He’s At It Again!!
Well our cranky dysfunctional loner spoonbill was at it again yesterday in the salt marsh. (that’s him on the right) Mr. Grumpy was feeding at low tide when a group of six spoonbills suddenly came swooping in right at the spot where our anti-social pink friend was already feeding. He did not care for this unannounced intrusion at all and immediately attacked one of the new arrivals!
Mr. Grumpy leapt up in an airborne assault but he miscalculated as the enemy spoonie managed to grab hold of our disgruntled friend’s foot in mid air! This maneuver only served to further anger the cranky pink bird who proceeded to use that same foot to jam the head of his opponent down into the water. You can see that happen in photos five and six. The poor spoonbill was able to avoid being drowned as it quickly freed itself and bolted free of the entanglement with our aggressor still continuing his aggressive stance.
Phil Lanoue Photography 
Gorgeous colors Phil. That blue and pink really pops! Great captures.
Thanks much for checking these out Ricky and I really appreciate your very kind words.
These are amazing photos of crazy shenanigans! The secret lives of spoonbills….who knew?!
It’s just gets more wacky out there every day Deb. I never saw some of this behavior before, maybe it’s just our ‘special’ boy. 🙂
Gut gelungene Aufnahme! .-)
Vielen Dank bin ich glücklich genießen Sie die Fotos 🙂
Great action. Just another family gathering.
Thanks there was more then one altercation out there too, they (well one in particular) were in some mood.
Amazing shots Phil, Top nature photography.
I appreciate that very much Jan, thanks!
Gracious – the language!!!!! Terrible manners to say nothing of no self-discipline………….
Oh it was a scene for adults only out there last night. They went at it more then once too, it was quite a crazy situation for sure.
Fantastic shots of this good old “Who’s the king?” game.
They must enjoy that game because they played it several times. 😀
Well that’s foul! Even the bird kingdom has some “can’t-get-along” creatures. Great captures!
I don’t think this one guy can get along with anybody, not even the wood storks or ibis.
Glad you like the pics!
Looks like a turf war! Next thing you know the Jets and the Sharks are gonna show up and all heck will break loose forcing Mr Gator to lay down the law!
Uh oh, if we have to bring out Mr. Gator to settle this dispute heads are gonna roll. Or maybe be eaten. 🙂
These spoonbills should have their own soap opera…or maybe today, reality show. And the cranky pants would be the villain, spoiling everyone’s fun time. I hope his ankle hurts just a little bit due to his attitude! Crazy cool pics, as always (and the text….you know I love the text color).
We could steal a title from the current Netflix series , “Orange is the New Black” and call it Pink is the New Black.
It’s about a ‘rouge’ spoonbill who sees himself outside the law and goes around the marsh creating mayhem.
Or perhaps a drama about a motorcycle gang…Spoonbills of Anarchy?!
See these are all great ideas! 😛
Fighting for positions?
Great serie!
They seemed to be fighting just to be fighting so who knows? Thanks Jan!
I feel bad for the other spoonbills, but ole Grumpy makes for some great actions shots. And best of all, you’re there snapping all this wonderful action!
We saw him again yesterday evening…all by himself, which is apparently the way he likes it. But bad for me because then I get no fight photos.
I’m happy you have been enjoying these spoonie pics!
What fantastic pictures, Phil! I thought swans could be homicidal but spoonies …….! He is certainly one to be avoided!
He is a real terror out there Maggie for sure. It’s not just a one time thing with this bird either, we have seen him act this many several times. 😯
My goodness, they are brutal! It’s certainly enough food for everyone there, right? But your photos are again very impressive! ▲
There is enough food for everyone, I don’t think that is his issue. He just can not get along well with others. 🙂
Oh my he’s quite the instigator. Nicely captured.
Oh he is a huge pain in the neck (literally) out there Edith. Glad you liked these photos!
Very good, Phil!
Thanks much for checking these out Gareth!
Dysfunctional Pink family. They really have a Mr. Bitter in their flock. What wonderful captures of the feud.
The thing is that all the others seem to mostly get along fine, it’s this one anti social loner that creates all the problems. Maybe he needs a vacation and a little therapy. 🙂
Great action shots, Phil. I think someone needs a time out. Love the pink leggings.
Oh he needs a time out for sure, he has such an awful attitude. Sometimes they look like they are wearing pink knickers. 🙂
Spectacular. In Britain he’d get an ASBO for that. (Anti-Social Behaviour Order).
He would deserve that for sure. What a pain this guy is! Everyone else gets along OK. and I have a photo of this guy standing right behind a large alligator. Do you think he gave the gator a hard time? No he did not.
“how many pictures do you need to take of a Spoonbill anyway?” THE BEST ONES!!! Awesome pictures. I am excited about these!! Great job!!
Well you know how it goes out there, you can’t help but to always take *more* pics of these pink guys!
Thanks for looking and commenting!
They are really fighting 🙂 great photographs, fascinated me! Thank you dear Phil, love, nia
Thank you very much Nia, I’m happy you enjoyed these!
Wonderful photos ! // Maria 🙂
I am glad you enjoyed them Maria, thanks!
Such a cranky bird shouldn’t be allowed to wear pink 😉
You are 100% correct about that. Of course maybe he is over compensating for being forced to always dress in pink. 🙂
This is so wonderful, almost unreal. You should present it to National Geographic, Phil.
I greatly appreciate those kind words Dina, thanks!
Fabulous sequence, Phil. what did it sound like? I’ve never heard spoonies.
They are actually very quiet birds. Some soft, low grunting sounds are about it. These battles take place in a virtually silent scene. Really amazing.
Wow, that’s incredible. Thanks again for sharing your marsh adventures with us.
I’m happy you are enjoying the photos and tales from the marsh!
🙂
Guess I don’t have to tell you just how great this bunch is do I??? It is always fun to see what you have found
at the “Swamp Gator”. PS I read that you back up your back up. Hope to see you soon.
Thanks for checking these out and I’m glad you like the spoonie shots!
Wow! Those spoonies really don’t mess about, do they? Fabulous sequence of pics, Phil. You should make a movie. 😀
For big pink goofy birds no they surely do not mess around Sylvia you are right about that! Many times I wish I would have switched over to video at times like these. I need a production crew. 😉 😀
I have looked and looked at these pictures! I am still in awe!
We are thrilled you are enjoying the photos!
So much for pink being a pacifying color…
Yes I guess that takes care of that. 🙂
Oh my lord…amazing capture!!!!!!!!!!! What a series!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Standing ovation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks a million for the very kind words! 😀
Get that bird some Zoloft. I hear if you take that you do not give a flying hoot what others do.
Something tells me our grumpy pink friend is beyond medical help, he is a compulsive crank.
Stellar series!!
Thanks very much Judy!
The bully of the playground 🙂
Is he always on his own and I didn’t realise Spoonbills were quite so aggressive
Phil, these are great photos! You capture so much emotion… what a heated battle!
I reckon he’s a bully lol
He’s some piece of work for sure!