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Posted by Vincent Lucas on 14:08:19 03/12/11
Today, March 12, 2011, I decided to hook-up with the Collier County Audubon Society's fieldtrip to Tigertail Beach/Big Marco Pass Critical Wildlife Area on Marco Island. Much to my chagrin, no one wanted to wade across the lagoon to the Gulf side of the WMA so I went alone. It was a good day for birds despite the very pallid peripatetic people walking the beach, oblivious to their surroundings and its inhabitants. I managed to add four new species to my Collier County Big Year total which now stands at 172 species as of today. The new species were, in order: American Oystercatcher (x3), Marbled Godwit (x2), Northern Gannet (x1 juvenile) and Barn Swallow (x5). The latter had just come off of the Gulf and were exhausted. They immediately rested on some branches sticking out of the lagoon and allowed close approach. I was lucky on the gannet as it was the only one seen all morning and flew withing 500 yeards of the beach. I have to say that I definitely got my exercise this morning because the other two shorebirds (AMOY & MAGO) were probably a 2-3 mile walk to the north after crossing the lagoon. But it was worth it! Here's my morning list:
Red-breasted Merganser (x1)
Northern Gannet (x1 juvenile)
American White Pelican (x1 juvenile at the extreme north end of the Big Marco Pass Critical Wildlife Area)
Brown Pelican
Double-crested Cormorant
Anhinga
Great Blue heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Reddish Egret (including one white morph)
White Ibis
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey (nesting)
Bald Eagle (at least 5 subadults, several of which were perched on the "no tresspassing" signs in the CWA + two juveniles on nest on Tigertail Ct.)
American Kestrel
Black-bellied Plover
Snowy Plover >12 individuals)
Wilson's Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Piping Plover (no banded birds observed by me)
American Oystercatcher (x3)
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
Willet (all Eastern race)
Marbled Godwit (x2)
Ruddy Turnstone
Red Knot (>10, no banded birds observed by me)
Sanderling
Western Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
Dunlin
Short-billed Dowitcher
Laughing Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Royal Tern
Burrowing Owl (seen on Crescent Dr. off of Tigertail Ct. on the way to Tigertail Beach)
Belted Kingfisher
Great Crested Flycatcher (in parking lot at Tigertail Beach)
White-eyed Vireo (calling in parking lot at Tigertail Beach)
Blue Jay (in parking lot at Tigertail Beach)
American Crow (Identified by call)
Fish Crow (identified by call)
Barn Swallow (x5 FOTS)
Gray Catbird (in parking lot at Tigertail Beach)
Prairie Warbler (singing in mangroves along lagoon)
Northern Cardinal (in parking lot at Tigertail Beach)
Common Grackle (in parking lot at Tigertail Beach)
I'm still loon-less despite checking everywhere in Collier County! They are scarce this year. Also, I was hoping that the Least Terns were back but such was not the case. Perhaps they are late this year as well? In fact, the ONLY tern I saw today was Royal Tern and I saw lots of them. None of the other expected terns were present. Odd.
I don't know what the others in the Collier County Audubon group saw. Perhaps one of them will chime-in with their sightings. . . .
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