Posted by Robert Kelley on May 08, 2002 at 20:47:38:
In Reply to: Anis posted by Mary on May 02, 2002 at 15:35:45:
: Just want to let people know that the smooth-billed anis are still in Fairchild Tropical Garden. While in the arboretum, I saw a pair. I could almost touch one of them! They seem to move around a bit, they had been in our lowlands where we were using a bulldozer to move some fill for our future pinelands. The anis were looking for insects behind the bulldozer.
On Saturday, May 4, 2002 there were five anis along the trail that runs through
the woods coming up from the lowlands to the uplands. This is about 50 feet south of the education area.
They were on the ground mostly with a few common grackles. They are
incredibly tame. The participants in my beginning bir/butterfly class
got great views.
We had a male redstart in the large poinciana
just north of the path. On Tuesday, April 30th we also had a blackpoll
and a parula there. This is the thinnest year for migrating warblers that I
have seen in my 38 years of birding south Florida.
The weather has been perfect for the birds to overfly.
A fish crow was in the same area on Saturday with an egg in its' mouth.
Bob Kelley
RKelley@math.miami.edu