Chinsegut Wildlife and Environmental Area

 Wednesday January 29th

Scott's Oriole feeding on some jelly

https://ebird.org/checklist/S211139040

I was unfamiliar with the Chinsegut Wildlife and Environmental Area near Lake Linsey in Hernando County. But a rare to Florida avian visitor is wintering here. It's a Scott's Oriole. A western species and is way outside of the species normal range and a Lifer for me.

Chipping Sparrow

 This conservation area is managed by Florida Fish and Wildlife and has an outstanding bird feeding station at the nature center featuring water features and several feeding offerings including a feeder offering jelly.  Orioles and other species enjoy fruits and jellies and that is where anyone wanting to experience this rarity must wait. The Scott's Oriole was making very short visits to the feeder and my not return for as long as an hour. 

A Pine Siskin bathing with a House Finch

While waiting a nice variety birds came in and offered some nice photography opportunities

Carolina Chickadee

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Yellow Palm Warbler

American Goldfinches

Pine Warbler

Red-bellied Woodpecker

House Wren

House Finch

Red-winged Blackbird

Pine Warbler

Grey Catbird

Sandhill Crane

Tufted Titmouse

Northern Cardinal

East Tennessee

 Tuesday May 7th

eBird Trip Report https://ebird.org/tripreport/245480

Black Bear Cub

I recently visited Eastern Tennessee, including Seven Island Birding State Park and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Although rain cut my day trip to the Smokies short, I managed to take the auto tour at Cades Cove. Spotting black bears was a highlight, with four sows and their twin cubs in view. However, capturing a great photo of the bears proved challenging.

Black Bear Sow with Cubs

Eastern Hemlock

Mountain Laural

Some of the bird life seen and heard at the park included Wild Turkey, Indigo Bunting, Blue Grossbeak, Wood Thrush, Swainson's Thrush, American Robin, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Carolina Chickadee, Acacian Flycatchers, Eastern Kingbird, Chipping and Field Sparrows, Ovenbirds, Hooded Warblers, Prairie Warblers, Yellow-throated Warblers, Northern Parula, Louisiana Waterthrush, Scarlet Tanager, Carolina Wren, Blue-headed Vireo, White-eyed Vireo, Red-eyed Vireo, Yellow-throated Vireo & Eastern Phoebe.

Had also made two short visits to Seven Island Birding State Park, which is near to Knoxville, which features prairie, woodland and river habitats. Canada Geese, Mallards, Wood Ducks, Cliff Swallows, Tree Swallows, Barn Swallows, Field and White-crowned Sparrows, Wood Thrush, Yellow-breasted Chats, Tufted Titmice, House Finches, Prothonotary and Hooded Warblers.

Cliff Swallows

Cliff Swallows

House Finch

Tree Swallow

Little Wood Satyr

Mallard Ducklings

Tufted Titmouse

Downy Woodpecker and House Wren

Tree Swallow

Carolina Chickadee

Musk Thistle

Southern Blue Flag

Song Sparrow

Carolina Sweetshrub

Chasing Birds - St Marks Day Two

 Monday January 26th

Sora at the Headquarters Pond

Spent the bulk of Day Two, on this trip, at St Marks National Wildlife Refuge.  Like Lake Apopka and Merritt Island, we get a lot of wintering birdlife at St Marks in January. Especially waterfowl and song birds. St Marks is diffidently a birding hot spot.

For some of these species, the Panhandle usually marks the southern limits  of there wintering range. Such as Red-throated Loon or horned Larks. Some of most recently seen birds of interest included an Iceland Gull, American Flamingo, White-faced Ibis, Snow Goose, Red-throated Loon and Henslow Sparrow.  But I didn't see any of these on this visit.  But I did explore the Pine Flats, Marshes, Ponds and shoreline down on the Gulf of Mexico. 

Lots waterfowl - Blue-wing & Green-wing Teal, Gadwall, Greater & Lesser Scaup, American Wigeons, Northern Pintail, Canvasbacks, Northern Shoveler, Ruddy Duck, Bufflehead, Mallard, American Black Duck, Hooded Mergansers and Common Goldeneye. 

 

American Wigeon at the Lighthouse Pond

The various ponds also hosted American Avocets, Bonaparte's Gulls, Ring-billed Gulls, Yellowlegs, Black-bellied Plovers, Semipalmated Plovers, Killdeer, Dunlins, American Coots and Common Gallinules

Redhead at the Lighthouse Pond

Redhead at the Lighthouse Pond

The Wildlife Drive terminates at the St Marks Lighthouse, the Lighthouse Ponds and the Gulf of Mexico. Arrived during a low tide, calm seas and having almost no sea birds present. Dipped on the Iceland Gull being reported as well as common or red-throated loons, horned grebes, oystercatchers and only a couple of Buffleheads were present. One good sighting here was a distant look at a Common Goldeneye, plus a few Brown Pelicans, Willets and Royal Terns. The Lighthouse Ponds were loaded with waterfowl and few waders.

Canvasback at the Lighthouse Pond

The marshes shared Red-winded Blackbirds, Sora, Yellow-crowned Night-herons, Swamp, Savanah & Song Sparrows, Northern Cardinals and a Clapper Rail. 

Also had a River Otter cross the wildlife drive in front of me

In the pines, oaks and their understory, American Robins were very numerous. Other sightings included Cedar Waxwing, Carolina Chickadees, Catbirds, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Eastern Towhee, Pine Warblers, Brown-headed Nuthatch, Orange-crowned Warbler, Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers and American Goldfinch.

Sora at the Headquarters Pond

A distant look at a Bonaparte's Gull

My St Marks Life List

Common Violet blooming near the helipad area

Spent time not just birding but trying to catalogue all of the various forms of life present. Will have to return to Panhandle in the springtime when wildflowers are in bloom. For today some of the interesting flora I observed today included Cabbage Palms, Saw Palmetto, Sand Live Oak, Water Oak, Laurel Oak, Myrtle Oak, Red Maple, Swamp Titi, Pondcypress, Carolina Luarelcherry, Yellow Butterwort, Gallberry, Shiny Blueberry, Sparkleberry, Fetterbush, American Royal Fern and Common Yucca

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