Anna Maria Island and Homosassa Springs

 

This morning we got going early and got to Anna Maria Island around a quarter after eleven. The traffic was really bad until we got to the northern part of the island. We found somewhere to park and went to Bean Point Beach. There were all sorts of gulls and terns there, and kids kept chasing them, which I get, but I feel bad for the birds. Besides, then they would fly right towards me. Yikes! We also saw pelicans, sandpipers, and sand dunes. Here are some photos.

Then we walked to the Rod and Reel Pier for lunch outside overlooking the water, and we saw egrets, pelicans, and a great blue heron. This is a cattle egret.

This poor pelican has a fishing lure stuck in its beak.

The view in either direction from the pier.

Just minding their own business...

"Wait, what did you say??"

"Ma'am, I think I see what the trouble is with your motor."

As we walked back to the car, we admired the colorful houses on the island.

And the cool trees.

We drove over the Sunshine Skyway, a very tall bridge over Tampa Bay, and then we headed north to Homosassa Springs. By the time we got there, with traffic slowdowns and restroom breaks, the park was only open for another hour so they charged us a discounted price. We went through the wildlife walk first, since that closed a half hour earlier than the rest of the park. Here are some photos. This is a wildlife rehabilitation park, and the animals can't live in the wild. For example, this is a three-legged fox.

They had lots of flamingos.

And lots of ibises.

This is not an egret but a white heron.

This cormorant was in the exhibit with him but there was no sign for a cormorant, so we wondered if it was a healthy one who just flew in and chilled with him.

Check it out! This is what we saw yesterday at Big Cypress - it's a wood stork! They're endangered.

There were lots of brown pelicans.

Also endangered: the whooping crane.

I already forgot the name of this hawk with a mop top.

This great blue heron may have just flown in to join the party.

This, of course, is a black bear.

This snowy egret flew in to join the party.

And so did this black-crowned night heron.

Look - white pelicans like we have at home in the warm months!

Here you can get a closer view of the spoonbills' bills shaped like spoons.

Brown pelicans don't migrate north for the summer.

Another shot of a black-crowned night heron and snowy egret.

This pelican is fishing.

This is a tiny key deer, like we saw on No-Name Key last year.

The real bummer was that we didn't see the Florida panthers. Travalon came all the way to Florida to see a panther, and it's very hard to see them in the wild, but we thought for sure we'd see the ones in the zoo. A warden assured us there were two in the enclosure, but we couldn't see them at all. We also couldn't see the bobcat(s). Then we walked out on a bridge and saw fish and a turtle and a pair of wood ducks.

The manatees seemed to voluntarily swim into this weird holding tank.

This is Lu the Hippopotamus. He was born in January 1960 in San Diego and was part of the exotic animal park that was here before the wildlife rehabilitation zoo. He was so popular that people begged them to keep him, although he is not an animal native to Florida.

More fish.

Then we drove for several hours until reaching Tallahassee. I tried to call Tiffy on the phone while we were in the car, but we kept getting disconnected, and when she talked, I could only hear about half of what she said. I asked if she wanted me to call her back once we got to the hotel, but she said we could just talk next week. I did hear a little about Rich's birthday party, which I plan most years but of course this year we were on Bimini on his birthday. Sorry, Rich!

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