Sunday March 2nd
February was a very
active month for me as I traveled to several birding locations in search of as
many species as possible.
Visited Wakodahatchee Wetlands and Storm Water
Treatment 1W in Palm Beach County where I had Purple
Swamphens and a Purple
Gallinule. Also King
Rail, Swamp Sparrows, Savannah Sparrows, Painted Buntings, American White
Pelicans, Ruddy Ducks, Blue-winged Teal and lots of American Coots and Common Gallinules.
Went to Wakodahatchee to find the neo-tropical cormorants nesting there. Dipped
on the neo-tropical, but saw the many nesting. Double-crested
Cormorants, Anhingas and Great Blue Herons. Large iguanas were seen in several places.
On Presidents Day I
attended a guided tour at Storm Water Treatment #5 south of Clewiston. On an
earlier date a stop at the Okeechobee Dike Park located in Clewiston, I
located a trio of Bronzed Cowbirds mixed in with feeding flocks of Starlings and Brown headed Cowbirds.
At STA 5 we started with
some nice sparrow sightings including several Savannah and Swamp Sparrows, but was able to add a Grasshopper Sparrow among the many Palm
Warblers, Yellow-rumped Warblers and Red-winged Blackbirds. We
also added all the expected waders. One sora was heard, several Purple Swamphens and Purple Gallinule were seen. Long-billed Dowitchers, Greater and Lesser
Yellowlegs and Black-necked
Stilts were
seen as well. The
most commonly seen birds included American Coots and Common Gallinules. Snail Kites were very common, Northern Harriers, American Kestrels, Peregrine Falcons and
Red-shouldered Hawks were
found. Many Caspian Terns were found and a few Forster's
Terns and
Black Skimmers.
A wintering Tropical Kingbird was a star attraction.
Western Kingbirds and Scissor-tailed Flycatchers occupied roosts just outside of
the venue. A cassin's and a gray kingbird were sometimes seen at the
kingbird roost. Waterfowl included a many American White Pelicans, Blue-wing Teal, Northern
Shovelers, Ring-necked Ducks
and a few American Wigeons, Green-wing Teal, a Ruddy
Duck and another
star attraction in a male Cinnamon Teal. A surprisingly
low count of only two Fulvous Whistling Ducks were seen and zero Black-bellied
Whistling Ducks.
Black Skimmer |
On a trip up to Gainesville , made a stop at Four Mile Grade Road
west of Arcadia to relocate a wintering
Say's Phoebe. At another stop at Jenkins's
Creek Park in Hernando County to locate the reported
female Brewer's Blackbird, But
missed budgies at Hernando Beach . There is speculation
the they maybe extirpated there. Possible pressure from House Sparrows, House Finches and Starlings probably is the cause for there disappearance.
At Gainesville I stopped at the Magnolia Park , Gainesville-Hawthorn
Trail and the LaChua Trail. Went early to Magnolia Park in hopes for lifer in a
Rusty Blackbird. Found the blackbirds.
The next stop offered Cedar Waxwings,
Robins, Tufted Titmice, Carolina Chickadees, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, White-eyed Vireos but no sparrows. However At the LaChua Trail at Payne's Prairie
sparrows were seen including Savannah, Chipping,
White-crowned,
White-throated, Swamp, Field and Lincoln's. Other species
included Sora, Mottled Duck, Blue-winged
Duck, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Wood Stork, many Great Blue Herons, American Bitterns, Barred Owl, Northern Harrier,
Ospreys, Eastern Towhee and White and Glossy Ibis. Dipped on white-faced ibis,
yellow-breasted chat, purple gallinule and vermilion flycatchers. Stopped at Chapman's
Pond on the way home for Bonaparte's
Gulls
Florida Scrub Jay |
Locally, in and around
the Ft Myers area, we had lots of nice birding. On Church Road off of sr-82 we had a
lot of success with Wild Turkey, Crested Caracara, Lark Sparrows, a Field Sparrow and Savannah Sparrows. Also seen here were Eastern Towhees, Swallow-tailed Kites, Painted Buntings, Northern Rough-winged
Swallows, Trees Swallows, Western Kingbirds and Scissor-tailed Flycatchers. At nearby Lehigh Acres we had
White-winged doves, Red-headed Woodpeckers,
Cooper's Hawk, a Merlin, American Kestrels, Eastern Towhees and Eastern Bluebirds.
Also in Lehigh Acres is Harns Marsh were we located Snail Kites, Limpkins and Northern
Harriers. A Dickcissel has been
a star attraction at the bird feeders at the home of master birder Vince
McGrath. Vince was also responsible for locating a Salt Marsh Sparrow at the Bunche Beach Salt Flats. In Cape Coral we have a family of Florida Scrub Jays, a colony of Monk
Parakeets and many Burrowing Owls. Plus a wintering Eurasian Wigeon hanging-out with a flock of Mottled and Muscovy Ducks. A good sized flock of Nanday Parakeets
can be found in Ft Myers. Down in Naples I located a reported pair of nesting Rose-ringed Parakeets. At the Sanibel Causeway another star attraction has
been a wintering female Common Eider.
