Purple Gallinule

Monday June 29th

Florida Sandhill Crane Family at Harns Marsh

Hathaway Park

Sunday June 7th

View along Shell Creek

The dock has been better days

Had visited Hathaway Park, which is along Shell Creek in Charlotte County, last year.  Returned recently with the purpose of looking for anything interesting.  June is our weakest time of the year for birding, so  expanding the scope of our observations beyond just birds can be satisfying. 

Crested Coralroot Orchid

 

As for the birds, found a few of the expected summer residents including Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Swallow-tailed Kite, White-eyed Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Carolina Wren, Pine Warbler, Cardinals and Northern Parula.

 

Echo Moth caterpillars on a coontie plant

Other observations included several brightly colored Echo Moth caterpillars on a coontie plant. Plus a few interesting mushrooms popping up after recent rains, plus an orchid called a Crested Coralroot Orchid

 

Made a lot of other flora observations as well. 

 

Southern Bee Blossom

American Beautyberry

Pignut Hickory

Yellow Star Grass

Florida Alicia

Blackroot

Red Bay

Southern Bogbottom

Tarflower

Florida Blueheart

Harns Marsh

Saturday June 6th

White Checkered-Skipper

The water levels at Harns Marsh were still low on my visit, but recent rains have begun and are going to fill up the wetlands and canals very soon.  These current conditions are concentrating Limpkins on the shallow lake.  Counted over forty Limpkins, plus a half dozen Roseate Spoonbills and Little Blue Herons.  Only a few of the other expected waders were seen - Tricolored and Great Herons, Great and Snowy Egrets and only one White Ibis. 

Snail Kite

Didn't notice any roosting Swallow-tailed Kites, but as we move into summer this should be a good location when then start to congregate prior to their migration south.

Snail Kites are also much harder to locate at Harns Marsh. Was able to have numerous sightings here in the past, but they have spread out these days.  Did seen a female roosting in a tree along Sunshine Parkway just before the Able Canal bridge.

No Purple Gallinules either.  They have become rare lately, perhaps because of the increase of the Gray-headed Swamphens. Not unusual to have 10 or more Swamphen counts.

Gray-headed Swamphen

Most unusual find was a land snail called a Ghost Bulimulus.  This is an invasive species having arrived here from Argentina.

Ghost Bulimulus

So what's blooming here today - Southern Bee Blossoms, Marsh Fleabane, Marsh Pink, Black Jack and Trailing Daisy

Babcock-Webb

Monday June 1st

Red-cockaded Woodpecker

Northern Bobwhite

Currently public access to Babcock-Webb Wildlife Manage Area in Charlotte County has been restricted to only Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Mondays from 8am till 5 pm. Folks wanting to use the Gun Range has to call ahead for an appointment. All this is due to the troubles with the Covid-19 pandemic.

 These restrictions have ended,  Full access as of June 5th

Not being able to access the venue till well past day break, a birder will miss the opportunity to be on-site to witness the Red-cockaded Woodpeckers as they exit their nest holes in the morning.  But today I was lucky to catchup with a pair of the woodpeckers that were seen working the slash pine near the colony site along Oilwell Grade. 

Phaon Crescent

Pickerelweed

Heard several singing Pine Warblers and  Bachman's Sparrows also, plus Eastern Meadowlarks, Eastern Towhees, Common Nighthawks, nesting Eastern Bluebirds, a large covey of Northern Bobwhites, Common Ground-doves, Blue Jays, Limpkin, Northern Flicker, Loggerhead Shrikes and Tufted Titmice. Not many wading birds on-hand even though the water levels were improving 

Other observations included alligators, a Florida Box Turtle, a Florida Garter Snake,

Rose Rush

Plus Zebra Swallowtail, Phaon Crescent, Queen, White Peacock, Twin-spotted Skipper Butterflies, Coffee-loving and Bella Moths

Been paying attention to what's been blooming at Babcock-Webb.  Some of todays blooms included Dark-eyed Susans, Spanish Daisies, Pineland Heliotrope, Tarflower, Common Axil-flower, Rose Rush and Pickeralweed

Alligator Lily

Tarflower

Pitted Stripeseed

Saw Some Common Terns

Tuesday May 19th

Brown Pelican at the Big Carlos Pass Draw Bridge

Black Skimmer at Carlos Point

Headed out to the beach a couple of times this month, now that the government says its okay.  A couple of weeks ago headed over to Carlos Point on Fort Myers Beach to see about the seabird nesting colonies.

