Chasing Birds - North Florida Day One

 Sunday January 24th

Recently made my annual trip to North Florida and the Panhandle. Spent four days checking out birding Hot Spots including The Celery Fields, Fort De Soto Park, Sweetwater Wetlands, Gainesville-Hawthorne Trail, St Marks NWR, Lake Jackson Mounds State Par, Crowder Landing, Torreya State Park and Paynes Prairie State Park. Usually like to include Florida Caverns State Park, but most of the property remains off limits from damage from Hurricane Michael over two years ago

Emu -
lives at the Big Cat Habitat & Gulf Coast Sanctuary adjacent to the Celery Fields

Day 1 - Saturday

Purple Martins taking up residence at the martin house at The Celery Fields

First stop was a short visit at The Celery Fields in Sarasota County. Some of the birds observed included the recently arrived Purple Martins, plus Blue-winged Teal, Long-billed Dowitchers, Least Sandpipers, Nanday Parakeets, Least Sandpipers, Northern Harriers, Bald eagles, Lesser Yellowlegs, Roseate Spoonbills and Brown-headed Cowbirds. Dipped on any rails, bitterns, purple gallinules etc.

Red-breasted Merganser seen at the fishing pier at Fort De Soto Park

From Sarasota traveled to Tampa Bay. At the rest stop stop at he north end of the Skyline bridge was able to add a couple of hundred Black Skimmers, plus my FOY sighting of a Common Loon.  Several Red-breasted Mergansers and Great Egrets were present.

Forster's Tern at Fort De Soto Park

Next was a stop at Fort De Soto Park, which sits in Tampa Bay. Was here to observe sea ducks, shore birds and such. Just before reaching the park, checked the Terra Verdi Ponds which were loaded with hundreds of Lesser Scaup and Redhead ducks. Began birding at the North Beach at Fort De Soto. Some of the birds here included Wilson's Plover, Black-bellied Plover, Sanderlings, Semipalmated Plovers, Short-billed Dowitchers, Dunlins, Ruddy Turnstones, Ring-billed Gulls and various wading birds.

Whimbrel seen at the Fishing Pier

Left this spot to check the two fishing piers for any scoters, loons or horned grebes. ended up with four Common Loons, but no scoters or grebes. Did have well over a hundred Laughing Gulls, plus Ring-billed Gulls, Herring Gull, Royal, Sandwich and Forster's Terns. Had nice looks at a pair of Whimbrels. Also had more Red-breasted Mergansers, American White & Brown Pelicans, Cormorants, Osprey and Palm Warblers.

Black-bellied Plover at the Fishing Pier

Wrapped up the in Gainesville. First checked out any activity along the Gainesville-Hawthorn Trail. This now paved, but former railroad line was wayyy to popular on this Saturday afternoon, for any serious birding. The traffic on the path was terrible, with skate boarders, cyclists, runners and people using transport I hadn't seen before. In the past I had seen chipping sparrows, cedar waxwings, ruby-crowned kinglets, Carolina chickadees and more. But not today.

Armadillo rooting for dinner
 at Sweetwater Wetland

Last stop was the Sweetwater Wetlands. Arrived here close to closing and that was fine.  Cause the Rusty Blackbirds come into roost just at sunset. Before getting to the rusty blackbird stack-out spot, spent time looking for any other interesting birds. Some of these included Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, Buffleheads, Sora, and a Merlin bomb a flock of roosting cowbirds.

The Park Ranger set me up on the spot to wait for the rustys to arrive and as I was waiting I noticed a group of birds  scanning and scoping the marsh nearby and suspected that they were also waiting on the rustys to arrive. Turns out they were friends of mine from home. Dave and Tammy McQuade had met up with Eary and Jennifer Warren and their two kids in Gainesville to look for the Rusty Blackbirds and a Calliope Hummingbird.  The Warrens had driven up from Cape Coral and the McQuades' were wrapping up a very successful cross-country birding trip. 

Bufflehead at Sweetwater Wetlands

Got to see the Rusty Blackbirds, about 60 of them. So I was now done for the day, with another long day tomorrow.

Pied-billed Grebe at Sweetwater Wetlands

Silhouette of a Rusty Blackbird.  Best I could get in the fading light

Cinnamon Teal

 Monday December 14th

Made another two day road trip, last week, with stops at Silver Springs State Park, Sweetwater Wetlands in Gainesville, Daytona Beach and Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

Rhesus Monkey habitat at Silver Springs State Park

Stopped first at Silver Springs State Park east of Ocala. Silver Springs is famed as the home territory for troops of feral Rhesus monkeys who's presence are due to monkeys having escaped into the forests almost hundred years ago. Eventually they will be removed as obnoxious exotics, but for now they have been culled to reduce their numbers. Until recently a small number of feral squirrel monkeys had existed in areas near to the Gordon River in Naples, Florida. But licensed trappers were allowed to cull these monkeys.  They are probably extirpated at this point.

