Lake Apopka - Merritt Island

Saturday January 9th

Ran up to Lake Apopka on Saturday to do some birding on the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive. Vehicle traffic is only permitted on the weekends on the Wildlife Drive, but other trail head locations are usually open everyday to foot traffic.   

Wildlife viewing is popular here, especially for birders, in the winter months when thousands of waterfowl and other birds use the marshes to wait out the freezing weather up north.

Swamp Sparrow

Arrived early on a chilly, blustery morning. Lots of wading birds like Great Blue Herons, some standing on nests, Snowy Egrets, Tricolored Herons, Great Egrets, White Ibis and Glossy Ibis. Didn't spot any black-necked stilts, but lots of Cormorants and Anhingas. There are thousands of American Coots and Common Gallinules to sort through to identify any waterfowl. There are a great many Blue-winged Teal and Ring-necked Ducks, plus Northern Shovelers, Green-winged Teal and Mottled Ducks.  Both Black-bellied and Fulvous Whistling Ducks are common year round residents here.  Other waterfowl seen today included a lone Lesser Scaup, Ruddy Ducks and Pied-billed Grebes. Other birds today included Purple Gallinule, Limpkin, Green Heron, Swamp Sparrow, Red-winged Blackbirds, Osprey, Northern Harriers, Belted Kingfishers and American Robins. 

Dipped on spotting any American wigeons, gadwall and the ash-throated flycatcher that has been hanging out at the gate entrance to the drive.

Blue-winged Teal

American Coot

Ruddy Duck

Fulvous Whistling-Duck

Ring-necked Ducks

Glossy Ibis

Fulvous Whistling-Duck

Black-bellied Whistling Ducks

Limpkin

Green Heron

After completing the Lake Apopka drive, I had options.  Either head home or extend my day trip with a visit to Merritt Island NWR. Chose to extend the trip and arrived at Blackpoint Wildlife Drive at Merritt Island just past lunch and was greeted by a mommy Bobcat with her half-grown kitten making a dash across the road ahead of me. 

The marshes and wetlands had dried down some since my last visit a few weeks ago, and the variety of waterfowl had diminished. Didn't see any pintails today, but did have a lot of Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shovelers and a large flock of Hooded Mergansers. Also present in smaller numbers Mottled Ducks, Green-winged Teal and a couple of Redheads. The cinnamon teal that has been hanging out at stop #4 wasn't seen, but this location had lots of Dunlin, Western Sandpipers and Ring-billed Gulls.  Other species seen included American White Pelicans, American Coots, Common Gallinules, Caspian and Forster's Terns, Reddish Egrets, a Wilson's Sniped, Sanderlings, Roseate Spoonbills, Wood Storks, Greater & Lesser Yellowlegs, Willets, Pied-billed Grebes and Killdeer. Dipped on American avocets, gadwall, the northern pintails, any rails, sparrows or falcons

Checked out the Biolab Drive, but not much happening there. Also stopped at the visitor center feeders before heading home and ended the stop with four Painted Buntings.

A large of of Hooded Mergansers were actively feeding

White Ibis

Ring-billed Gull

Reddish Egret

Armadillo

Wilson's Snipe

Greater Yellowlegs