Saturday, November 3, 2018

Halpata Tastanaki Preserve and the Florida Scrub-Jay

Hike #56 took me over to HTP!

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That’s what we call it now! Otherwise it is a mouth full! lol

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And I was delighted to see the Florida Scrub-Jay thriving!

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Well, at least I hope he is thriving.

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To tell you the truth….

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he looked a little greedy to me.

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Whoopsie, I think he heard me!

BUT REALLY!

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Will he actually be able to EAT these acorns or will he have to store them for the winter like the squirrels! lol

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It was a beautiful day to hike and I saw a flock of Warblers.

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And got a few pics of them.

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And a Great Crested Flycatcher.

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Of course I saw other birds too that refused to pose for me.

But I was happy to see the Florida Scrub-Jay and know that he is living happily at HTP! (and has plenty to eat!)

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I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

and I’d Rather B Birdin’.

32 comments:

Penny from Enjoying The Simple Things said...

You got some great pictures there!

Arlene G said...

You really know your birds Diane. I am trying to learn the names of the ones we see frequently in NoGA.

MadSnapper said...

that is one greedy jay and also one really cute little bird.. we are having perfect hiking weather today. at least I can SAY HTP.. ha ha

Net - "It's a Wonderful Movie" said...

Oh my goodness, I love that you caught the Florida Scrub Jay with a mouth full of acorns! How cute! Animals are so smart, and they work so hard preparing for the months ahead! Looks like you had another beautiful walk!

Blessings, Net

eileeninmd said...

Hello, awesome sighting of the Florida Scrub-Jay! They are pretty. Love the cute butter-butt warbler and Flycatcher too. Nice walk and photos. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Happy Saturday, enjoy your weekend.

Jeanie said...

Wow! What a fabulous capture with the bird with the acorns. Never seen that before! You ask a good question -- eat or hide them? VERY nice!

Adam Jones said...

Some good looking Warblers there and some great shots of the Scrub Jay.

Out on the prairie said...

Acorns are what bring the Jays to my yard. I put shell peanuts out for them later in the winter and enjoy watching them break them open

carol l mckenna said...

Great photos of our feathered friends ~ love the one of the over filled mouth ~ amazing he/she can fit them in their tiny mouth ~

Happy Day to you,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)

Terri D said...

You always get the best shots of birds!! That greedy little guy is probably just collecting food for a neighbor! ;)

Susie said...

Diane, You get to see beautiful birds there. I miss all our birds ...too many scary hawks ,and squirrels eat up the food . I want to put food out again , can't let the birds go hungry. Glad you got your hike in. Blessings, xoxo, Susie

The Joy of Home with Martha Ellen said...

What a great photo of the jay with two acorns, Diane! You always capture lovely birds on your hikes. ♥

Bill said...

A nice series of beautiful shots. I love the Jay with the two acorns. I bet he stored them for a future meal.

Small City Scenes said...

I like that Scrub Jay he's just a bit tenacious as all Jays are. Gimmie it's mine. haha
MB

Jean said...

The Scrub-jay must have been super hungry! Great capture of him with his acorns. Makes me think I wouldn't want anyone photographing me while I'm eating my meals ;) The warblers are beautiful. Hope you are having a great weekend so far!

Tom said...

...you say a nice collection, acorns seem big and hard to crack open.

Connie said...

Do you ever run into alligators when you're trapping through those walking paths taking photos? It looks a bit scary :(

Angie said...

Such an amusing set of photos and narrative to go with it! Thanks for the belly laugh today!

Gina said...

Wow, Diane! I thought they were berries. I'm surprised that they are acorns. Gulp!

Yesteryear Embroideries said...

So beautiful......each one! How does the scrub jay break those acorns?

Lea said...

Love the photos of the Scrub Jay! Very pretty Warblers, too!

Debbie said...

what a great place to walk and enjoy nature. awesome captures of the birds, your scrub jay is so different from our blue jays except for the fact that they are both pigs!!

i wonder how your temperatures are for walking, i think it would be too hot for me!!

Anu said...

Hello! Fabulous photos!

Ann said...

Wonderful photos. The jay does look a bit greedy. Perhaps it's picking up groceries for a neighbor as well...lol

Joyful said...

What a beautiful area and you got some fantastic bird shots. The scrub does look a little greedy but maybe he was very hungry or was taking food to his family :-)

Anni said...

I always, always enjoy reading about your birding adventures...you make the treks/sightings fun an exciting. Loved the scrub Jay. ... we don't have them here in our area.

This weekend you've made us at I'd Rather B Birdin very pleased with your bird species and commentary...thanks!

Vee said...

Oh I love warblers...did they sing for you?

Author R. Mac Wheeler said...


ha ha...greedy ... or just efficient

Red Rose Alley said...

Oh, that little Florida Jay is sweet. And he's got two acorns in his mouth hehehe. They are very aggressive, and always get the bits of loaf that I throw down, fly away to stash it, then come back for more. They are funny birds to watch. The Warblers are such a sweet bird. I didn't know its name, so thanks for mentioning it. : )

~Sheri

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

I've never been able to get a picture of the Florida Scrub Jay, although we have seen them; love these with his 'mouth'ful!! Too cute. We have scrub jays here in Oregon and to me they look exactly alike to the ones we've seen (and to your pictures). Ours here are very common and I am always tempted to use one of my pictures and pretend that it was taken in Florida. But I would never actually do that, I am an honest woman!

Lowcarb team member said...

Thank you for sharing these lovely photographs.
Love the ones of the Florida Scrub Jay.

All the best Jan

Linda Walker said...

At first I though he had a mouthful of berries! I couldn't believe he had 2 acorns in his mouth! A bit of a glutton maybe? LOL....