Photo by Terrie Jacobson TYPICAL ROOKERY SCHEDULE Mid February – The first pair of Great egrets arrive around Valentine’s Day. More are close behind and begin nest building. Roseate spoonbills stagger their nests throughout the season, arriving as early as mid-January! Late February- Great egret pairs continue to...
BEST-IN-SHOW Great egret (Ardea alba) bathing Terrie Jacobson Buford, GA Canon EOS R5, lens RF 100-500 F4.5-7.1 L IS This year's photo contest judge, Jackie Kramer, struggled with selecting the final winning images as there were so many excellent submissions! Hundreds of images were provided from around the country for...
Yellow-crowned night heron by Tim Rucci By Megan Mello, Intern Common roosters, the Yellow-crowned (Nyctanassa violacea) and the Black-crowned night herons (Nycticorax nycticorax) are at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm’s rookery. These species is commonly found around the rookery during the winter and early spring months, normally...
Photo by Jo-Ann Cittadino Article by Sylvia Van Boskirk, Rookery Intern Tricolored Herons are one of the more abundant and colorful residents of our Native Swamp and Rookery. Their nests tend to be about 13 feet off the ground, which is perfectly at eye level in the Swamp....
Photo by Catherine Calabria Article by Sylvia Van Boskirk, Rookery Intern Even though this has been an unusual year for humans, it was business as usual for the birds! Our rookery was alive with activity throughout the spring and summer as the birds returned to court and breed. By...
Little blue heron pair Photo by Susan Jarrett This year's nesting season was a bit more out-of-the-ordinary. Though we always joke around that we are not privy to their schedules, a typical pattern has emerged over the years allowing us to guesstimate fairly accurately about who...
JOEL SARTORE! Joel Sartore is a photographer, speaker, author, teacher, conservationist, National Geographic Fellow, and a regular contributor to National Geographic Magazine. His hallmarks are a sense of humor and a Midwestern work ethic. Joel specializes in documenting endangered species and landscapes in order to show a...
2017 was the busiest nesting season the swamp has seen since 2011 resulting in a max count of 706 nests! Many factors came into play, but in particular the end to the drought and the swamp rejuvenation efforts made the biggest difference. Hurricane Matthew arrived in October 2016...
Congratulations to this year's photo contest winners! The 2017 Best in Show image was taken by St. Augustine photographer Charles Wesley. This stunning photo of a preening Roseate spoonbill was captured with a Canon 7D Mk II camera, Canon EF 100-400 mm f/4.5-5.6 IS II lens...