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Posted by Carlos Sanchez on 19:59:10 05/27/08
Today, I went out birding in the late morning (around 10am) at Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge. There were plenty of great birds out today, despite not being there first thing in the morning. Highlights:
Cypress Boardwalk: pair each of Downy and Pileated Woodpeckers. Both species were found on trees right next to the trail, so I got excellent views. Lots of Red-bellied Woodpecker, Northern Cardinal, and a single Mourning Dove.
Wetland Impoundments: great views and numbers of all the common and not so common waders, including Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Little Blue Heron, Tricolored Heron, Snowy Egret, Cattle Egret, Green Heron, White Ibis, and Glossy Ibis. A single Roseate Spoonbill in full breeding plumage was the highlight of the wader ensemble.
There were also Anhingas, Common Moorhens, Killdeer, Black-necked Stilts, and a single Double-crested Cormorant. Among the ducks, there were Mottled Ducks and Black-bellied Whistling-ducks. A single Red-shouldered Hawk harassed by the plague-like numbers of Boat-tailed Grackles. Didn't see any Purple Gallinules or Wood Storks here, though.
I climbed up the look-out tower to see what was about with my binoculars, and saw a single Sandhill Crane feeding near some heavy machinery. I quickly climbed down the tower and went in the direction of the crane. I got a second look at it while walking in its general direction, but it was gone by the time I got to the area it was in -- probably spooked by all the big trucks and construction machinery.
I thought this was going to be the best bird of the trip, but I was wrong. A photographer I passed by pointed me in the direction of a twelve-foot tall cypress tree with a Snail Kite nest! The tree is in the second impoundment from the first entrance. I got great (lifer) views of the Snail Kite flying out of the tree and soaring around its general vicinity. The nest was faintly visible, hidden inside the small tree.
Great bird and day at Loxahatchee!
Carlos
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