Sandhill Trail

It started as a cold day while I hiked the Sandhill Trail, which featured a sandhill Long-leaf Pine ecosystem.  Carolina Chickadees, Tufted Titmice, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, American Robins and Downy Woodpeckers were active. Some of the flora in this habitat included the Long-leaf Pines, Sand Pines, American Turkey, Live, Sand Post Oaks and Myrtle Oaks, Saw Palmetto, Black Cherry American Olive, Leafy Elephant's Foot and Coastalplain Golden aster.

Sand Pine

River Trail

 Before leaving leaving Silver Springs walked the  River Trail.  A different, more riparian ecosystem then the sandhill area. Some of the flora here included Bald Cypress, Live and Water Oaks, American Sweetgum, Pignut Hickory, Southern Magnolia, Red Maple, Dahoon and American Holly, Sugar Hackberry, Silverling, American Beautyberry, Sparkleberry and Walter's Viburnum

 At the trail head was immediately met by an active Hermit Thrust. Not a lot of other birds seen or hears, aside Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers , a few waders and Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers. 

Sparkleberry

A single Bufflehead was present today

Gainesville is less than an hour north from Ocala and had several venues in mind to bird, but wanted to start at Sweetwater Wetlands. Have had some very nice visits here in the past and rusty blackbirds had
been roosting here up till a week ago. Birding was a bit disappointing. Water level were too high for shore birds and snipes and for some reason I didn't notice any sparrows either. The venue can be very  good for waterfowl. For some reason black-bellied whistling ducks weren't present during my visit. But we had a great many Common Gallinule and American Coots. Plus some Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal, Leaser Scaup, Ruddy Ducks and Ring-necked Ducks.  Did hear a Sora calling. 

Limpkin seen at Sweetwater Wetlands

Day Two

Daytona Beach wasn't really my target venue.  Had planned to make a stop at Ormand Beach to see if gannets were present and Sabastian Inlet or Ponce Inlet to look for purple sandpipers. But I really needed an extra day on this trip to handle all these possible stops. Perhaps a five to seven day trip next month could be accommodating.

Angelwing shell

At Daytona Beach hundreds of Laughing Gulls were lounging on the sand. Plus some Ring-billed and Herring Gulls and a lone Lesser Black-backed Gull. Additional Royal Terns and a couple of Black Skimmers.

Herring Gull

Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

Merritt Island can be a good location for spotting wintering waterfowl.  Currently a male Cinnamon Teal is wintering here and we don't see cinnamon teal in Florida very often.  Its a western species, not commonly found this far east. 

The Cinnamon Teal with Blue-winged Teal
at stop number 4 on the Blackpoint Wildlife Drive

As a Florida vagrant, the Cinnamon Teal was a special sighting.  Other waterfowl included Northern Pintail, Blue-wing and Green-winged Teal, Gadwall, Northern Shovelers and Mottled Ducks.  American Coots and Common Gallinules were plentiful on the Blackpoint Drive. Wood Storks, Rosette Spoonbills, White and Glossy Ibis, Reddish Egret, Great Blue Herons and other waders were present.  As seen were Caspian Terns, Ring-billed Gulls, Greater Yellowlegs, Long-billed Dowitchers, Palm and Orange-crown Warblers. 

Green Heron

Checked-out the birding activity along the Bio Lab Road.  Only a few Sanderlings and Royal Terns

today. 

But on the out of the refuge was able watch an active family of Florida Scrub Jays. Then the four hour drive home

Florida Scrub Jay

Asters seen at the St Johns River at Palatka

Spiny Fiddlewood seen on the Blackpoint Wildlife Drive

Indian Blanket seen at the Blackpoint Wildlife Drive

Road Trip - Sweetwater Wetlands Park

Friday January 19th

Friday the 12th was a very long day with stops in Gainesville and Tallahassee. Friends, David and Tammy McQuade had birded several of these locations just the day before and offered timely intel.

At daybreak, I was on the Hawthorne Trail near Payne's Prairie in Alachua County, were I had Chipping Sparrows, Eastern Towhee, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Tufted Titmouse, American Robins and Carolina Chickadee. 

Sweetwater Wetlands Park - Gainesville

A female Ruff, or Reeve, is a rare  visitor to the United States.

It's a shorebird

that breeds in Northern Eurasia and winters in Africa 

Sora

Sweetwater Wetlands Park was a very special venue in Gainesville. 

