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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 10/03/2025

Hello, BlueSky! I’m taking a brief hiatus to experiment with architectural photography, but I’ll be back soon with more bird pictures. Monarchs and Blue Porterweed (A composite of three photographs) Miami Beach Botanical Gardens December 27, 2024 #photography #nature #insects #butterflies

A bright orange and black Monarch Butterfly gathers pollen from a tiny purple flower, the lone blossom on a thin green stalk of Blue Porterweed. A second Monarch, pictured three times in this composite image, flits around the first. The background of the photograph is a blur of green hues.

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Reposted by Ben's Birds and Stuff

Gil Wizen @wizentrop.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

This katydid from Ecuador has been affectionately named by photographers "candy-cane katydid". The truth is... we are not sure which species it is. One possibility is a Harroweria nymph, but until someone witnesses the transformation into the adult stage it will remain a mystery.

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

Yellow-Bellied Slider Miami Beach Botanical Garden December 31, 2024 #photography #nature #wildlife #turtles #reptiles

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

Chicken Miami Beach Botanical Garden December 28, 2024 #photography #nature #birds (Who can identify the breed and gender?)

A chicken struts through the Miami Beach Botanical Garden. This chicken has an orange breast, a speckled brown-and-white cap, a small red comb, and prominent yellow feet. Here, it pecks its ways along a trail canopied with green plants and trees. The ground is covered in dry leaves and mulch.

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

Cape May Warbler Miami Beach Botanical Garden December 31, 2024 #photography #nature #wildlife #birds

A Cape May Warbler catches a glint of sunshine. This Cape May Warbler is a small bird. Its bright yellow breast is streaked with black. Its cap and wings are gray and black. A few chestnut feathers have appeared on the bird’s otherwise gray cheeks, which suggests that this bird is an immature male that will soon acquire its adult feathers. Here, the warbler, which has been drinking the nectar from the flowers of a large Jamaican Poinsettia, pauses to take in the sunlight dappling from above.

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 07/02/2025

Thank you. We see Green Herons here in Indiana, but this heron, in Florida was a lot less skittish.

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 06/02/2025

Thank you. I helped it a long a bit in post but much of that effect was situational. The bank was heavily shaded but the heron had walked out on the limb to fish in the canal below. The result was this lovely spotlight.

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 06/02/2025

What if, now hear me out, you scale that project up? You’re gonna need a very large pot . . .

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 06/02/2025

Green Heron Collins Canal Park Miami Beach December 28, 2025 #birds #photography #nature #wildlife

Perched on an overhanging limb, a Green Heron looks out over a canal. This Green Heron is a short, stout bird with burgundy plumage on its chest and dark blue plumage on its head. It has a bright yellow eye and a long, pointy bill. Here, the heron sits on a long, dead tree branch, soaking up the sun. This perch also allows the heron to keep an eye on fish and other prey moving in the canal below. The background of the photograph consists of shaded rocks and green space.

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 03/02/2025

Northern Mockingbird Miami Botanical Garden December 28, 2024 #photography #wildlife #nature #birds

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 30/01/2025

Many, many thanks for the likes, comments, and reposts, everyone. I'm so happy to share these pictures with you.

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 30/01/2025

@pjnelly.bsky.social: The Green Herons I encounter here in IND won't tolerate any approach, but the few I've met in FLA have been more complacent. I watched this bird from the far bank of a canal for several minutes. Then to my astonishment, it flew across the water and hunted w/in a few feet of me.

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 29/01/2025

Green Heron Collins Canal Park Miami Beach December 28, 2024 #photography #nature #wildlife #birds

A vigilant Green Heron. This photograph offers a closeup portrait of an alert Green Heron. The heron faces away from the camera but looks over its right shoulder. The slight crouch of the bird suggests tension or wariness. This heron is impossibly colorful. It has teal-blue plumage on its back, hunter green plumage on its wings, burgundy plumage on its neck, and midnight blue plumage on its crown. It has an orange eye with a large black pupil. Its lower bill is a streak of yellow. The background of the photograph consists mostly of the sandy and white hues of a shallow canal reflecting dappled sunlight.

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

Thank you so much, @kristinwyatt.bsky.social! I’m still learning to photograph birds in flight, but a stiff ocean breeze allowed these gulls to hover in place, and that made things easy.

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Ben's Birds and Stuff @notabeignet.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

I can’t recall ever seeing one before our recent trip.

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