Camera Critters 001 - Red-Tail Hawk

Taken at the Aviary in Boyd Hill Nature Preserve in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Preserve's Aviary houses birds of prey that have taken permanent injuries that prevent them from living safely in the wild. I took this picture through an opening in the cage, which houses two red-tail hawks.

One of the largest and most common of hawks, [the red-tail hawk] is often seen soaring or perched in a tree searching for prey. Red-tailed hawks vary considerably in color, but most adults are brown with a read tail. A band of dark streak forms a belt across the white belly. Rodents and rabbits are its main diet, along with birds, snakes, and lizards.

Other birds in the small aviary include a bald eagle, turkey vulture, barred owl, and two very cute little Eastern screech owls.

Welcome to my first Camera Critters post!

This photo concludes my Boyd Hill photo series, at least, for this week. :)



“Every artist dips his brush in his own soul,
and paints his own nature into his pictures.”
~Henry Ward Beecher

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CAMERA CRITTERS

PhotoHunt Saturday 003 - Sir Armadillo

Oct 17 Challenge: FREE WEEK
A steel sculpture of an armadillo by Paul Eppling, a local artist in St. Petersburg. Doesn't it look like a dinosaur in shining armor? :mrgreen: What makes this massive steely creation extra cool in my book is it's made up of recycled materials! The "welded steel [armadillo was] painstakingly constructed with "found objects" from old cars and construction machinery (and some donations)." I absolutely love it.

According to 1980 article in the Evening Independent, this knight of an armadillo had a twin. The twin stood next to what was a library, now the Boyd Hill Nature Preserve office. I didn't see the sculpture when I last visited, but I may just have missed it. I'll look for it next time I go there.

Taken in Boyd Hill Nature Preserve in St. Petersburg, Florida.



“Every artist dips his brush in his own soul,
and paints his own nature into his pictures.”
~Henry Ward Beecher

Pick your next PhotoHunt destination at
PHOTHUNT SATURDAY

PhotoHunt Saturday #2 - A Shell of a Butterfly

Taken last month on the shores of Fort de Soto Beach. I noticed a bunch of butterfly-shaped open shells on the shores on the day I went for a walk. They came in a variety of colors, but this is the brightest one of them.


“Every artist dips his brush in his own soul,
and paints his own nature into his pictures.”
~Henry Ward Beecher

Pick your next PhotoHunt destination at
PHOTOHUNT SATURDAY

PhotoHunt Saturday #3 - Surprise

PhotoHunt 179 Theme: Surprise

Taken on the trailon the way to Kule Loklo (Bear Village) the  in Coast Miwok at Point Reyes, California.


“Every artist dips his brush in his own soul,
and paints his own nature into his pictures.”
~Henry Ward Beecher

Pick your next PhotoHunt destination at
PhotoHunt Saturday