Green Cay Wetlands

 

As part of a photography class that I am in the process of doing we were required to submit a number of pictures for critique.  So Friday rolled around, and it was my day off.  I gathered up my camera and headed out to Green Cay, a local wetland, for a couple of hours.  Here are my pictures that I took for my critique.

 

Green Cay is made of long broadwalks that go through various vista's of Florida.  I love to walk through here on a regular basis.  Join me as I wander today.

 

  

 

 

Of course, I knew there were baby gators, and I have to confess, while I knew I had a critique, these little guys were a huge draw card.  Mom seemed happy to have them lying all over her.

 

 

Some stretched out on a log, catching the sun rays, while mom kept her beady eye on what they got up to.

This Least Bittern was wandering way to close to mama and her gatorlings.  I hope it was not the bird that I saw stuffed into a gators mouth.

This Little Blue Heron appears to be walking really carefully through the muddy water.

 

This large alligator came swimming by me as I walked along the board walk.  He stopped almost directly below me, which then had me hanging over the edge to take this picture.

 

The Reddish Egret is something new to Green Cay, or at least for me.  This was the first time I was seeing them here. 

This Snowy Egret spent a lot of time watching the water, waiting for a fish to move.  As soon as it spotted something it took off.  I no sooner got my focus and it went flying.

This is the same gator that was hanging out under the boardwalk.  It decided to go swimming.  Kind of go the feeling it was following me.  At this point in time, I really like boardwalks.

A Rosetta Spoonbill is not a common sight for me and when I do get to see one I am pretty happy.  The Rosetta Spoonbill has a similar body to the Snowy Egret except the wings are pinkish in color and the beak looks like the shape of a spoon.

 

I like to look for random ideas.  I spotted this simple leaf lying on the railing of the boardwalk.  This turned out to be one of my favorite pictures of the day. 

 

I also love it when I take a picture and find a little bit extra, something unexpected, like a spider web.

Or a grasshopper.  

 

Or even a moth.  I spent a fair bit of time putting all my settings together.  The moth was not quite in focus and I thought the photo was a little dark, and so I was busy resetting my camera when some man walked between me and my subject, and my moth flew away......

 Often I will look for new shoots or sometimes it may be a dead plant.

This particular plant left me feeling seasick.  I kept trying to focus on it while it swayed in the wind.  I was determined to get the bugs on the plant.

I am busy wrapping the day up but I cannot resist a swing back to the gator and her kiddies.  This Least Bittern certainly had something to say.  Perhaps it was shouting out a warning to the mother gator.   

 

 

 

Mom is not happy!!  A great big Alligator had swum into her territory and there seemed to be a tussle over food in the form of a bird.  The big Alligator swam little to close to the gatorlings and mom got into this aggressive pose. She was not a happy camper.    

Meantime the gatorlings are happily sunning themselves on the log, oblivious to the danger that lurks out there. 

Finally I could not resist this face.  Nestled in the Butterfly haven is this little guy, clearly waiting for a butterfly to come home.  Oh, the food chain!  Meantime he will just hang out and sun himself. 

 

“Books! tis a dull and endless strife:
Come, hear the woodland linnet,
How sweet his music! on my life,
There's more of wisdom in it.”

 

~ William Wordsworth, Wordsworth: Poems