There are good shopping opportunities at the Sanibel outlet stores just off of the island, and luxury resorts cater to some of the rich and famous, including Tom Cruise. The Red Sox play in a cute ballpark before dedicated crowds of 6,500, while the poorer Twins play in an even more intimate setting before 1,000 fans. Sanibel is only one half-hour's drive from Fort Myers and is the top location in North America to photograph many species of waterbirds, especially the shy but majestic roseate spoonbill. First the spoonbills look to the left, then right, slowly turning their heads like an attentive tennis spectator or an observant photographer. But it's food they're after, and they look long and hard, methodically giving the patient row of a dozen photographers plenty of time to make warm images into the early morning light as the fog slowly lifts.
Spoonbills feed by swinging their heads through the water.
When a special nerve ending in the beak senses the presence of food, either by movement, vibration, or contact, the beak closes instantly. The diet of shrimp, crustaceans, and plankton gives the roseate spoonbill its distinctive and vibrant pink color, just the way you would turn orange if you only ate carrots. On this morning, low tide coincided with sunrise for ideal viewing conditions with a rich, clear blue sky. Though Ding Darling Refuge is 7,000 acres, it's only five miles along the Wildlife Drive, which veers right off of the main road to Captiva. The mangrove trees are unique in their ability to thrive in salty water and hurricane weather.