From the South

It's the time for my annual migration (lol, eyeroll)  down to Florida to see the parents and the birds hanging around.  The first few days have been rainy, rainy, rainy.  Finally, today I got up and decided to brave the cloudy drizzly skies and head out to my favorite spot, Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve.

By the time I got there, the rain had gone away although it threatened most of my walk.  I spent two hours walking along the boardwalk and tallied up 30 species seen.  Not too shabby.  The best of the birds was a drake Wood Duck that decided to take a quick flight in a circle from its hiding spot.  I also spotted two Yellow-throated Warblers mixed in with groups of other warblers and Blue-gray Gnatcatchers.  One of the 'other warblers' was a Black-and-White Warbler that was only a few feet away.  Such an awesome place to walk and bird.  

Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera even though I had some great looks at birds (afraid of the rain).  So I'll post a couple of cloudy day feeder pictures.  Oh and a few shots from the Bald Eagle nest that you can view live webcam coverage of.

Common Ground Dove

Female Red-bellied Woodpecker: "What'chu lookin at?"

Common Grackle: common for sure but their colors are not!

Painted Buntings: female to the left, male on right

Bald Eagle: sans fish, bad parent!

Bald Eagle: a little extra nesting material in transit

Ode to a Plov....er

I've been in Florida for a few days and got out to do some shorebirding this morning.  I was hoping to find my Piping Plover that I found two consecutive years in a row, check it out in this post.  I arrived at Bunche Beach while the tide was  fairly low but it meant less birders around and better opportunities to get closer to the birds.  I didn't find my banded bird but I did find a couple of others.

Banded Piping Plover

I'll send in the sightings to the USFS and hopefully will get some more information on when they were banded and where. 

A different banded Piping Plover

One of the issues with birding today was the five Bald Eagles that were moving around.  Every time the eagles took off, the shore birds would all take off too.

One of the Bald Eagles on the beach

LIFE BIRDS.  First up is this Snowy Plover.  I was looking at a Piping Plover and noticed this smaller lighter bird behind it.  The second thing that caught my eye was the gray legs.  Going back and checking the field guide all the characteristics were good for Snowy Plover.  A life bird!

Distant look at the Snowy Plover

As the tide chased me in, I turned and saw this bird; slightly larger than the Piping Plover, darker, and strongly banded.  A Wilson's Plover!  Another life bird!  The Wilson's is not infrequent to this beach according to what I've heard, I just keep missing them. 

Wilson's Plover

Here's another shot of the Wilson's Plover.  I was so focused on the Wilson's that I didn't notice the Snowy Plover in the background until I was looking back over my photos.

Wilson's and Snowy

 

Here's a few more birds for the day.

Marbled Godwit

Semipalmated (?) and Least Sandpiper

Black-bellied Plover

 

Oh I guess I should write a poem about plovers now....

 

When talking of Plovers, where to start

Bodies so small and eyes so wide

They've stolen my heart

while I was watching the tide.

 

I got drawn in by the one with bands

Two years in a row she said Hi

On the beach of white wet sands

But alas it seems she's gone for her final fly.

 

I know, I know... I'll stick to my day job. 

Pecking of the Wood

Six-mile Cypress Slough was the target for yesterday mornings excursion and it once again came through with a plethora of species and all within easy viewing distance. This park is still relatively quiet on the human side of things although, with an addition of a nature center/museum last year this is quickly changing. In the past the 9:30 am guided tours would have maybe 5 people on them, yesterday when I passed the tour there were easily 15 people.

The Slough path itself is approximately 1.2 miles located off of.... Six-mile Cypress Blvd. Plenty of parking is available for $1 an hour. I didn't venture into the center itself so I'm not sure if there is a cost to look around inside. The trail starts right off the parking lot and immediately drops you into a young cypress stand. But I didn't even need to get that far before having some great birds. Looking around the parking lot I found 3 Swallow-tailed Kites perching in the treetops. I never saw them again once they left for the day. Also, in the parking lot was Tufted Titmouse and Red-bellied Woodpecker along with a few Warblers that flew over.

Swallow-tailed Kite

I did get a chance to see 4 woodpecker species total at this park. Pileated, Downy, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, and Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers. This trip has also been a chance for me to start to learn the Warblers. I have never gotten into Warbler identification at all and it's proving a detriment this trip. I am however learning quickly especially with the more brightly feathered members of this group. The flush of warblers that were working the Slough this morning included: Common Yellow-throat, Palm Warbler, Northern Parula, Black and White Warbler, Blue-gray Gnatchatcher, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and Yellow-throated Warbler. There were a few other non-descript warblers that I may try to get ID's on if I have pictures with distinguishable features.

