Thursday, July 14, 2011

The St. Pete Pier - Skywatch Friday


Pelican flying in front of the Vinoy hotel.


Stretching. Notice the tangled fishing line around his leg.


Red bellied woodpecker in the parking lot.


Two loggerhead shrikes getting frisky. I was surprised to see them hanging around the pier. The couple were chasing each other around the fence near the the sailboat basin.


Loggerhead shrike sitting in the grass.

I hadn't been to the St. Petersburg pier in a while I so headed out on a recent hot Saturday morning. This was right before the non-stop rain moved in. It was sunny and hot. It was a quiet morning around the pier. Not many birds hanging around but I was excited to see the loggerhead shrikes. I didn't expect to see them in populated place right on the bay. As I was writing this I was thinking I was glad I didn't see any tangled or injured birds on this trip. Then as I made the pictures larger once they were downloaded, I noticed the pelican with the fishing line tangled around his leg. I didn't see that when I zoomed in to take the picture. I won't even start my "fishing should not be allowed on fishing piers" rant.

For more skyscape photography from around the world, visit Skywatch Friday

12 comments:

  1. aww. poor pelican. the shrikes are such neat looking birds (even if they are vlad the impalers...)

    ReplyDelete
  2. I hope he disentangles himself, awesome captures though:)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sad for the pelican, too common a situation for little animals getting caught up in our trash, your photos are fabulous, thanks for sharing with SWF

    ReplyDelete
  4. AH! So that's what a loggerhead shrike looks like! Love the pelican shots.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Poor pelican. I hate when that happens to wildlife and it happens too often. The oceans are SO polluted, as are lakes, rivers, ponds, creeks, etc.
    That first picture is so detailed, Dina, I can almost count the feathers on the pelican.
    — K

    Kay, Alberta, Canada
    An Unfittie's Guide to Adventurous Travel

    ReplyDelete
  6. Great shots! I love the one you have used as a header! And the sitting pelican - I was just amazed at the way his foot bent to keep his balance! (Okay, so I don't see a lot of large birds, other than the geese...)

    ReplyDelete
  7. A beautiful world! Thanks for these images.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Awesome birds and photos, Dina! I love the first pelican shot and the shrikes are cool birds. Great sighting of the two shrikes. Happy skywatching!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Does the local game officer maage to help them out!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Picture perfect moment, and a fun blog too~

    ReplyDelete
  11. Really nice photo with the Don Cesar in the background. And thanks for allowing me to comment because of the URL link in the comment box!

    ReplyDelete