Purple Gallinules, Wilson's Snipes, American Bitterns, Soras, Long-billed Dowitchers and a very rare Ruff were all easily observed and photographed. Plenty of waterfowl including Buffleheads, Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, Ruddy Duck Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal, Mottled Ducks, Northern Shovelers, Lesser Scaup, Common Gallinules, American Coots, Pied-billed Grebe and  a Horned Grebe.

American Bittern

Purple Gallinule

Wilson's Snipe

Long-billed Dowitcher

Northern Shovelers

Other birds seen included Least Sandpipers, a Roseate Spoonbill, Limpkins, Cooper's Hawk, Savannah Sparrows, Red winged Blackbirds, Tree Swallows, Killdeers and all the expected waders.

Another interesting sighting were wild Cracker Horses that are a part of the free-range Payne's Prairie herd.

Lesser Scaup

Blue-winged Teal

Northern Shoveler

Bufflehead

Ruddy Duck

Newman's Lake - West Trail - Alachua County

Newman's Lake - West Trail

Instead of a visit to the La Chua Trail at Payne's Prairie State Park, I had switched to a new venue recommended by David and Tammy McQuade.  They had a great sparrow experience  on Thursday. Lincoln's, Grasshopper, White-crowned, Vesper, Savannah, and Swamp Sparrows, plus a Golden-crowned Kinglet. 

I didn't do as well as Dave and Tammy, but did add Savannah, White-crowned and Swamp Sparrows. 

Had to move along as the expected rain had arrived.  So onto Tallahassee.

On To Tallahassee

Tuesday, February 2nd

Day Two

St Marks Lighthouse

On day two of our birding trip to North Florida, Bob Pelkey and left Gainesville, skipping our missed venues from yesterday, and headed to Tallahassee.

Whooping Crane?

Savannah Sparrow

Our first stop were the cow ponds along Biltmore Avenue to see the whooping crane that has been roosting here.  Seems a local birder, Marcelle Praetorios, advised that the whooper hadn't returned to the pond last night and wasn't present today.  we also missed the canada geese as they had left the pond a short time prior to our arrival.

Carolina Chickadee

A Young Chipping Sparrow

We did see four Buffleheads, a flock of American Pipits, Savannah Sparrows, Song Sparrows, a flock of Cedar Waxwings, Killdeer, Least Sandpipers, White Ibis, Tree Swallow, Palm and Yellow-rumped Warblers and Eastern Meadowlarks.

Hummingbirds

We next visited with a nice lady in Tallahassee who has a fabulous bird sanctuary in her backyard. There, we also met a nice couple from Canada who were also there to enjoy the hummingbirds too. Bob I both had Lifers with the pair of Black-chinned and a Calliope Hummingbirds. The feeders also attracted a Ruby-throated and Rufus Hummingbirds, Baltimore Orioles, American Goldfinches, Pine Siskins, Downy Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch, Eastern Bluebirds, Chipping Sparrows, Cardinals, and even an Orange-crowned Warbler taking a drink from a hummingbird feeder.

Baltimore Oriole

Pine Siskin

Calliope Hummingbird

House Finch

Chipping Sparrow

St Marks National Wildlife Refuge

Black-crowned Night-heron

Our final stop for the day was at St Marks NWR. We spent the final three of day light here looking to photograph birds. First off, there were few waterfowl. The ponds near the lighthouse were virtually empty of ducks. Looks like migration is underway.

Vermilion Flycatcher

See spotted four Wood Ducks up at the visitors center, and a few Buffleheads, a few Blue-winged Teal, Ring-necked Ducks, a nice raft of Redheads and Lesser Scaups later. One target we did succeed in was a Vermilion Flycatcher at Stoney Bayou. Also seen were American White Pelicans,  a lot of American Coots, Common Gallinule a rare bird candidate in a Purple Gallinule at Headquarters Pond, a family of Black-crowned Night-herons, a calling Clapper Rail, a Marsh Wren, a Sedge Wren, heard a Great Horned Owl and Eastern Towhees. Shorebirds included Sanderlings, Short-billed Dowitcher, Dunlin, Willets, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs.

American White Pelicans in fishing formation

Eastern Phoebe

Bufflehead

Redhead

Bufflehead

White-tailed Deer

Operation Migration

When we arrived at St Marks, we met a couple of folks from Operation Migration setting up one of there ultralight aircraft for a special event this weekend.  This is in anticipation of the arrival of the latest class of young Whooping Cranes being trained to migrate from Wisconsin to there winter home here at St Marks.

Due to the bad weather that has been plaguing the South this winter, whoopers have been held up in Georgia. From there, when weather conditions improve they will make their final push to reach St Marks. You can follow there progress at Operation Migration