Crappy picture of a Yellow-throated Warbler

Here are the rest of the species... American Coot, Common Moorhen, Tricolored Heron, Little Blue Heron (including immature white forms), White Ibis, Anhinga, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Yellow-crowned Night Heron, Black-crowned Night Heron, Turkey Vulture, Black Vulture, Red-shouldered Hawk, Bluejay, Northern Cardinal, Gray Catbird, and Green Heron.

American Coot

In the afternoon I took a quick trip over to Cape Coral to check out another boardwalk trail, 4-mile Cove Park. The part of the trail that I walked was not good for birds, the cove itself yielded a single Anhinga. The trail pulled in a small flush of maybe 4 warblers, the only one I got a look at was a Black and White Warbler.

However since I was in Cape Coral and I knew of a couple of Burrowing Owl Spots, I decided to go take a peak and I was not disappointed. The nests are all within about 20 feet from the road side.

SUN!!!

Today was sunny finally, although the breeze still kept temperatures rather tepid for Florida. I headed out to Corkscrew Swap Sanctuary, known for it's unique opportunity to get close to wildlife found along the boardwalk. Once again there is plenty of information available online for this park located in Naples. Here is what I came across while at the park


Gray Catbird on the trail at Corkscrew

Turkey Vulture, Black Vulture, Red-shouldered Hawk, Common Grackle, Boat-tailed Grackle, Brown-headed Cowbird, Little Blue Heron, Gray Catbird, Common Yellowthroat, Northern Parula, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Black and White Warbler, Palm Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Downy Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Tufted Titmouse, Mourning Dove, Northern Cardinal, and Eastern Phoebe.

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher catching Gnats?

Once again I saw many of the same birds along the way as I have already stated for the past few days. One species of interest I saw again were the Swallow-tailed Kites, flying above the road. I also, spied 2 Kestrels sitting on power lines, one male and one female about half a mile apart. I may have neglected to mention before but I've seen many Loggerhead Shrike on the side of the road as well. Hopefully I'll have an opportunity to pull off and take a picture of these species.


What I ID'ed at a Blackpoll Warbler


Black and White Warbler

One lesson I have taken from today is that Warblers are difficult to take photographs of. No set plans for tomorrow but there are a couple of places I still want to hit.

White Ibis gnawing on a crayfish of some kind

Cool and Breezy

As much as I plan, nothing can really prepare you for what nature will throw your way. I was up and at Lakes Park in Fort Myers this morning only 20 minutes later than I had meant to be. I pulled into the lot and went to pay to park, then decided to toss on my sweatshirt before hitting the trail. The sweatshirt was definitely a necessity. Within a few moments the cool air circled around me playing second fiddle only to the 1000 Tree Swallows that were doing the same.

I admit that my motivation is slightly waning (or is it waxing?) today and all I will do is make a list of the species I came across and a few details. I described Lakes Park in yesterdays blog so I'll add my list: Tree Swallow (at least 1000), Common Moorhen, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Little Blue Heron, Snowy Egret, Turkey Vulture, Black Vulture, Osprey, Brown Pelican, White Ibis, Boat-tailed Grackle, Red-winged Blackbird, Fish Crow, Cedar Waxwings, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Northern Cardinal, Gray Catbird, Pied-billed Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, Anhinga, Mottled Duck, Spotted Sandpiper, Palm Warbler, and Yellow-rumped Warbler (about 50 at least). There was a hybrid duck that I assume was a Mallard x Mottled hybrid (male) since it was with the Mottled Ducks. I tried to digibin the bird but with poor results.


Little Blue Heron (at Ding Darling)

The next spot was Bunche Beach, no pictures from here, parking is at the end of the road and is free. Read the signs on the history of the place as it's of interest. This spot is pretty much just a beach about a mile long. Take off up or down the beach to view a decent number of shorebirds. Today was: Semipalmated Plover, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Sanderling, Dunlin, Willet, Black-bellied Plover, Laughing Gull, and Black Skimmer. I may try to stop by this spot again to get some pictures.


Laughing Gull (Sannibel Causeway)

The last birding spot of the day was a quick trip over to J.N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge. I wont talk about this too much as a plethora of information is available online about this park. Suffice it that this is a definite must stop spot for birders. Some days are better than others, today was interesting but with hightide, not as bountiful as I would expect. The one big bonus for the day was the abundance of shorebirds, that I can only assume were seeking refuge from the strong winds on the beaches. From today: Turkey Vultures, Osprey, Bald Eagle, Great Blue Heron, Little Blue Heron, Green Heron, Reddish Egret, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Cattle Egret, Yellow-crowned Night Heron, White Ibis, Brown Pelican, White Pelican, Roseate Spoonbill, Dunlin (hundreds), Short-billed Dowitcher (hundreds), Willet, Ruddy Turnstone, Semipalmated Plover, Black-bellied Plover, Least Sandpiper, Western Sandpiper, Anhinga, Double-crested Cormorant, Pied-billed Grebe, and Red-breasted Merganser.

