It's been awhile since I visited the celery fields in Sarasota. It's now a formal birding area complete with an Audubon nature center, which, unfortunately, was closed when I visited last Sunday. Following a short hike to a nearby retention pond, I spotted this little feathered fellow perched on a branch. It was quite breezy and I was having difficulty composing a decent shot with the branch swaying. Then, suddenly, the bird flew away and landed on a fence post just a few yards from me. And, then proceeded to pose for the camera. After consulting my trusty Birds of Florida Field Guide, I'm fairly confident this is a loggerhead shrike…although, with that black mask I think of him more as "Little Bandit".
