Who’s Who

There is really no story behind this shot. The neighborhood kids alerted me that two owls were in the palm tree, so I ran out with my camera and got this shot of one of the barred owls. She really is a beauty and her cooing who-who’s are soothing music wafting through the orange blossom scent on a Florida day in March. We have wonderful neighbors on this block, and not all of them live in houses.

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Zippity Doo Da

The joys of living in Florida! The beautiful hooded merganser duck wintered in our pond this year. They are found as far north as Alaska, Manitoba and Nova Scotia. We had eleven at one time, but they seem to be heading back home now. When I went to check on them late yesterday afternoon none were in sight, but I caught on camera one of our beautiful resident birds, a barred owl. He flew by me not just silently, but with an absence of sound, a white noise in flight. He was not at all skittish about posing for the camera as I came within feet of him and even used the flash, as it was getting dark.

Our little acre would never be called manicured, but it is home to so many critters. In fact, we are a designated Backyard Wildlife Habitat. If you’d like a little Zippity Doo Da in your life, you might think about certifying your property. It is a simple thing to do and brings great rewards.

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