White Ibis seen somewhere along the way

Strangest bird story of the day: in front of the house a Turkey Vulture landed in the road, a few second later a Red-shouldered Hawk came swooping down on the back of the Vulture and both took off. The hawk landed on the awning and the vulture to somewhere else. A few minutes later the vulture returns to investigate and taste a couple mouthfulls of bird seed scattered on the road. Apparently it was not to his tastes because the bird flew away shortly there after.


Royal Terns hanging out on the causeway to Sannibel Island

Total new species today: I'll have to get back to you. LOL But about 3 life birds.

Rainy Day, Sunny Day

This morning started out pretty bad, pouring rain and thunderstorms predominated this morning putting a damper on my plans. But in anticipation I filled the feeder to at least try to get a lifer that I knew had been visiting my parents feeder. After a few doves came in, I got what I was looking for a Painted Bunting, in fact a male and female came in! Unfortunately, the light levels were too low to get anything but a colorful blur of a picture. Here are the other places I stopped.

In the Walmart parking lot, is a small pond that has a resident group of Muscovy Ducks. Other visitors today included: Wood Stork, Great Egret, Rock Pigeon, Osprey, Double-crested Cormorant, Common Grackle, Ring-billed Gulls, and Boat-railed Grackle. Here is a good place to mention the other birds I saw on the side of the road, flying by, or without a designated location. European Starling, Loggerhead Shrike, White Ibis, Great Blue Heron, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Cattle Egret, Snowy Egret, and Coopers Hawk.


The sun did come out after awhile and I brought my parents for a quick lunch outside to Lake Park as a quick preview to see if it was worth spending more time at. This is a public park, the fee is only for parking at $1/ hour or $5 a day. I am planning on checking out the trails more tomorrow but it appears there are about 3 miles of trails, that can be biked or walked. Here is the quick list from lunchtime: Great Blue Heron, Bloat-tailed Grackle, Little Blue Heron, Snowy Egret, Turkey Vulture, Tricolored Heron, Red-winged Blackbird, Brown Pelican, and Pied-billed Grebe.


At Lakes Park there was another life bird for me. The Mottled Duck, very similar to female Mallards, and American Black Duck, but the key feature is a black mark at the base of the bill. There was also an immature Mottled Duck with an almost black bill.


The final stop was a quick jaunt over the bridge to Fort Meyers beach and then to the north to Bodwich Beach. On the way there and around the point were the following species: Eurasian Collared Dove, Laughing Gull, Royal Tern, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Brown Pelican, Ring-billed Gull, and Osprey.

Additionally, there were the birds that were running around the 'park' where my parents live from a quick drive around this morning: Mourning Dove, Common Ground Dove, Bluejay, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Fish Crow, both Vultures, Glossy Ibis, Northern Mockingbird, Northern Cardinal, a Warblers species, Anhinga, and Killdeer.

Todays total species: 39 (ish) and that was without really birding.

Florida Plan

Florida and warm weather have been calling my name for a couple of months and tomorrow I will answer that call. I will be heading down to the Fort Myers area to spend some time with my parents and for the first time to spend a substantial amount of time bird watching. Over the past 8 years I usually make a pilgrimmage south for a few days to enjoy the sunshine. Mostly, I spend a couple of days at nature preserves but often with no other plan than to be outside.

This trip will be a different endevour for me. Not only will I have my binoculars in hand the entire time, but I will spend many days with no other objective than to search out those birds that have made Florida their home, especially for the winter months. With the promise of Indigo Buntings at the feeder in the front yard and Wood Storks feeding along the side of the road, I have high hopes of coming home with a full list of birds, hopefully with a few lifers.

My goal is to record the events and sightings from this trip here, so that others can share in my experiences. Also, I hope this will help others who are travelling or planning a birding trip to the Fort Myers area by describing some the best places to spend their time.

If anyone is interested in the resources I've been using for planning here is a brief list: experience (I've already spent time at some of the more well known nature areas), newspapers- there is a regular section in the local paper that lists nature hotspots and usually includes maps, I've had my parents cut out interesting sections and paste them into a notebook, Petersons south east guide lists areas of interest, and finally the Caloosa Bird Club also has a list of hotspots available here: http://www.caloosabirdclub.org/HotSpots.html

Wish me luck. Now I need to go pack!