to drown its prey, holding a bird under water until it stops moving. (Source: All About Birds)

Wood Duck Perch

Ah.....The Wood Duck...I hate to love them, but I do...I stalk them every year, and come up with crap, well...not the close ups I dream of...Anyway...This one flew into a tree for a different perspective.

Cooperative Blue Jay

Traveling down the main road at Mazonia, I passed by a Blue Jay that was very close to the road. I turned around, came up next to it and took some shots.




He was pretty meek about me and my camera, so I took a few more as he hopped from limb to limb.
I love cooperative birds, when I can leave without scaring anything.