|
Start the slide show
Photos with captions, for quick browsing. See larger versions from the list below or click the big picture link on each page of the slide show. |
View Individual Photos Descriptions and links to small and large versions of each photo. |
|
Picture #1: Power substations are the most popular Monk Parakeet nesting substrates in Florida. Picture #2: Two Monk Parakeets at a substation nest. Picture #3: Another substation nest. Picture #4: Canary Island Date Palms (Phoenix canariensis) are second only to power substations as the most popular Monk Parakeet nesting substrate in Florida. These three palms are at Busch Gardens. Picture #5: Two chambers are visible in this eight-chambered nest in a Canary Island Date Palm. Picture #6: Another very popular nesting substrate in Florida is light structures, such as those at baseball and soccer fields. This nest has 12 chambers, and six are visible in the photo: three along the top of the nest, two at opposite sides of the fuse box, and one nest under construction at the bottom. Picture #7: Coconut Palms (Cocos nucifera) may not be native to Florida, but they are very common in landscaping. They are used frequently as Monk Parakeet nesting sites, especially along the Atlantic coast from West Palm Beach southward. Each of these three Coconut Palms contains a nest. Picture #8: Coconut Palms are easy to identify when coconuts are present; no other palm has these. Picture #9: A single-chambered Monk Parakeet nest in a Coconut Palm. The nest was less than 10 feet above the ground, and we were standing at the base of the palm without disturbing the birds. (I had unfortunately left my zoom lens in the car; this photo was taken with a 70 mm lens!). This nest contained at least two nestlings. Picture #10: A digitally enlarged image of the Monk Parakeets in the nest. Picture #11: Many Monk Parakeet nests in Florida are built on power poles, especially those with a transformer. Picture #12: Surprisingly, we have found a number of Monk Parakeet nests in Bald or Pond Cypress (Taxodium spp.), especially in Broward County. (The blurry bird in the background is a Turkey Vulture). Picture #13: Communications towers are another popular substrate for Monk Parakeets. This tower has four nests (including one behind the satellite dish). Picture #14: Mexican Fan Palms (Washingtonia robusta) are used fairly frequently by Monk Parakeets as nesting substrates. There may have been a Monk nest in this palm, but if there was, we couldn't find it. Picture #15: Oaks also are used fairly frequently by Monk Parakeets, at least in the Tampa Bay area. All oaks identified to species have been Live Oaks (Quercus virginianus), but Laurel Oaks (Q. laurifolia) are probably also used. This nest, photographed in 1988, was the first nest found in Pasco County. It was used by Monk Parakeets continuously until the tree was cut down - for no apparent reason - in December 1995. Picture #16: Cabbage Palms (Sabal palmetto) are abundant and widespread in the Peninsula, and are Florida's state tree (even though palms aren't trees!). They are uncommonly used as Monk Parakeet nesting substrates. (The nest is barely visible on the right side of the tallest palm). Picture #17: We have found a number of Monk Parakeet nests on power line towers in Broward and Miami-Dade counties. Picture #18: The Florida Royal Palm (Roystonea elata) is native to Florida, but the species that is used extensively in landscaping is the Cuban Royal Palm (R. regia). They are popular nest sites for Monk Parakeets. Picture #19: Another view of a Cuban Royal Palm, with a single-chambered Monk Parakeet nest. Note the distinctive large green "top" of the trunk. Picture #20: Queen Palms (Syagrus romanzoffianum) are used infrequently as Monk Parakeet nest sites in Florida. Pembroke Pines, Florida.
Picture #21: Close-up of a single-chambered Monk Parakeet nest in a Queen Palm. Picture #22: In St. Petersburg and Sarasota, we have found a few Monk Parakeet nests in pines, apparently Slash Pines (Pinus elliottii). Picture #23: The only Edible Date Palms (Phoenix dactylifera) we have found that contain a Monk Parakeet nest. Picture #24: Close-up of the Monk Parakeet nest in the Edible Date Palms. Notice that the nest is built between two palms, rather than at the center of one. Picture #25: Another palm rarely used by Monk Parkeets is this Jelly Palm (Butia capitata). Picture #26: Two closely related and very similar trees, the Monkey Puzzle Tree (Araucaria araucana) and the Norfolk Island Pine (A. heterophylla), are rarely used as Monk Parakeet nesting substrates. This Norfolk Island Pine (I think) has no nest, but it made for a nice photo. Picture #27: To date, we have found three Monk Parakeet nests built within active Osprey nests. Picture #28: The only Monk Parakeet nest our project has found on a building, six stories up. |
