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Posted by Jeff Weber on 08:46:44 02/21/06
It's difficult to believe that Everglades bird life was ever any more profuse and spectacular than it was on Sunday at Shark Valley. I got there at 8:30 with my bike and was lucky enough to be the first one down the trail, before the birds were disturbed by the chattering masses. Of course, all the waders were there in big numbers, and at times the air was filled with hundreds of them in any given view. Five Roseate Spoonbills added a touch of color 1.7 miles down the west side path. Returning on the east side path, one highlight was an adult Bald Eagle eating a snake in a tree.
Saw no Snail Kites at Shark Valley, but there were three of them on the north side of the Trail by the Everglades Tower Inn. If you haven't already done so, check out the excellent photos Trey took there a few notches down on the Birdboard.
I drove the Loop Road from east to west and encountered an amazing abundance of alligators, including several doing fast high-walks down the road. All that antsy-ness must be a prelude to mating season. It was a beautiful day on the Loop, and Sweetwater Strand was particularly photogenic, looking much like a Butcher image.
I can't think of a place I'd rather be than the Big Cypress in mid-winter. How anyone can live up North is a mystery to me.
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