Birdwatching on Bicycles
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Today my parents and I went on a bike ride. We went to one of the lakes on the side of Lakewood Ranch Boulevard.
On the marsh end of the lake we saw a sand hill crane on her nest. She had built up her nest with the grass from the marsh. The nest was about four foot wide and about a foot and a half tall. Sand hill cranes build their nest in the middle of marshes to protect their eggs and young from predators.
We looked around carefully, and saw all kinds of birds. Mockingbirds chasing cardinals, mallard ducks feeding in the marsh, red wing blackbirds hanging on the reeds, anhingas chasing fish, pelicans floating calmly, and several common moorhen poking around in the weeds. The mockingbird was hunting by putting his wings up high so he would look bigger, that way the bugs would jump into the air so he could grab them.
In the shallows of the lake, we saw a whole bunch of tilapia in there nests. They were some of the biggest tilapia I have seen. There were many schools of minnows around the tilapia.
On the way home, we saw another sand hill crane probing the turf with his long beak looking for bugs. Mom insisted we stop, so she could give him some bread. He got so close that we could have touched him if we wanted to.
Near our home there is another lake that has a whole bunch of baby alligators in it. They seem very friendly, a little too friendly for alligators. I think some one has been feeding them. Feeding alligators is a very bad idea. If they the lose their fear of man they will be trapped and killed.
I am looking forward to going fishing later this week, maybe with my friend John or if I'm lucky we can all go to the beach.
Thanks again for stopping by and saying hello!
I appreciate everybody coming here and sharing in my adventures!
Thank You,
Blake
