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Posted by Alex Harper on 22:55:28 03/17/07
Hey all,
I'm up in Pensacola right now, and will be back in Miami tomorrow afternoon. We flew up yesterday and checked out the University of West Florida, where I am more than likely going to go for college. It is a birdy campus with a couple nature trails that produced some good birds.
I woke up this morning and checked a brushy area right outside of the hotel which I thought could produce some sparrows. Within a couple minutes, I had spotted a Swamp Sparrow and my state Song Sparrow. Also in the brushy area was an Eastern Bluebird and an Orange-crowned Warbler.
After a continental breakfast, we decided to kill some time by heading to Alabama (which is kind of funny if you think about it). We ended up at an Alabama rest area no more than a mile from the state line. I got out to get some state birds, and ended up finding a life bird: Field Sparrow. It was feeding among another Song Sparrow, Chipping Sparrows, and some warblers. In a small pond nearby were Least Sandpipers, Wood and Ring-necked Ducks, and Lesser Scaup.
We were at the university by 9:00, and as soon as I stepped out of the car, I heard a call I had heard before in my visits in New York and Pennsylvania. Junco, I thought? I turned around and right in the parkinglot was a Dark-eyed Junco. Glad I got that out of the way about 100 state birds quicker than Paul Bithorn...
After the open house at the university, we explored the campus on our own. We ended up (my mom and I) walking a nature trail that heads through a swampy area with some brushy habitat. No lack of White-throated Sparrows here, which was a year bird. I was here in search of snakes and Golden-crowned Kinglet. Well, I found both, a Black Racer, and the kinglet. I'm glad to get that one out of the way, since this was the winter to get them.
We then did some boring stuff that my mom wanted to do ;), and slowly made our way sight-seeing towards Blackwater State Forest. It was a pleasant drive, and I picked up Swallow-tailed Kite along the way in Milton.
After dozing off for a bit, I woke up as we approached the Emerald coast, where white dunes made up for all of the habitat. Common Loons were, well, common in the bay, and Bonaparte's Gulls were acting very solitary as usual. There were literally thousands of Herring Gulls around, as well. Well, there is a line forming behind me to use the computer, probably those eager to go onto "myspace". So blah, blah, blah, got my year Horned Grebe, so some mergansers, maybe a Bald Eagle or two. Wish I could elaborate, but I'll have time tomorrow when I get back to where it's not so cold.
Alex
Pensacola, FL
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