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Posted by Brian Rapoza on 17:02:05 05/05/13
Fourteen birders joined me for today's trip to North Key Largo. Arguably, the best bird of the day was a female Bay-breasted Warbler, seen in a backcountry area (permit required) of Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park. Other birds seen in this area included White-crowned Pigeon, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Great-crested Flycatcher, White-eyed Vireo, Ovenbird, Northern Waterthrush, Black-and-white Warbler, American Redstart, Cape May Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler and Black-throated Blue Warbler. A possible Connecticut Warbler was briefly seen by some participants. Mangrove Cuckoos were heard but not seen.
At the west end of the Card Sound Bridge, we heard but were unable to see "Cuban" Yellow Warbler. Everyone in the group was able to see a singing Black-whiskered Vireo; other birds tallied during this stop included White-crowned Pigeon, Gray Kingbird, Prairie Warbler, Common Yellowthroat and Brown-headed Cowbird. Birds seen along Card Sound Road in Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge included Magnificent Frigatebird, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Roseate Spoonbill, Wood Stork and Least Tern.
At Key Largo Hammocks State Botanical Site, we added Magnolia Warbler to our warbler list. We also viewed a White-eyed Vireo building a nest near the restroom. There was no sign of the Thick-billed Vireo seen several days ago. We saw two cuckoos; one was definitely Yellow-billed, while the other never provided adequate looks to identify to species.
After lunch at the Buzzards Roost on Key Largo, we headed back to Miami; several of us stopped at Black Point Park to search for Mangrove Cuckoo. A cuckoo in flight was seen twice at the west end of the parking area; a Mangrove Cuckoo called twice but was not seen near the turnaround at the east end of the parking area. Angel and Mariel Abreu joined us and agreed to lead some of us to where White-rumped Sandpipers were reported yesterday. The spot, an agricultural field on SW 256 Street west of SW 107 Avenue, had at least one White-rumped working the puddles, along with a couple of Least Sandpipers and several Semipalmated Plovers.
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