Browns Farm Road

Friday July 29th

Lesser Sandpipers by the hundreds

 After the summer doldrums of June and early July, birding active picks up in the Everglades Ag Area located south of Belle Glade in Palm Beach County. Migrating shorebirds, terns, waterfowl and such are attracted to the flooded cane fields, rice fields and sod farms.

Hudsonian Godwit

Right now, we have an unusual visitor in the area. Hudsonian Godwits are rare visitors to Florida and there is one that has been found in some flooded fields along Browns Farm Road. Meg Rouser joined in the drive over from Fort Myers to check out a Lifer sighting.  Our observations did include the Hudsonian Godwit, a few American Avocets and Wilsons Phalaropes, lots of Rosette Spoonbills, Fulvous Whistling Ducks, Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, Barn Swallows, Brown=headed Cowbirds, Wood Storks, hundreds of Least Sandpipers and a few Western and Semipalmated Sandpipers. Black-necked Stilts were plentiful, as were Greater and Leaster Yellowlegs, a few Pectoral and Stilt Sandpipers and Long-billed Dowitchers. Found several Gull-billed Tern, Caspian Terns and Laughing Gulls plus a couple of Black-crowned Night-herons. The numbers of Common Nighthawks were pretty low. Should have increases in activity as the season progresses with nighthawks and other species. Upland Sandpipers should be showing up soon. Dipped on Black Terns, White Pelicans, Barn Owls and Cave Swallows

Wilsons Phalarope

Greater
Yellowlegs

Had expected to find cave swallows at the cave swallow colony site at the bridge on SR 880 and Browns Farm Road. But today, there didn't seem be any activity.  

Had also checked out Glenview Road, Sem-Chi Rice Mill and STA - 1e. Not much of anything additional to add though.  Did hear King Rail at STA - 1E and a Swallow-tailed Kite near Clewiston. Will try to return in August to catch-up on later activity.

Day List (59)

Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Fulvous Whistling Duck, Mottled Duck, Eurasian Collared Dove, Common Ground Dove, Mourning Dove, Common Nighthawk, King Rail, Gray-headed Swamphen, Common Gallinule, Black-necked Stilts, American Avocets, Killdeer, Hudsonian Godwit, Stilt Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, Pectoral Sandpiper, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Western Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitchers, Wilsons Phalaropes, Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, Laughing Gull, Least Tern, Gull-billed Tern, Caspian Tern, Black Skimmers, Wood Storks, Anhingas, Great Blue Heron, Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, Little Blue Heron, Tri-colored Heron, Cattle Egrets, Green Herons, Black-crowned Night-herons, White Ibis, Glossy Ibis, Rosette Spoonbills, Black Vulture, Turkeys Vultures, Osprey, Swallow-tailed Kite, Red-shouldered Hawk, Crested Caracara, Loggerhead Shrike, Fish Crows, Barn Swallows, European Starlings, Northern Mockingbird, House Sparrows, Eastern Meadowlark, Red-winged Blackbirds, Brown-headed Cowbirds, Common Grackles, Boat-tailed Grackles and Common Yellowthroats.

Everglades Ag Area

Tuesday July 27th

Fall Migration is starting to kick and in late July and into August, its time to check out the flooded sugar cane fields and sod farms in the Everglades Ag Area south of Belle Glade.

 

Yesterday I made the trip from Ft Myers. 

 I'll usually make a stop at the Levee Park at Clewiston, which I found was not accessible.  This was due to renovations to this section of the Herbert Hoover Dike. The dike was constructed and reconstructed starting at a time because deadly hurricanes that drowned thousands of people almost a hundred years ago. The dike was a boon for agriculture and storm control to protect peoples lives.  But on the negative side these water control features cut off the natural flow of water into the Everglades, seriously effecting the health of the everglades ecosystem, plus issues with rising salinity in Florida Bay, which is an important nursery for fish stocks.  And because the waters from Lake O are blocked from going south, we now have them draining west through the Caloosahatchee River and to the east via the St Lucie Canal. Due to the high nutrient loading effecting Lake O being discharged through these man-made drainages system we have had a few very serious algae blooms along the east coast and into the Gulf of Mexico here at Ft Myers. These algae blooms are being studied to determine how they might be effecting the health of the people  as well as the awful and devastating fish kill.  

Salt-marsh Mallow

Next was a drove south along the Miami Canal.  Seen that it was too early to spot any of the swallow species that will arriving here soon. Was able to see a couple Common Nighthawks and a Bobwhite

Common Nighthawk

Then moved east along the Bolles Road Canal.  Again not very birdy.  Lots of rabbits though and a couple of rats too. Checked out one of the pumping stations were a Barn Owl did flew off.  Had a Gull-billed Tern up the canal. Also had an adult Purple Gallinule with a chick. The adult was running around with a dead frog.  Never saw that before

Purple Gallinule

Purple Gallinule Chick

Purple Gallinule with her frog

Near the intersection of State Road 880 and Brown's Farm Road, which is just south of Belle Glade is a is a Cave Swallow roost. Lots of Cave Swallow, plus Cliff Swallows and Barn Swallows.  

Some scruffy cowbirds

Didn't pick up any Upland Sandpipers at sod fields at 8 Mile Bend.  Just some Killdeers. The uppies should be be arriving soon. Will have to return in a could weeks.

Went looking for flooded fields along Brown's Farm Road. Had some success.  Had well over hundred Roseate Spoonbills at this location, a couple of Fulvous Whistling Ducks, several Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, Mottled Ducks, lots of Black-necked Stilts with young, about three dozen Least Terns, a half dozen Gull-billed Terns and a lone Black Tern, Not many wading birds or sandpipers. Only spotted a couple of Pectoral Sandpipers and a few Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs.  Again I suspect August will be more rewarding

Had to have been hundreds of Brown-headed Cowbirds, plus Red-winged Blackbirds, Starlings and Boat-tailed Grackles. Spotted more Barn Swallows, Common Nighthawks, both Night-herons and a couple of Laughing Gulls.

Babcock-Webb Wildlife Management Area

Sunday March 19th

White-tailed Deer

The Babcock-Webb property is basically mesic pine flatwoods which hosts three bird species of concern including the Red-cockaded Woodpeckers, Brown-headed Nuthatches and Bachman's Sparrow. Of these three birds the Bachman's can be the most difficult to spot due to its more secretive manners.  However, from March into May the males will post itself on a low limb and sing its heart out. This is why I had traveled to this spot today, to look for some Bachman's.

I arrived at dawn and was rewarded with a pair of Bachman's in song. Couldn't get a photograph as they still proved hard to locate. Also singing this morning were a number of Eastern Towhees, Pine Warblers, Northern Cardinals, Eastern Meadowlarks and Northern Bobwhites.

Eastern Bluebird

Green Heron

Pine Warbler

Thistle

This Limpkin has collected a fresh-water muscle

Pine Warbler

 Within the first hour I had been successfully in finding the Big Three, but was able to add, a Great Horned Owl, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Common Yellow-throat, Mockingbirds, House Wrens, Palm Warblers, Limpkins, Great Egrets, Eastern Bluebirds, Anhingas, Osprey, Pileated Woodpeckers, Downy Woodpeckers, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Grey Catbirds, Eastern Phoebes, a Great Crested Flycatcher, Northern Flickers, Wilson's Snipe and Tree Swallows.

An Eastern Towhee

Pine Warbler

Pine Warbler

Red-winged Blackbird showing-off his chevrons

This section at, Babcock-Webb, had recently been subjected

to a cleansing prescribed-burn

Great Crested Flycatcher

Great Crested Flycatcher

A Gator laying in wait