Florida Birding: Smyrna Dunes Park (pt. 2)

     On our last day in Florida, we decided to keep it low key, pool and beach. All right outside the door. I decided I'd start the day with a bike ride down to Smyrna Dunes Park, hoping to see a Loggerhead Shrike. The park truly delivered. Birds were very photogenic and this was probably my favorite day out. I even got my husband to come down with the kiddo to see some of the gopher tortoises which was lovely to share with her. I just really loved this morning and what it shared.

The rails of the boardwalk had morning dew on them which the songbirds gathered along to grab a freshwater drink. Genius!

This gray catbird along with another and two cardinals dipped and drank between each passerby.

Is this going to turn into a loggerhead shrike photoshoot?
YES.

The first time we visited our family here, I remember stepping out of their door and seeing one of these birds on the wire and was just totally wowed! I had never seen a shrike of any kind before. So I was determined to find one of these birds and happy I returned to this park!

Surfers, dog walkers, and casual morning striders walked right by and this bird had no cares to give.

These little songbirds have a hooked beak, they are little birds of prey as they hunt not only insects but also lizards, rodents, even other birds. It's what makes shrikes strikingly badass.

For small prey like they, they just gulp it on down, once they get it in just the right position.

Bleb.

A good thorny bush or barbed wire helps this bird when it catches something larger. It will impale it on the thorn or barb and then proceed to use its hooked bill to pull apart its food into more manageable pieces. So it's no surprise the mockingbird pair nearby took offense to these birds in the same area that they were.

And speaking of pairs, this loggerhead shrike is part of a pair!
They even did some calling and wing flapping at each other. I think they liked each other.

This bird made me so happy. I love birds of prey and so therefore, I love songbirds who take on that role.

And just when I thought, that was the best, the birds just kept being extra photogenic.

Brown Pelican in the surf.

A lovely little wing flap...

And taking a higher vantage point among the fishermen on the jetty.

Ruddy turnstones looking picturesque in front of the Ponce de Leon Inlet and Lighthouse.

This snowy egret was a bit of an antagonist amongst its peers. There was a lot going on by the jetty near the inlet.

Look up and you have pelicans, osprey, and terns overhead.

Look down and ruddy turnstones dipped in and out between the rocks in the sand.

This turnstone came u lucky itself, with a small crab that it ran off with and gobbled down.

And just when I thought mother nature laid it all out for me, on my last day...

A gopher tortoise yawn was the icing on the cake.
Until next time, Florida.