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Photo of the Week: Canaveral National Seashore

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Reddish Egret walking on seashore

We caught sight of this Reddish Egret while we were birding last week at Canaveral National Seashore, a barrier island near Kennedy Space Center on Florida’s east coast.

It was a beautiful afternoon for birdwatching, as we managed to see a Royal Tern, Ruby-Throated Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Osprey, Canvasback, Pied-billed Grebe, Anhinga, Little Blue Heron, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, White Ibis, Roseate Spoonbill, American Coot as well as an armadillo that crossed in front of us on the seashore road.

The Biggest Week: Birdwatching at Magee Marsh

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My Mother’s Day weekend isn’t complete without a trip to Magee Marsh in Oregon, Ohio, on the shore of Lake Erie. What I love about Magree Marsh on Mother’s Day weekend is that it coincides with The Biggest Week, a week of birdwatching activities held throughout northwestern Ohio.

In the spring, warblers return to the northern regions of North America, stopping at Magee Marsh before making the trip across Lake Erie to their nesting areas in Ontario, Canada and beyond.

And for those birding experts, fans, and photographers, it’s a treat to walk the Magee Marsh boardwalk and Lake Erie shoreline to get a glimpse of the colorful warblers.

Here’s my list of birds I saw at Magee Marsh:

  1. Nashville Warbler
  2. Pine Warbler
  3. Palm Warbler
  4. Black-and-white Warbler
  5. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
  6. Scarlet Tanager
  7. Rose-breasted Grosbeak
  8. Great Horned Owl
  9. Woodcock
  10. Bay-breasted Warbler
  11. Magnolia Warbler
  12. Yellow Warbler
  13. Chestnut-sided Warbler
  14. Bald Eagle
  15. American Coot
  16. Louisiana Waterthrush
  17. Baltimore Oriole
  18. White-crowned Sparrow
  19. Sandhill Crane
  20. Tree Swallow
  21. Purple Martin
  22. Black-capped Chickadee
  23. American Kestrel
  24. House Wren
  25. American Redstart
  26. Yellow-rumped Warbler
  27. Blackburnian Warbler
  28. Warbling Vireo
  29. Black-throated Green Warbler
  30. Cape May Warbler
  31. Blackpoll Warbler
  32. Bonaparte’s Gull
  33. Double-crested Cormorant
  34. Mallard Duck
  35. Green-winged Teal
  36. Red-winged Blackbird
  37. Gray Catbird
  38. American Robin
  39. Great Blue Heron
  40. Black-crowned Night Heron
  41. Canada Goose
  42. Great Egret
  43. Ring-billed Gull
  44. European Starling

What is that Mystery Bird?

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On our drive home through the neighborhood last night, I spotted a bird perched on the edge of a rooftop. The size of a robin, I was surprised to see the white breast, and quickly shot a few pictures.

The bird had the same markings of a robin, flew like a robin, and exhibited the same foraging behavior searching for worms.

Black and white American Robin sits on rooftop.

Like the old saying, if it looks like a duck, flies like a duck, it must be a duck.

Yep, it was a robin—a leucistic robin. Or more precisely, a piebald robin.

I had never heard of leucism, but if you do a Google search, you’ll find many sightings of leucistic robins.

Leucism is a genetic mutation that only affects a bird’s feather color. There are different variations of leucism. Birds with portions or patches of their feathers without color are called “pied” or “piebald”. Birds with all-white plumage are called “leucistic”.

Leucism vs. Albinism

A leucistic bird is different from an albino bird. Leucistic birds only have color mutations in their feathers, while albino birds have lost color or show pale color in their eyes, beak, feathers, legs, and feet.

Many thanks to my friends and fellow birders Dona and Bob Arthurs, for their help in identifying the bird.

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