The Male Hooded Merganser seems to get all the attention because of his coloring and fan-shaped white crest however the Female Hooded Merganser is very attractive with her tawny crest.   I was visiting the Viera Wetlands and this beautiful Female Hooded Merganser took off from the water with no sighting of the male.  They are only winter residents in that area of Florida so maybe he was nearby.  They are capable of taking off very quickly from water so I feel fortunate to have captured this image.

I was leaving The Viera Wetlands  one April afternoon because it had started to rain and I assumed there would be no more photography action that afternoon. Suddenly this Least Bittern appeared and took off right beside me! What a gift. These small Bitterns are hard to spot because they blend into their surroundings and even more difficult to photograph in flight because it is SO difficult to find them in the reeds. They live a very secretive life and I was blessed to have this one take off right in front of me at a time when I thought photography for that day was over due to rainy weather.

I was walking along the Click Ponds at the Viera Wetlands and this Juvenile Black-Crowned Night Heron suddenly flew from the edge of the pond. What a Surprise Flight!

I was recently visiting the Viera Wetlands on a rainy overcast day.  I was ready with my camera but not expecting much action.  I stopped because a Bald Eagle flew overhead, which I totally missed.    I decided to sit for a while, thinking the day for capturing images was going to be unproductive, when this little rocket popped out of the water with a fish!

The Crested Caracara looks like a colorful  long legged hawk, behaves much like a vulture but is really a Falcon.  It is commonly  called the ‘Mexican Eagle’ and is native to much of South America, but only a few areas in North America.   I photographed this one in the Viera Wetlands in Florida.