***Alert*** Snowbirds are on their way

[rtbaum]

[Donald]

Is that a Snowbird?

I've been deluded for decades by some romantic, schmaltzy song:-
"Spread your tiny wings and fly away
And take the snow back with you
Where it came from on that day
The one I love forever is untrue
And if I could you know that I would
Fly away with you"

That ain't got tiny wings ... has it? I was dreaming of something small and white and pretty over which one would go, "Aaaww".

[Saorsa]

Here in Florida, snowbirds are the folks who come down here to winter. Human and Avian. Most of those here on the Gulf coast come from Minnesota and south on I-75, on the Atlantic side, I-95 brings them down from as far away as Maine.

[rtbaum]

Nah...just artistic license, in my latitude we refer to those that flee to warmer climes as 'snowbirds'....these are Sandhill Cranes gathering to go to Florida. They have gathered about 20 miles north of my home...record numbers in excess of 11,000!

[rtbaum]

Here in Florida, snowbirds are the folks who come down here to winter. Human and Avian. Most of those here on the Gulf coast come from Minnesota and south on I-75, on the Atlantic side, I-95 brings them down from as far away as Maine.

You can't have 'em til I'm done with them

[Donald]

Nah...just artistic license,

Oh, thank goodness. I thought I was going to have re-write my romantic history!!

Here in Florida, snowbirds are the folks who come down here to winter. Human and Avian.

Love it.

[rtbaum]

I think I prefer them with a blue background

[Donald]

Now you're showing off!

That's beautiful.

[rtbaum]

Now you're showing off!

That's beautiful.

Thank you, Donald......Hard not to get a keeper or two in the midst of 11,000 cranes

[IzzieK]

Very nice shots of the later on after the first...and thanks for the early morning laughs, guys!

[davidedric]

I really like the bif, sharp and beautiful light.

There are a few vagrant snowbirds head to Florida from this side of the pond, too. We're often among them

Dave

[Saorsa]

We have some year round too.

[IzzieK]

This is a beautiful shot, Brian!! Very sharp and I like the red bits..nicely processed.

[rtbaum]

We have some year round too.

I, for the life of me, wish that I could get this close.

[Alma2911]

We have some year round too.

Brian, this is a super shot! Just for academics, how close were you to the bird? What lens?
Wouldn't mind spending hours for a keep of this sort....

[Saorsa]

This one is a large male who was keeping an eye on me as I was trying to get some shots of Mom and a couple of babies. He actually was tracking along behind me as I walked on the other side of a drainage canal from the family.

It was shot with my old Nikon D50 with a 1.7 TC on the 70-200mm f2.8 zoom. The width is pretty much full frame for DX. I cropped a bit off the bottom because it was just neck with a big black space bottom right.

Here is the full shot, I think the wider crop works better.

[Wavelength]

Nice images

[rtbaum]

I think the fact that have been hunted before getting here may make them a bit more wary when I try to photograph them

[Alma2911]

Brian, thanx for sharing this. I've been trying to click similar ones here but have not been successful with their eyes. I, probably haven't been able to get as close... Will try again next week...