[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ TAS BirdBoard ] [ FAQ ]
Posted by Rick Schofield on 15:53:00 03/29/14
An ad hoc group met at Spanish River Park on Friday morning hoping to pick up some of the more interesting things seen there recently.
We were first amazed by how many singing Prairies Warblers were present. They seemed to be everywhere. Cardinals, Blue Jays, and Red-breasted Woodpeckers are always present and made their presence known.
There is an area that people familiar with the park refer to as "The Mound". This spot has fruiting ficus and Gumbo Limbo trees which attract all kinds of different birds. But the fruit hasn't quite ripened to their satisfaction and so there weren't any hanging around.
But around the corner from The Mound, a different ficus was FULL of Cedar Waxwings in constant motion. They would flit from one branch to another -- or to another nearby tree -- and then start over again. In the photos linked to this message is one photo with yellow dots placed for each bird. There were approximately 150 birds in this one tree. And there were more birds outside of the scope of the photo and in other nearby trees.
The only thing in the open field in the back was all sorts of barbed vines that drew blood. Thankfully no one in the group was squeamish.
We could not find the Great Horned Owl at his regular spot but we did get the Spotted Sandpiper at his spot in the Marina as well as a Pileated Woodpecker flyby and a perched American Kestrel. Blue Jays in this area were going berserk and when Sue spotted a Raccoon in the top of a palm we understood why.
We heard, and finally spotted, one Ovenbird though we heard more. Other than the abundance of Prairie Warblers, there were surprisingly few other warblers -- one Palm Warbler not spotted by everyone.
The area where the volleyball court is set up used to be a haven for nesting Yellow-crowned Night-Herons but we found not a single one in the entire park. But this area did have a ripe ficus tree that attracted multiple Pileated and Red-bellied Woodpeckers. It was really cool to see the Pileateds hanging up-side-down picking off the berries.
The best bird of the day (and a lifer for Fred) flew over and perched briefly in the top of a nearby tree. "Oriole!" shouted someone. "Baltimore!" shouted another. "No...that's a... Spot-breasted Oriole!" yelled another. It hung around so briefly that we couldn't get any photos but we got good enough views for confirmation.
We finally got the recent Brown Trasher resident back near where we were parked but no Great Horned Owl or Louisiana Waterthrush or Buntings (Painted or Indigo). Next time.
Things will be picking up over the next few weeks so stop by if you're in the area. Parking is an issue: $16/weekday, $20/weekend day and metered parking on Spanish River Blvd. You can park in the Walgreen's parking lot on the SE corner of Federal Hwy and Spanish River Blvd and walk up to A1A then enter at the Coast Guard Auxiliary and Park Offices.
Thanks to Sue for putting together the day list.
Rick
Spanish River Park, Palm Beach, US-FL
Mar 28, 2014 7:30 AM - 11:00 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.5 mile(s)
Comments: Rick Schofield leader. Additional birds seen by others in the group: Palm Warbler, Brown Thrasher, Osprey, Blue-headed Vireo.
24 species
Mottled Duck 2
Brown Pelican 12 Flyovers
Turkey Vulture 2
Cooper's Hawk 1
Spotted Sandpiper 1
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker 6
Downy Woodpecker 1
Pileated Woodpecker 2 May have been more than two. Lots of great views, one was even hanging upside down from a small branch eating fruit.
American Kestrel 1
Blue-headed Vireo 1
Blue Jay 4
Fish Crow 6
Gray Catbird 4
Brown Thrasher 1
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 3
Cedar Waxwing 125 Great views, the flock pretty much stayed perched in the same tree the entire time we were in the park.
Ovenbird 1
Palm Warbler 1
Prairie Warbler 7 Nice to see so many.
Northern Cardinal 6
Common Grackle 2
Spot-breasted Oriole 1 A brief but good look, top of a tall tree, then disappeared.
View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S17633708
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ TAS BirdBoard ] [ FAQ ]