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...
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...
Photo by Robert O'Toole This year's total nest count was a little on the low side, so we are working hard out in the swamp this winter to maximize the future potential of the rookery's nesting success. Major maintenance is long overdue in the swamp and...
This year was overflowing with Roseate spoonbill nests! We love that they decided in 2010 to finally begin nesting in our rookery. Their dynamic pink plumage is a welcome sight in the sea of egret white. MAX ADULT MAX NEST MAX CHICK Cattle egret 28 28 41 Great egret 174 106 167 Green heron 5 5 8 Little Blue heron 21 17 24 Roseate spoonbill 74 28 52 Snowy egret 143 92 197 Tricolored heron 113 85 151 Wood stork 112 68 170 TOTALS: 670 429 810 Photo by Kay Wells...
Photo by Ardith Bondi The St. Augustine Alligator Farm is a proud participant of the Wood Stork Monitoring and Research Working Group. This is directly from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Virtual News Room: Wood storks in the Southeastern United States no longer face imminent danger...
Photo by Jill Carney This year's rookery season started out strong after a mild winter. The Great egrets, always the first to arrive, made their initial appearance almost two weeks early. The season was off to a good start and the possibility of our biggest rookery season yet seemed probable....
Congratulations to all the winners of our 19th Annual Photo Contest! With nearly 350 photos submitted, David Moynahan, this year's judge, faced quite a challenge during the selection process. So much so that he selected eleven winners instead of ten! This year's winning photographs are better than ever and...
Photo by Michael Barrett Friday, July 20th is the quickly approaching deadline for our 19th Annual Photography Contest! The last day for early entry into the park is the previous Sunday, July 15th. Photo contest rules and entry forms can be downloaded from our website: http://www.alligatorfarm.com/photography.html. Photographers are encouraged...