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Posted by Bryant Roberts on 23:07:30 08/11/07
I visited the Belle Glade area today where Upland Sandpiper was the only FOTS species found. Ten were seen this morning from the banana patch at the south end of the King Ranch US 27 sod fields and about nine along the west side of Glade View (Roth Sod) Road. Most of the ones along Glade View Road were within 100 yards of the road and allowed great binocular views.
The flooded fields in Belle Glade south of SE Avenue G are nearly dry but there were still some shorebirds around including dozens of Semipalmated Plovers and a Willet. There were still a few Roseate Spoonbills there among the die-hard waders.
The flooded field on the south side of CR 880 a mile or two east of Duda Road is still going strong. There were still plenty of waders including good numbers of Spoonbills as well as about a dozen American Avocets and dozens of Black Terns. Here as everywhere there was shallow open water or wet ground there were plenty of Black-necked Stilts. The northeast corner of the open flooded area had dozens of Long-billed Dowitchers, Stilt Sandpipers, and both Yellowlegs.
There is a newly flooded area on the east side of Brown s Farm Road a little south of the first bridge that bears keeping an eye on. It s just getting started, but it produced my only Gull-billed Tern and Fulvous Whistling-Ducks for the day. The flooded area on the west side of the road a mile or two to the south didn t have anything new or especially interesting but this area has been flooded for a long time and could become very productive when it is finally drawn down. A little farther down Browns Farm Road I came upon a flock of mostly adult male Brown-headed Cowbirds and was able to pick out an adult male Shiny Cowbird. There was no sign of the mid-day swallow roost south of the microwave tower but there were a few Bank and Tree Swallows perched on the wires in the general area.
I got to the Belle Glade Campground at the hottest time in the afternoon and there was little bird activity. All I was able to add for the day were Caspian Tern over the pond and the resident Northern Rough-winged Swallows resting on a wire along with a few Barn and Bank Swallows.
An afternoon return visit to the King Ranch sod fields on US 27 produced only seven Upland Sandpipers, but they mowed these fields today and the birds were more scattered than they were this morning. There was a flock of over a hundred cowbirds at the northeast corner of the field near the maintenance buildings. It was mostly adult male Brown-headed Cowbirds but there were at least two adult male Shiny Cowbirds and an adult male Bronze Cowbird with them.
This was my first visit to the area this season that I didn t see any Cliff Swallows. The Common Nighthawks were common but not noticeably more so than two weeks ago. I still haven t been able to find any Bobolinks but there are some large maturing rice fields southwest of the microwave tower on Brown s Farm Road waiting for them. Black-bellied Whistling Ducks were found in small numbers in most suitable places. There were at least six Barn Owls at the Barn Owl Grove along the Miami Canal just after sunrise.
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