Osprey Flight Formation

Yesterday, my meetup group and I met at Honeymoon Island in Dunedin, FL. We took a walk on the Osprey Trail to see a Bald Eagle nest and hopefully a glimpse of the Eaglets. Unfortunately, the area next to the nest was cordoned off, so we weren't able to get very close to the nest so I couldn't get very good shots of it.

I did however, get some great shots of the Ospreys in their nests and the Osprey chicks. These two were flying doing some kind of dance near their nest. I'm not sure what they were doing, but it was thrilling to watch them fly overhead.

This is one of my favorite shots of these two. Actually, it's one of my favorite shots of the day. I love how they're flying so close in formation. A fast shutter speed and high ISO allowed me to get this sharply detailed shot. I used + 1 1/2 stops exposure compensation since I was shooting in the sky which allowed me to hold the shadows from blowing out and keep detail in their whites.

I'll be posting more shots from this shoot at a later time.

Female Downy Woodpecker

This little female Downy Woodpecker has found a new home, I think. She's been hanging around my yard for a couple weeks now. She was so busy chasing insects that she didn't notice me standing there with my camera; lucky for me.

It's fairly easy to tell the difference between the male and female Downy. The male has a bright red patch on the back of his head, while there's no red on the female at all.

Unlike most woodpeckers, these woodpeckers are small, only about 6" from tip of tail to their head. They can be found in most of the United States except in the Southwest, and are commonly spotted in woodlands, parks and gardens.

Downy woodpeckers are the smallest, tamest (not very skittish around people) and most abundant in the United States. They can be drawn to the yard with suet feeders. They are often in the company of chickadees, nuthatches, creepers and kinglets.