As March comes to a close the Gatorland Rookery is filled with hundreds of nesting birds, including two pairs of Spoonbills that have decided to nest this year. The banded female shown above is the same one that successfully reared two beautiful offspring last year, the very first time we have ever had a Spoonbill nest at Gatorland. It's quite a thrill when these gorgeous birds fly by so close you can almost reach out and touch them. I shot the photo above using a 70-200 lens at 190mm, and cropped just a bit to fill the bird in the frame. You don't need a big lens to get great pictures, but there are a myriad of opportunities for a wide range of focal lengths, so bring it if you got it!
It's been great to meet some of you from BPN, and I look forward to having all of you visit when you have the opportunity. April, May, and June are the peak months for Gatorland's Rookery, but activity continues through August. Every day seems to bring a new nest of Great Egret chicks, and the first of the Tricolored and Snowy nests should be hatching in about a week. The Little Blues are increasing in numbers and have begun nesting along the East bank across from the Observation Tower. It appears that we will have our very first Limpkin nest, as one of the pair has been hanging out in a nest consistently for the past several days.
There is plenty of courtship and nest building going on, and the Wood Storks are very active along the East Bank, courting, mating, and bringing in nesting material throughout the day. Both pairs of Spoonbills are making their nests next to the Wood Storks, which is rather ironic as Wood Storks now occupy their nesting area from last year. Currently, there are over a dozen nesting pairs of Woodies on the East bank, almost directly across from the North Gazebo.
The alligators are also increasing in courtship activity, and this Saturday morning everyone was treated to an alligator serenade as the gators in the Breeding Marsh bellowed for about 10 minutes... providing a pretty cool photo opportunity!
Beginning Tuesday, April 1, 2008 we will make available a single day "Dawn to Dusk" ticket to accommodate those folks that only have a day or so available to visit. This ticket will allow entry at 7:30am with the ability to stay past closing time until dusk, and is only available Tuesday through Saturday. Tickets will be available online for $29.99 and can be pre-purchased to allow easy access for early entry.
Any questions or comments please let me know!
Mike Godwin
Gatorland
PS. Great shot Robert... thanks for sharing!