Roseate Spoonbill

One of the birds I was hoping to photograph in Florida was the Roseate Spoonbill. I find Spoonbills fascinating birds, and love to watch them feeding with that huge bill sweeping rapidly from side to side. But I have only occasionally seen Spoonbills in the UK and then of course they are the all white Common Spoonbills. I planned to photograph their pink relations, which I had previously only seen fly overhead on our previous trip to Florida, on honeymoon over 15 years ago. I was therefore a little bit disappointed when I didn't see any on my early morning visit to the rookery.

However, we visited Gatorland the next day with the kids. Imagine my excitement when I saw a whole group of birds that looked like were starting to nest at the back of the rookery. Although the light was harsh, and access quite difficult, I did manage to get a few photos of this beautiful bird!

Roseate SpoonbillGatorland, Florida, USA

Roseate SpoonbillGatorland, Florida, USA

Roseate SpoonbillGatorland, Florida, USA

Roseate SpoonbillGatorland, Florida, USA Roseate SpoonbillGatorland, Florida, USA

Roseate SpoonbillGatorland, Florida, USA

Roseate SpoonbillGatorland, Florida, USA