Florida Day 15 and time for a rest.

I spent the entire day yesterday devoted to getting the best photos possible of Painted Buntings so today, even though I had my usual early morning outing, I had a rest and spent the day doing normal touristy things. In "downtown" Fort Lauderdale by the New River, a small noisy flock of parrots were in the trees but Jenny (my long suffering, beautiful wife), said that even looking up was forbidden!! My early morning stakeout of the Osprey proved to be a no show as well, so all in all it was a blank day photographically, except for just one photograph taken at sunset as the male Osprey passed over the creek unsuccessfully without his supper. He seemed to glide over the water dipping his legs as he went several times and at intervals of a few seconds, each time being unsuccessful.

Osprey dives for a fish just in front of me and then landed in a tree upstream about 50 yards away.

It's been quite a task to Blog daily while I have been here in South Florida. The opportunities are so great that at the end of the day I have finished with hundreds and hundreds of photographs to sort through. Then of course there is the job of writing about the day and about the photographs. Consequently I haven't always been able to put as much information as I normally do, there simply isn't enough time in the day.

From yesterday here is a Raccoon that was just as interested in the birdseed as the birds. Even though I was sat quite close to he feeder he assessed hat I was not threat and as long as I was still it continued to feed. I thought this pose was interesting, he seems to be praying. We don't have a Raccoon equivalent in the UK, perhaps urban foxes have filled that niche? However Racoons seem to be be much more tame and common for that matter.

A raccoon prays for his dinner.

This was when he first appeared out of the undergrowth and deciding whether I was a threat or not.

Squirrels are a pest and invasive species in the IK, they damage trees, eat birds eggs and make a nuisance of themselves at birdfeeders and in gardens. They were introduced to the UK from the US in the 19th century. I hate them in the UK but here in the US where they are native of course, things are different and I enjoy seeing them and of course taking pictures.