Water Birds

by Susan Collins

Reader Susan Collins shares some more of her magnificent photographs and memories from the Green Cay Nature Center at Florida.

A Least Bittern inspects the duckweed for a juicy meal.

 Least Bitterns. the smallest of all herons live in freshwater marshes rich in dense vegetation or in mangroves. The Bitterns can straddle reeds which enables them to feed in water much deeper than other herons. The birds are very shy running away from intruders jumping from one stalk to another, taking short flights only if necessary and diving back into its favorite hiding spot in the thick vegetation. 

Photos by Susan Collins

Susan loves visiting the Green Cay Nature Center which is one of the newest nature centers in Palm Beach County and overlooks 100 acres of constructed wetlands.   The wetlands include emergent marshes, deep zones, alligator holes, cypress swamps and Seminole Chickee huts. The 1.5 mile elevated boardwalk takes the visitor through journey through a typical Florida wetland providing a great opportunity to learn about wildlife that live there. 

Susan, who is also a regular reader of Wild Bird Talking ezine has taken many magnificent shots of the birds that live in the wetlands and we are delighted to feature some them below.

An American Coot (above) ponders on the reflections in the water

Coots are well known for their "show and tell" ways where they use their body postures, white undertail coverts, the degree to which they arch their wings their backs as well as the angle of their neck feathers to communicate their intentions. While these displays are often used to intimidate intruders, that is not their sole purpose.  Coots also use them to issue warning signals from predators like hawks or dangers like planes.  A healthy Coot populations symbolises healthy marshlands and places where the coot population is in decline indicates that many more vulnerable species are also endangered as their habitats rapidly disappear.