Had to of been at least two hundred Least Terns on hand. Too early for any hatchlings yet, but the adults were certainly acting territorial to anyone getting to close to the nesting area. Black Skimmers will start nesting here soon as well and about sixty were also resting on the beach.  Wilson's Plovers and Snowy Plovers nest here as well. Sometimes we'll have American Oystercatchers nest here, but I personally haven't seen any of them yet this year.  

Least Tern at Carlos Point colony

He's trying, but she doesn't seem impressed

Sanderling

Ruddy Turnstone

Common Tern seen at Carlos Point.  Note the Leg Irons. Can't make out the data though

Today I checked out Bunch Beach and Bowditch Point Preserve looking for interesting birds.  Arrived at Bunche at day break. Had a rising tide with strong winds pushing the water up the beach as well.  So, not too many birds. Had my first of the season Marbled Godwit, plus a few Willets and Dunlins in their breeding colors. Across the bay at Bowditch Point, I started with Magnificent Frigatebirds and Brown Pelicans soaring overhead. On the beach a large number of Sanderlings, Royal Terns, plus a few Sandwich Terns and a nice surprise 

Dunlin at Bunche Beach

Laughing Gull

in finding a trio of Common Terns resting on the beach.  A pair of nesting Wilson's Plovers were very obvious, as volunteers had marked off their location to try and keep folks from walking on them. 

Herring Gull at Bowditch Point

Springtime and Access

Sunday May 3rd

Gray Kingbirds have returned 

to summer and nest in Florida

Our local and state governments are slowly re-opening access to public places in actions to try to return some normalcy.  Here in Southwest Florida access to beaches and preserves have severally restricted during the height of the Spring Migration.  Very frustrating to those of us who enjoying our birding hobbies. For awhile I had some interesting activity around the feeders and fruiting ficus in my yard. But the not the activity that our spring migration hot spots offer.

So just in the past few days access has been opening up.  Places like Rotary Park in Cape Coral and Pinecraft Park in Sarasota are offering some birding activity.

Summer Tanager at Rotary Park

Bay-breasted Warbler at Rotary Park

Female Blackpoll Warbler at Rotary Park

Birding at Home

Saturday, April 10th

Mangrove Cuckoo 

was very reluctant to pose for the camera

With the beaches, parks and preserved closed to enhance social distancing, birding during Spring Migration has become very frustrating.  Locally the wildlife drive at Ding Darling NWR on Sanibel Island  remains open and one can bird by car.

I recently did bird from the Ding darling Wildlife Drive and was rewarded with a with a few interesting birds. Not much in the way of any neo-tropical migrating birds though on that day.  Did spot and heard a Mangrove Cuckoo, plus a soaring Broad-winged Hawk and several Red-breasted Mergansers were still present.

Lots of Cedar Waxwings dining on figs

House Sparrow

At home I have a couple of feeders set up under a huge, old and fruiting Laurel Fig tree.  Cedar Waxwings are a constant these days, feeding on figs and several Gray Catbirds have been hanging around, plus numerous European Starlings are preparing nesting sites in that big, old tree. But, again not much in the way of interesting migrants yet. The feeders are very popular with the expected resident birds.

Northern Cardinal

Gray Catbird

Brown-headed Cowbird. 

Only a single cowbird visits these days, but in earlier days flocks of 30 or 40 were common visitors

Starlings

Common Ground Dove

Common Ground Dove

Blue Jay

Starling

Eurasian Collared-dove

Boat-tailed Grackles don't visit the feeders very much

Gray Catbird