Florida, the Sound, Birds and Books

Seagulls hanging out on the dock.

One of the many things I love about living in Florida is all the birds: Great Blue Herons, Red Tailed Hawks, Bald Eagles, Osprey, Egrets, Seagulls, I could go on and on.  I wake up to birdsong and often fall asleep to the hoot of an owl.

A great place to bird watch is the sound. There's a waterfront park on the sound not far from our house. My dog, Dude, loves car rides and one of our favorite destinations is to the park on the sound.




The sound, facing southeast from the boat launch.

Dogs are not allowed on the sound, so Dude has to be content with viewing the water and birds from the Jeep's rolled down windows.

Personally, I don't see the harm in letting dogs swim in the sound, but that's a big no-no here. Dude is a water-dog and he would just love to swim there.

A Great Blue Heron trolling for fish.

Well, Dude and I did our almost-daily car ride late this afternoon. Unlike yesterday's torrential rains, today was bright blue skies and nary a cloud in sight.

I took my camera along and snapped a few pics of the birds hanging out near the boat launch. A handful of seagulls rested on the dock. Some Mallards swam in circles in the shallow water and a Great Blue Heron waded out looking for fish.

One of the Mallards.

The Mallards were real beauties. I think they were disappointed I didn't bring them something to eat. Next time I'll have to remember to do that.

I felt bad that Dude had to stay in the Jeep while I walked along the water's edge to snap some pics.

The sound, facing west with the fishing pier in the background.

Sunrises and sunsets are awesome on the sound. Only this was just a quick visit, so no time to wait for the sun to set.

From time to time I'll be posting pics of Florida. So mosey on back now and then for a visit.




Dude the dog.

Dude insisted I include a pic of him in this post. So here's a close-up of my big, 100 pound, goofy dog who says, "Ahhh-roooooo!"

As with most of my posts, I'm including a list of books. This time it's an assortment of Florida Fiction, a mixture of romance, historical, mystery, suspense and thrillers.

The books marked with an (*) are TBR on my Kindles (my old Kindle Keyboard and my new Kindle Fire). The books are listed in no particular order and are available in eBook format. Though I haven't read most of the books listed here, they all sound like great reads. Those marked with an (**) are ones I have in paperback, have read, loved, and loved the series.

Florida Fiction:

Bird Brained (Rachel Porter Mystery) by Jessica Speart**
Flashback (Anna Pigeon) by Nevada Barr**
Land of the Noonday Sun by Carmen DeSousa*
South Beach Cinderella by Sharon Potts*
Crazy in Paradise by Deborah Brown*
All Keyed Up by Mary Stella*
Ring of Lies by Victoria Howard*
Against the Wind by Virginia Kelly*
Runaway (Florida Civil War) by Heather Graham
Love Finds You in Holiday, Florida (Love Finds You) by Sandra D. Bricker
Margarita Nights (Sherri Travis Mystery) by Phyllis Smallman
Far From Paradise (Florida Series) by Bren Yarbrough Bruhn
Matanzas Bay (Quint Mitchell Mystery) by Parker Francis
Gator a-go-go (Serge Storms) by Tim Dorsey
Pirates of Pensacola by Keith Thomson
Hurricanes & Hangovers by Dear Miss Mermaid
Key Manatee by Robert Tacoma
Mango Lucky by Bill Myers
Red Right Return (Buck Reilly Adventure) by John H. Cunningham*
Chasin' the Wind (Mick Murphy Key West Mystery) by Michael Haskins*
Key Lime Blues (Wes Darling Mystery) by Mike Jastrzebski*
Chomp by Carl Hiaasen (YA)
Hoot by Carl Hiaasen (YA)

Thanks for stopping by. You're welcome to add your favorite Florida Fiction or favorite Florida sites in the comments below.