Posted by Andrew Barndt on July 20, 2018 at 16:53:48
Hey all, I'm Andrew Barndt, a recent high school graduate from Massachusetts whose family is coming to various parts of Florida for a vacation starting in a week. I also use vacations as prime opportunity to get new birds, and even though I've been to Florida before there's plenty I still need. The plan is to fly into Orlando late Thursday next week and spend a day there for theme parks, drive to Miami on Saturday, go to the Marlins game Sunday, leave Monday open, drive up to St. Petersburg Tuesday, go to the Rays game Wednesday night, and drive back to Orlando later on Thursday and fly out that evening. Naturally I've done a bunch of eBird research but there's still a lot that eBird doesn't help with.
I've got Orlando birding sorted out, but once I get to Miami and St. Pete I have no contacts. Miami in particular I could use some assistance with - I'm looking to get a bunch of urban exotics, some species best found around Browns Farm Rd, and Green Cay/Wakodahatchee. Only the last one looks like a straightforward trip to me - urban birding is all over the place and as far as Browns Farm Rd. goes I don't have great precedent birding rural roads I've only gotten bits and pieces of info on, plus I have no idea how far down the road I'm supposed to go or if it's busier than I think. Monday is the open day to do places like Browns Farm Rd and Green Cay so if anyone's available then for those spots it'd be ideal; urban exotics birding is a bit more flexible. My hotel for the time in Miami is I think in the Weston area so even with the Zenaida Dove and bulbul I’m not sure if Kendall’s possible given how far south it is.
St. Petersburg-wise, I'm mostly focused on Fort de Soto shorebirds and parakeets and if Short-tailed Hawk can have a truly reliable location. Brown Booby apparently has a preferred electric tower in the water in the area too. I know this board focuses more on southern FL but I'm hoping people on this board know that area too or at least others who do.
Ideally, someone who knew what they were doing would be there in-person with me in the Browns Farm Rd. area or for the urban exotics, but if that's not possible you have my full understanding. Some helpful specifics of how to bird an area or find a certain urban species like Spot-breasted Oriole are always appreciated, however. I've attached a screenshot of a spreadsheet I have that lists all my lifer targets and where eBird indicates they're reliable (or says if they're not reliable). The recent Smooth-billed Ani and Zenaida Dove aren’t on there but if they stick around I'd love to give those a try.
My email is andrew.barndt@gmail.com, or you can reply via comments here. Thanks a ton!
