When I arrived at Newton Park on Lake Apopka, the sun hadn’t risen and things were quiet. Very shortly thereafter, it got light enough and birds began materializing out of thin air. Or so it seemed. They were everywhere. I saw the two lifers I was shooting for (next two posts) within minutes of arriving, so I had plenty of time to wander back and forth along the sidewalk that bordered the lake. The park was only about 1,500 feet from end to end. I walked back and forth three or four times, walked out to the end of the fishing pier, and even walked a block into the mobile home park next door to get a view of the lake further down. I only saw 28 species in the almost two hours I was there, but there were hundreds of birds around.
This alligator looks ferocious but it was only about three feet long.
Common Gallinule. One of probably 100 in the area.
Glossy Ibis
Male Boat-tailed Grackle (I promise you that I did absolutely nothing to this photo except crop it.
Limpkin
Purple Gallinule
Snowy Egrets
Tricolored Heron. This bird has a terrible name.
There were Anhingas all over the place.
