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Posted by Rick Schofield on 13:27:43 12/27/12
We had a good number of people for yesterday's walk at Loxahatchee -- snowbirds and vacationers are picking up.
We started with flyovers of both White-winged Doves and Black-bellied Whistling-ducks while still in the Marsh Trail parking lot.
The warblers and "little" birds were scarce -- most likely due to the Merlin hanging out behind the Visitors' Center -- and the poor light didn't help ID those that were there: lots of silhouette birds, plenty of Yellow-rumped Warblers and Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, plus a very nice Yellow-throated Warbler and Ruby-crowned Kinglet. A lone Great Crested Flycatcher was hanging out in the parking lot and gave some very nice views.
We didn't make it out to the Cypress stand leading to the boat ramp because a huge alligator blocked our intended route back to the Marsh Trail, so we back-tracked to the parking lot to get scopes to check out the impoundments. It was a good thing that we did because we discovered a bunch of Blue-winged Teals and a single Ring-necked Duck in C6 (the impoundment closest to Lee Road). Osprey were everywhere.
We tried for Painted Buntings along the eastern-most canal but came up short. Instead we had to settle for a dark-morph Short-tailed Hawk hanging out directly overhead while kettles of Vultures (both Turkey and Black) drifted to the south. Best bird of the day...so far.
When we reached the observation tower area, we scanned the LILA area for Snail Kites (none), Kingfishers (none in that area), and others. We did get a distant American Kestrel and were prepared to move along when eagle-eyed Sue spotted one and then another Gray Ghost Northern Harrier. They were pretty far off but one eventually came toward us giving us perfect views of his slate gray back and white rump band. Where was my camera for him (or for the Short-tailed beforehand)? Hanging around my neck, unused! In my mind, Gray Ghost gets bird-of-the-day.
Shortly after seeing the Gray Ghost we had good looks at a lone Caspian Tern that Tom had earlier alerted us to. He flew right down the canal we were walking. They are not all that common at Loxahatchee but do show up occasionally.
All in all, a pretty good Boxing Day!
Until next Wednesday,
Rick
Loxahatchee NWR--Marsh Trail, Palm Beach, US-FL
Dec 26, 2012 7:30 AM - 11:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling
2.25 mile(s)
Comments: Weekly Wednesday morning birdwalk, Marsh Trail, Loxahatchee NWR, Boynton Beach, Florida. 15 birders. Rick Schofield, leader.
51 species
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck 12 (flyover)
Blue-winged Teal 22
Ring-necked Duck 1
Pied-billed Grebe
Wood Stork
Anhinga
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Cattle Egret
White Ibis
Glossy Ibis
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey 8
Northern Harrier 3 (including 2 Gray Ghost)
Red-shouldered Hawk
Short-tailed Hawk 1 (dark morph)
Purple Gallinule
Common Gallinule
American Coot
Limpkin
Killdeer
Wilson's Snipe
Caspian Tern 1
White-winged Dove
Mourning Dove
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
American Kestrel 1
Merlin 1
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher 1
Blue Jay
House Wren
Carolina Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Common Yellowthroat
Palm Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)
Yellow-throated Warbler
Prairie Warbler 1
Northern Cardinal
Common Grackle
Boat-tailed Grackle
View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S12372250
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
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