Monday, March 7, 2011

Florida Botanical Gardens and a new park



One robin says to the other "Man, this Florida living is nice. I'm never going back up north."



Red bellied woodpecker says "No, this is not a berry in my mouth."



Mallard says to moorhen "Stop chasing me." Moorhen says to mallard "Then why are you running? You're much bigger than me."



Yellow rumped warbler says "I'm all alone."


The big yellow flower says "Spring is already in Florida."


The first turtle says "Last one out gets eaten by an alligator."



Spring flower says "No snow down here."


It was a couple of weekends ago that is was freezing (by Florida standards). It was the last cold weekend we had for the season. I got to the Florida Botanical Gardens around 9am and my car said it was 42 degrees outside. I thought "This is crazy. I should have stayed home in bed." But the sun was out and it warmed up pretty quick to about 60 degrees. There weren't a lot of flowers out but I did find a few that were blooming. A big flock of American robins flew by and a couple landed on a tree right in front of me.

Before I headed home, I decided to try out a new park close by the botanical gardens.  George C. McGough Nature Park in Largo is a small nature park. I had recently read that the resident owl who has lived at the center since being orphaned as a baby was missing. Someone broke into the center after closing and cut open his cage. The owl never learned to hunt for himself.  My thought is the people who did this thought they were doing the owl a favor but the owl will probably starve to death. Which is right? Set him free to starve or stay locked in a cage for life? The owl visited schools for learning programs and to teach kids about conversation and wildlife. At this point the owl has not been found.  The park sits on the intercoastal waterway and has a nice boardwalk that goes out over the water. The day I was there it was so windy. I didn't see any birds at all on the whole walk. Only some turtles and flowers. I'll have to give the park another try soon.

Below is an attempt to record a cardinal singing.


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10 comments:

  1. I can't always understand why some people do what they do. How sad about the owl.

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  2. Sounds like a misguided soul interfered not knowing what it was doing! How sad for the owl.

    Your Florida spring sure looks great!

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  3. Such a shame about the owl.

    Enjoyed the pictures and captions.

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  4. WOW loved all these images, the flowers, turtles,and the birds! The woodpecker with a huge berry is over the top with character...excellent

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  5. It sounds like a beautiful day. I especially liked the photos of the birds against the bright blue sky and also the bright flowers.

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  6. A lovely post and great images. Shame about the owl. IMHO do-gooders "saving" captive species do more harm than they imagine (American Mink in the UK is an example.

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  7. Love all the pics especially the woodpecker and the video of the cardinal. Thanks so much for sharing!

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  8. Lovely photos of the birds and the flowers. It is awful about the owl, can they find it?

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  9. What a nice series of lovely images! It is sad to hear about the Owl. Hopefully, it will be found.

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