Chasing Birds - Panhandle & Gainesville Days 3 and 4

Monday January 18th

Had some great leads for birding the next two, but just couldn't fit everything in. Today was time spent around Tallahassee. Visited Lake Jackson Mounds State Park and Torreya State Park. I would have usually included Florida Caverns State Park as well, but most of the property is still closed because of the damage from Hurricane Michael more than than two years. Michael was a devastating storm.

White-crowned Sparrow at Lake Jackson

I am not just interested in birds, but all genres in our natural world.  The Red Hills region around Tallahassee has a unique ecological environment for Florida. as the state is known for its more tropical climes. The Red Hills zone is composed of  plant communities more common to the southern Appalachian Mountains then in southern Florida. 

Orange-crowned Warbler

First stop was at the Crowder Road Land on Lake Jackson just outside of the state park. Last year at this time the lake was loaded with buffleheads and ruddy ducks. But today just coots and moorhens. Lots of American Goldfinches in the trees plus American Robins, a Cedar Waxwing, Carolina Chickadee and an Orange-crowned Warbler. Lots of Chipping Sparrows and a least one White-crowned Sparrow too.

Coralberry at Lake Jackson Mounds State Park

Birding at Lake Jackson Mounds State Park was slow. Was greeted by a pair of White-tailed Deer at the parking lot, spent my time birding and looking for interesting flora. Some of the birds today included Bald Eagle, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, House Wren , Carolina Chickadee, Pileated Woodpecker, American Goldfinch and Pine Warblers. Lots of interesting flora - various oaks, hickories, beech trees, southern magnolias, hollies, Carolina laurelcherry and coralberry,

Underwood's Trillium seen at both state parks today

Apalachicola River

Moved onto Torreya State State Park. This park, located along the bluffs of the Apalachicola River, is very interesting in its unique geology, rare flora and civil war history. Again the birding was very slow, but the flora was interesting the rare Florida Torreya Tree, more oaks and beech trees, southern magnolias, American sycamore, sweetgums, American Hollycommon hoptree, tulip tree, oakleaf hydrangea and needle palm.

Florida Torreya Tree

American Holly

Slender Yellow Woodsorrel

Needle Palm

Tuesday January 19th

Finally stop on this trip was back to Gainesville and Paynes Prairie State Park. Florida has a few Whooping Cranes left from the experimental reintroduction of a non-migratory flock. Looks like a site in Mississippi has been more successful.

Whooping Crane Conservation Association has a lot of information 

But currently, a lone whooper can be observed at the end of the Bolen's Bluff Trail at Paynes Prairie State Park. Walked the mile plus to the end.  Spent about a half hour at the observation tower looking for the bird. eventually located it a long way off to the east near the resting bison..  Paynes Prairie has a herd of bison roaming the prairie, all cows.  The bulls were relocated to a farm for everyone's safety. A herd of Spanish horses also roam the park.

Other birds included Sandhill Cranes, a large number of Snail Kites, American White Pelicans, Red-shouldered Hawks, Tufted Titmice and Carolina Wrens

American Sweetgum

Dwarf Saw Palmetto

Species Seen

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Canada Goose, Muscovy Duck, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Gadwall, American Wigeon, Mallard, American Black Duck, Mottled Duck, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Canvasback, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Greater Scaup, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Hooded Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Pied-billed Grebe, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Clapper Rail, Sora, Common Gallinule, American Coot, Limpkin, Sandhill Crane, Whooping Crane, American Avocet, Black-bellied Plover, Wilson's Plover, Semipalmated Plover, Killdeer, Whimbrel, Ruddy Turnstone, Sanderling, Dunlin, Least Sandpiper, Western Sandpiper, Short-billed Dowitcher, Long-billed Dowitcher, Wilson's Snipe, Greater Yellowlegs, Willet, Lesser Yellowlegs, Bonaparte's Gull, Laughing Gull, Ring-billed Gull, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Forster's Tern, Royal Tern, Sandwich Tern, Black Skimmer, Common Loon, Wood Stork, Anhinga, Double-crested Cormorant, American White Pelican, Brown Pelican, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Little Blue Heron, Tricolored Heron, Cattle Egret, Green Heron, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, White Ibis, Glossy Ibis, Roseate Spoonbill, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, Snail Kite. Northern Harrier, Bald Eagle, Red-shouldered Hawk, Belted Kingfisher, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, American Kestrel, Merlin, Nanday Parakeet, Eastern Phoebe, Loggerhead Shrike, Blue Jay, American Crow, Fish Crow, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Purple Martin, Tree Swallow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Brown-headed Nuthatch, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, House Wren, Carolina Wren, European Starling, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Cedar Waxwing, American Goldfinch, Chipping Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Eastern Towhee, Red-winged Blackbird, Brown-headed Cowbird, Rusty Blackbird, Common Grackle, Boat-tailed Grackle, Black-and-white Warbler, Orange-crowned Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Palm Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Northern Cardinal