Other wintering birds there included Red-breasted Mergansers, Common
Loon, Black Scoters, Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Great Black-backed Gulls and
Magnificent Frigatebirds. In a search for Northern Gannets I visited Turner Beach on Captiva Island were I was lucky in
located four birds busy fishing along side Brown
Pelicans and Double-crested
Cormorants.
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher |
It was a busy month and I got to see a lot
of birds. E-bird buts my count at 175.
lack-bellied Whistling-Duck
Fulvous Whistling-Duck
Muscovy Duck
Eurasian Wigeon
American Wigeon
Mallard (Domestic type)
Mottled Duck
Mallard x Mottled Duck (hybrid)
Blue-winged Teal
Cinnamon Teal
Northern Shoveler
Green-winged Teal
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Common Eider
Black Scoter
Hooded Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Northern Bobwhite
Wild Turkey
Common Loon
Pied-billed Grebe
Horned Grebe
Wood Stork
Magnificent Frigatebird
Northern Gannet
Double-crested Cormorant
Anhinga
American White Pelican
Brown Pelican
American Bittern
Least Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Reddish Egret
Cattle Egret
Green Heron
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
White Ibis
Glossy Ibis
Roseate Spoonbill
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Swallow-tailed Kite
Snail Kite
Northern Harrier
Cooper's Hawk
Bald Eagle
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
King Rail
Sora
Purple Swamphen
Purple Gallinule
Common Gallinule
American Coot
Limpkin
Sandhill Crane
Black-necked Stilt
Black-bellied Plover
Wilson's Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Piping Plover
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Solitary Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Willet
Lesser Yellowlegs
Marbled Godwit
Ruddy Turnstone
Sanderling
Dunlin
Least Sandpiper
Western Sandpiper
Short-billed Dowitcher
Long-billed Dowitcher
Wilson's Snipe
Bonaparte's Gull
Laughing Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Caspian Tern
Forster's Tern
Royal Tern
Sandwich Tern
Black Skimmer
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
White-winged Dove
Mourning Dove
Common Ground-Dove
Great Horned Owl
Burrowing Owl
Barred Owl
Eastern Whip-poor-will
Belted Kingfisher
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
Crested Caracara
American Kestrel
Merlin
Peregrine Falcon
Rose-ringed Parakeet
Monk Parakeet
Eastern Phoebe
Say's Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Tropical Kingbird
Western Kingbird
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Loggerhead Shrike
White-eyed Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Blue Jay
Florida Scrub-Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Brown-headed Nuthatch
House Wren
Sedge Wren
Marsh Wren
Carolina Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Northern Waterthrush
Black-and-white Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Palm Warbler
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Bachman's Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Lark Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Saltmarsh Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Indigo Bunting
Painted Bunting
Dickcissel
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Rusty Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbird
Common Grackle
Boat-tailed Grackle
Bronzed Cowbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
Fulvous Whistling-Duck
Muscovy Duck
Eurasian Wigeon
American Wigeon
Mallard (Domestic type)
Mottled Duck
Mallard x Mottled Duck (hybrid)
Blue-winged Teal
Cinnamon Teal
Northern Shoveler
Green-winged Teal
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Common Eider
Black Scoter
Hooded Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Northern Bobwhite
Wild Turkey
Common Loon
Pied-billed Grebe
Horned Grebe
Wood Stork
Magnificent Frigatebird
Northern Gannet
Double-crested Cormorant
Anhinga
American White Pelican
Brown Pelican
American Bittern
Least Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Reddish Egret
Cattle Egret
Green Heron
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
White Ibis
Glossy Ibis
Roseate Spoonbill
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Swallow-tailed Kite
Snail Kite
Northern Harrier
Cooper's Hawk
Bald Eagle
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
King Rail
Sora
Purple Swamphen
Purple Gallinule
Common Gallinule
American Coot
Limpkin
Sandhill Crane
Black-necked Stilt
Black-bellied Plover
Wilson's Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Piping Plover
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Solitary Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Willet
Lesser Yellowlegs
Marbled Godwit
Ruddy Turnstone
Sanderling
Dunlin
Least Sandpiper
Western Sandpiper
Short-billed Dowitcher
Long-billed Dowitcher
Wilson's Snipe
Bonaparte's Gull
Laughing Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Caspian Tern
Forster's Tern
Royal Tern
Sandwich Tern
Black Skimmer
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
White-winged Dove
Mourning Dove
Common Ground-Dove
Great Horned Owl
Burrowing Owl
Barred Owl
Eastern Whip-poor-will
Belted Kingfisher
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
Crested Caracara
American Kestrel
Merlin
Peregrine Falcon
Rose-ringed Parakeet
Monk Parakeet
Eastern Phoebe
Say's Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Tropical Kingbird
Western Kingbird
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Loggerhead Shrike
White-eyed Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Blue Jay
Florida Scrub-Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Brown-headed Nuthatch
House Wren
Sedge Wren
Marsh Wren
Carolina Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Northern Waterthrush
Black-and-white Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Palm Warbler
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Bachman's Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Lark Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Saltmarsh Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Indigo Bunting
Painted Bunting
Dickcissel
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Rusty Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbird
Common Grackle
Boat-tailed Grackle
Bronzed Cowbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
Nice report, Tom. It appears you must be pleased with your efforts.
ReplyDelete