Purple Gallinule

 Monday September 16th 

Babcock-Webb bird list

Today is part of a four-day white-tail deer archery hunt at Babcock-Webb Wildlife Management Area in Charlotte County. Why go birding during a hunt, because the gates are unlocked. In the past year the property's management has closed the roads in the eastern half of the property. Probably to reduce the expense of maintaining of several miles of roads. During hunting season, the gates are opened for the hunters' access and to birders too.  For several years the gates had been left open allowing access to all motorized visitors. 

Sherman's fox Squirrell

The best birding of the day was enjoying a family of Purple Gallinules feeding right alongside of the road. Two adults and four very young chicks.

Pineland Chaffhead

Sandhill Crane

Bachman's Sparrow

 Sunday March 26th

Bachman's Sparrow

Had my first-of-the-season Bachman's Sparrow today at Babcock-Webb. These birds are resident at Babcock but because of their skulking nature are often missed.  Except when they on territory and can be heard and seen singing. This window-of-time goes from late March till into July and sometimes later. 

Since the devastation caused by Hurrican Ian back in September, my tried-and-true locations for finding red-cockaded woodpeckers, at Babcock-Webb, are not currently viable. I stack-out a colony site at daybreak to see the birds erupt from the nest holes.  This method was taught to me many years ago in an email exchange with Jeff Bouton. It has usually been successful till the storm has disrupted the status quo. I have crossed paths with the woodpeckers occasionally but do wonder on the status of this species at Babcock. Didn't see any today and dipped on the brown-headed nuthatch as well.

eBird Checklist - 26 Mar 2023 - Babcock-Webb WMA - 45 species

Florida Soft Shelled Turtle

Today there was also a large concentration of shorebirds at the shrinking marsh area located about ten miles east of the entrance on Tucker Grade. Counted 139 Least Sandpipers and dozens of Greater & Lesser Yellowlegs and Long-billed Dowitchers.

Sandhill Crane

Wood Stork

Double Crested Cormorants

Eastern Meadowlark

Dowitchers and Yellowlegs

Lesser Yellowlegs

Least Sandpiper

So What's Blooming

Gopher Apple Geobalanus oblongifolius

Whorled Milkweed Asclepias verticillata

Rolfs' MilkweedAsclepias tuberosa ssp. rolfsii

Sarasota

 Sunday March 12th

Headed up on Sarasota County today, visiting Myakka River State Park and The Celery Fields

Lots of Gators at Myakka River State Park

Myakka River State Park

eBird Checklist - 12 Mar 2023 - Myakka River SP - 35 species.

Long-billed Dowitcher

Black-necked Stilt

Blue-winged Teal

Snowy Egret

Lesser Yellowlegs

Palm Warbler

Sandhill Crane

Wild Turkey

American White Pelican

The Celery Fields

eBird Checklist - 12 Mar 2023 - The Celery Fields - 31 species

eBird Checklist - 12 Mar 2023 - Palmer Lake and Surrounding Area - 4 species

This Coopers Hawk was resting in the shade by the bird feeders

Brown-headed Cowbird

Painted Bunting

Gray-headed Swamphen were numerous here today

Purple Martin

Savannah Sparrow

Common Gallinule

Glossy Ibis

Necedah National Wildlife Refuge - Juneau County, Wisconsin

 Tuesday July 13th

 

Added a stop at Necedah National Wildlife Refuge to look for Whooping Cranes and Trumpeter Swans. Necedah has been a part of the Whooping Crane recovery plan in establishing an eastern migrating population to safeguard the viability of the species. It was the northern terminal for the famous whooping crane flights using ultralight aircraft to teach young cranes on how to migrate, till the program ended a few years ago. 

Five years ago Bob Pelkey and I can across one of the ultralights used by 'Operation Migration' at the southern terminus at St Marks NWR in Florida. Seems they were wrapping up the final flight, as conservation efforts were headed in other directions. 

Back in February 2016 this Ultralight was a part of Operation Migration
seen at St Marks National Wildlife Refuge

Our visit here included checking out the area around Headquarters Road and Goose Lake. We enter the refuge at Headquarters Road were we started with a pair of Cliff Swallows. Further along we had White-tailed Deer, Bobolink, Dickcissel, Red-tailed Hawk Red-eyed Vireo, Warbling Vireo, Eastern Bluebird, Robins, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Eastern Phoebe. American Goldfinch, Song Sparrow, Baltimore Oriole, Red-winged Blackbirds, Gray Catbirds, Yellow Warbler, American Redstart, singing Common Yellowthroats and Sandhill Cranes. Stopped at the observation tower were we saw a pair of Whooping Cranes on the distant edge of the water, plus a pair of Greater Sandhill Cranes and Canada Geese. Nice to see the whoopers. At the Visitors Center we added Barn Swallows and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds.

Song Sparrow

Believe this is the 'Greater' subspecies of Sandhill Crane, based only on geography.

Still need to catch-up with some swans and was directed up to he Goose Pool area. Before spotting the Trumpeter Swan family we had a beautiful Common Loon diving close to the road. The swans were across the water with the pair of adults and their cygnets. Other waterfowl seen here included Hooded Mergansers and Wood Ducks.  Other birds seen in the area included Killdeer, Veery, Turkey Vultures, Eastern Kingbirds, Robins, Black-capped Chickadee, Cedar Waxwing and Song Sparrow.  

Common Loon

Distant look at the Trumpeter Swan family

Some of the Wildflowers at Necedah

Orange Hawkweed

False Sunflower

Tuberous Grasspink

Great Mullins

Swamp Milkweed

Common Milkweed

Purple Vervain