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Posted by John Boyd on 19:46:51 11/07/10
It was a cold windy day to be birding, but about a dozen birders joined me Saturday at the Coe Visitor's Center. A Northen Flicker and a Downy Woodpecker kept us entertained until we headed out to Lucky Hammock.
We got a decent selection of birds at Lucky Hammock, including Painted Bunting, several species of warbler, Savannah and Grasshopper Sparrows, and 3 species of swallow. Rather than continue to the annex as on the south Dade trip 3 weeks ago, we went back into the park to Anhinga Trail. Some meadowlarks popped up as we crossed Taylor Slough, including one that flew alongside for a bit.
At Anhinga Trail, a Great Blue Heron took exception to an American Bittern. For a moment I thought the bittern would land in the water in front of us, but it just dipped its feet before gaining some altitude. It put down in the sawgrass. Pretty soon it was invisible, but I heard that it came back out later. We also found both light and dark morph Short-tailed Hawks at Ahninga Trail in addition to the usual waders.
Gumbo Limbo Trail was pretty quiet, although there were a few birds (including 3 Phoebes) around the pond. We drove through the pinelands to the research center, adding only Pine Warbler on the way. By now it was time for lunch, which was at the circle in the Long Pine Key picnic area. The wind meant that birds remained elusive.
The next stop was Mahogany Hammock. There are birds there in the winter, but the question is always whether you'll encounter them. If you run across one of the little flocks, you leave happy, but if you don't, you sometimes wonder why you stopped. We eventually found a small flock that included a couple of Black-and-white Warblers, both BT Blue and BT Green Warblers, and a Parula. A couple of birds got away. I also often encounter an interesting bird or two while leaving the parking lot. Two weeks ago it was a Blue Grosbeak. This time there were two odd-looking White-winged Doves (how odd? we considered Zenaida, but they weren't). While these are not unusual in Miami-Dade, they are quite unusual in the heart of the 'glades.
There were few waders at Paurotis Pond, and Nine Mile Pond was very quiet. Two weeks ago there were ducks at West Lake. This week there were even more, and long-time local birders were trying to recall when they had last seen so many ducks there. Five species were present: Ruddy and Ring-necked Ducks, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, and American Wigeon. The boardwalk was quiet. I notice that the canopy is now fully closed, five years after Katrina and Wilma ripped it open.
Mrazek Pond was less active, and after a short stop we continued to Flamingo. The tide was in. Some shorebirds were along the shoreline in the primitive camping area. Most were near where the Bar-tailed Godwit was in March, and a few were near the amphitheater. The amount of water in the grass caused some problems viewing these birds. When we returned to the cars, we also spotted a couple of Brown-headed Cowbirds.
We made a brief tour of the campgrounds (more Painted Buntings) and a short stop at Eco Pond. It was getting late, so we made a brief stop at the store, then headed back north.
As the day ended, Paul Bithorn, Kevin Sarsfield, and I were at Lucky Hammock again. We hoped for owls or nighthawks, but it was only a hope. We heard an odd call shortly before leaving. It came closer, and we finally ID'd it as a "quock bird", a Black-crowned Night-Heron. Oddly enough, it was our only one of the day.
Collectively, we found over 90 species (86 for me) including a dozen warblers. I thought it was good total for such a windy day.
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