Free Bird

Our backyard is frequented by the ducks of the neighborhood, both mallards and muscovy ducks. There are often as many as six or eight of them sleeping in the shade, picking through the grass for bugs, or waiting eagerly for the cracked corn I throw out once or twice a day.

The pond itself has many avian visitors, especially around the edges where wading birds search through the shallows for food. Some mornings, I have seen as many as 15 great egrets combing the waters at a time, along with several other species of birds.

This afternoon, though, one curious fellow wandered up into My Florida Backyard to see if my butterfly garden could offer him anything interesting. As a matter of a fact, he peered right through the screen into the back porch where I sat, pondering my next blog post.

Clearly, he was volunteering for his close-up. Of course, he didn't really have the patience to wait while I ran for the camera. I managed to snap these pics* before he flew away to continue his exploring across the lake. (Notice that the muscovy ducks really couldn't have been less interested in this visitor!)



*Sorry for the poor picture quality - I took all these pictures through the screen so as not to startle the bird away.