Merritt Island and More
On Tuesday we went out for the entire day. We started out at Merritt Island on Black Point Drive. We then went North to visit all of the Eagle nests along the way to Daytona. There certainly was a lot to see!
Reddish Egret in the morning light looking fro breakfast
Male Hooded Merganser taking a drink
Belted Kingfisher taking off. They sure are skittish!
Another Reddish Egret stomping around looking for something to eat
An immature Reddish Egret
The immature Reddish Egret caught a tiny fish
These two Belted Kingfishers were chasing each other in the sky
Two Great White Egrets chasing each other
This Great White Egret moved onto the mud flat to eat the fish it caught
Green Heron flying straight towards me. Luckily it veered off before it got too close
Turkey Vulture making sure no one went past the trail closed sign
Bald Eagle in the trees a little past stop 11
We stopped at Pine Flatwoods and saw this Bald Eagle fly into the trees across the street from the parking lot
Changing of the guard at the SR3 eagle nest
Bald Eagle flying past to get to a nearby tree for preening
The other Eagle stayed behind to tend to the eggs or possibly eaglets
At the next nest up the road we saw a baby eaglet!
The eaglet and one of it’s parents
Both eaglet and the adult saw something nearby
A different angle into the nest of the two
On this nest a bit farther down the road. Can you see the eaglet? It’s to the right of the adult looking right at you!
The last area we went to usually has several eagles. Today it was just this one. But the light and setting was perfect!
Bald Eagle looking right at me
Bald Eagles will often “throw up” the parts it can not digest. This was the first time I actually saw it happening
After clearing itself out, the Bald Eagle took off to find the others
On the way back to Merritt Island, we saw this Bald Eagle sitting near the old eagle nest on Bairs Cove
Great Horned Owl sitting down low in its nest. Up until a few weeks ago, this was a Bald Eagle nest that the owls took over
While this is not technically a bird, it will eventually fly all the way to the moon and back. Artemis II on launch pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center.
The baby birds are back! Over the next few months we’ll be able to witness the eaglets and owlets grow from tiny fluffy balls of fuzz to immature birds that are full sized and flying. Truly an amazing time to go out and watch nature!