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Posted by Bryant Roberts on 20:20:42 11/03/09
On the way down to Everglades National Park last Saturday for a couple of nights of camping at Flamingo I made a late morning stop at Lucky Hammock. A few of the usual warblers and other songbirds were still active but the most interesting sightings were all three falcons along with Broad-winged and Short-tailed Hawks as well as a couple of Cave Swallows among the Barn Swallows. The most interesting birds found on the rest of the trip down were Black-throated Green Warblers at Royal Palm Hammock and Long Pine Key. Things got a little more interesting late that afternoon with a Clay-colored Sparrow at the entrance to Eco Pond and a few Roseate Spoonbills brilliantly lit by the late afternoon sunlight. At sunset what I m pretty sure was a Common Nighthawk flew over the pond and later a few Lesser Nighthawks appeared over the west end of the campgrounds.
Sunday morning a Chimney Swift and Cave Swallow were among the numerous Barn Swallows over Eco Pond and along with the usual waders and songbirds there were a pair of Baltimore Orioles in the Strangler Figs and Painted Buntings in the brush. A visit to the old cabins area turned up more warblers including a somewhat surprising for Flamingo Pine Warbler but the best birds were a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher and Western Kingbird trying to hawk passing dragonflies from the tops of the Buttonwoods. There was an eastward flight from mid morning to early afternoon of many thousands of Great Pondhawks (Erythemis vesiculosa), a fairly large mostly green dragonfly. This was probably the most remarkable wildlife event going on that weekend at Flamingo. I ve seen these late fall flights before and wonder whether they continue southward through the keys then cross over to Cuba or Yucatan on north winds after a cold front. Most of the rest of the day was spent hiking down the still closed to motor vehicles Bear Lake Road and Bear Lake Trail where the most interesting birds found were a Worm Eating Warbler and Blue-headed Vireo along with good numbers of the usual late fall/early winter warblers. After sunset back at Flamingo I was only able to spot one Lesser Nighthawk over the western end of the campgrounds.
My Monday morning project was a hike a couple of miles out the Coastal Prairie Trail with a long loop through the Sparrow Fields. On the way through the campground I saw my first Indigo Bunting of the trip along with an Orange-crowned Warbler and a Red-eyed Vireo. My stroll through the Sparrow Fields didn t turn up any Nelson s or Salt-marsh Sparrows but I was able to scare up about ten Marsh Wrens, a few Savannah Sparrows, and a Bobolink. The most entertaining part of that part of the hike was an area of open water in the prairie where about thirty American Avocets, several Roseate Spoonbills and a couple of immature Reddish Egrets were actively feeding. The dragonfly flight was even more impressive viewed over the open expanse of coastal prairie. A detour to the now incomplete and nearly abandoned Bayshore Loop produced a Bay-breasted Warbler; my best warbler of the trip. I broke camp that afternoon and headed north where a stop at Snake Bight Road gave me my first Magnolia Warbler for the weekend bringing my trip warbler list to seventeen. A sunset stop at Lucky Hammock was rewarded by about a dozen Lesser Nighthawks flying around the hammock and Whip-poor-wills giving there evening whip notes as darkness fell. One of the Whip-poor-wills was cooperative enough to land on the powerline where I watched it for a few minutes in the light of the rising full moon.
Mosquitoes weren t much of a problem during the day on the trails but there was a good flight of them as well as Sand Flies at sunrise and sunset.
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