More Florida Birding Highlights...

Hello readers. Well, it's been a touch hectic here in sunny Florida, what with all the relaxing, leisurely birding and my ongoing investigation into the state's microbreweries...

Monday was a bit of a write-off bird-wise as we all headed out to some monster outlet mall to indulge in a spot of rampant pre-Christmas consumerism. As it happens, I did add a few birds to the trip list. Floridian favourites such as loggerhead shrike, red-shouldered hawk, wood stork (pictured) and magnificent frigatebird were all seen en route, but eclipsing these fine aves was a rather fine crested caracara perched up in a roadside tree. Off the top of my head, I think this is the first one I've seen north of Mexico, so it was a pleasant surprise to see it sat there.
Once we got 'home', Jenny, Satty and I headed out to the beach to catch the sunset. Of course, there were willets, ruddy turnstones and sanderling on the beach with ring-billed gulls, laughing gulls and passing royal terns. On our way back in the dusky darkness we heard a great horned owl hooting from the confines of a huge banyan tree.

Tuesday was somewhat more productive on the birding front as me and Jenny, along with Paul and Satty, hired bikes and explored the length of Gasparilla Island, and beyond. As we headed out north along the island on the excellent cyclepath, we frequently stopped to check out the mangroves, bays and assorted interesting looking spots. There were loads of yellow-rumped and palm warblers all along the route, plus we got views of a single common yellowthroat and a dazzling northern cardinal. Both turkey and black vultures, American kestrels, Cooper's and sharp-shinned hawks and scores of ospreys competed with the white and brown pelicans, various egrets and anhingas for our attention. 
From a small bridge overlooking a shallow bay with exposed sandbars, I could see good numbers of willet, sanderling, black-bellied plover, killdeer and a couple of Wilson's plovers. 
On the other side of the bridge, another sandbar hosted around 400 black skimmers, plus hundreds of Sandwich and Forster's terns and brown pelicans.
A sizeable flock of feeding warblers were working their way through some roadside trees and, after a little pishing, I was soon surrounded by a horde of palm warblers, and in among them a single pine warbler and smart black-and-white warbler.

On our way, we also saw the lizard pictured here, either consuming a large spider or still sporting its Movember 'tache... (maybe one of my herpetologist pals can identify the reptile?)
After a return to the house for a much deserved cup of tea we cycled down to the south of the island, to the old lighthouse. Brown pelicans and double-crested cormorants were in good supply and a single horned grebe was fishing close to the shore.

On the beach there were good numbers of Sandwich and Forster's terns mixed in with the many laughing gulls (pictured). A bottle-nosed dolphin showed well, passing by just offshore.
The usual shorebirds were present.
We returned the bikes and headed to a bar to sample some local brews and review our plans for the following day... (going in search of a lifer or two - details to follow!)

Brit Birder Returns To Florida

Spent most of Saturday in transit between Victoria and Fort Myers, Florida. We arrived in darkness and were met by my brother Paul and his wife Satty, who had flown in from the UK the day before.
We headed out to Boca Grande, just to the north of Sanibel Island, where we would be staying for the week. After a few well-earned ales we hit the hay in the early hours.
This morning, I awoke and took in my immediate surroundings. The house backs onto a canal, and is flanked by mangroves. Reasonably interesting! The first bird I heard was a palm warbler, which eventually showed as it made its way through the waterside vegetation.
Within seconds an Eastern phoebe flew in and showed brilliantly, flycatching from the top of a nearby mangrove. Turkey vultures soon appeared overhead and several brown pelicans and double-crested cormorants were seen in the distance. A couple more palm warblers came by, as did a yellow-rumped warbler.

After a leisurely breakfast we strolled into 'town' - a small collection of stores and restaurants - and then on to the beach and back. Birds encountered along the way included American kestrel, Cooper's hawk, mourning dove, common ground dove, red-bellied woodpecker, common loon, willet (pictured), Forster's tern, laughing gull and ringed-billed gull.
Later we took a drive out to the nearest supermarket, passing through some great habitat en route. We saw more pelicans, cormorants, gulls and terns and such, plus added black vulture, white ibis, great-blue heron, great egret, snowy egret, tri-coloured heron, black-crowned night-heron, wood stork, osprey, common grackle and boat-tailed grackle to the trip list.
Maybe I'll get chance to get out into some really good areas for some 'real' birding in the next few days, but given that that's not the sole purpose of this pre-Christmas getaway, I may just have to take what I can get!
I do have plans to get in the Babcock/Webb Wildlife Management Area where there is a relatively healthy population of red-cockaded woodpecker, but whether I'll be able to locate any at this time of year is up for debate. Oh well, I can only give it a go, and hope that I bump into any of the 4 potential ticks that occur in the large preserve...!

Last Full Day in Florida...

Sadly, it was our final day today and we decided to return to Fort DeSoto Park. Paul once again indulged his love of fishing, Jenny and Satty took off on bikes, and I spent a few hours trying to find some birds to look at.
En route, we stopped briefly at a roadside pool that was positively covered with ducks. The majority were redheads, with around 300 present. Good numbers of lesser scaup, and smaller numbers of northern shoveler and ring-necked duck were also on the water. A few moorhen were around the edges.

In the park proper, I took the delightfully named Soldier's Hole trail. It was pretty quiet, and I spent a long time creeping around in search of nothing much. I came across a few cardinals, loads of yellow-rumped warblers and a couple of blue-grey gnatcatchers and common ground-doves but not much else. When I got a glimpses of the mangrove edges, there was little to be seen, but I did spy an anhinga, black-crowned night heron and a few egrets of various species. 
Walking back through the scrubby areas near the beach, I came across an eastern phoebe, several palm warblers and more cardinals. Several tree swallows buzzed over.
Offshore and around the beach there were the usual Forster's and royal terns (pictured), plus lots of laughing gulls and a few ring-billed gulls. Common loon, double-crested cormorant, red-breasted merganser, brown pelicans and such were all kicking around. Once again, many kestrels, loggerhead shrikes and mourning doves were utilizing the overhead wires and ospreys were all over the place.
After feeling somewhat deflated by the lack of exciting birds to be found in the bush, I decided to head back to the pools to go through the ducks more carefully, just in case a canvasback was lurking undetected.

I didn't locate any canvasbacks, but it was a treat to enjoy such large numbers of redhead. In a nearby tree, a red-bellied woodpecker showed well, hence the photo.
On another pool, there were good numbers of American coot and yet more moorhen. I scanned the edges for sora or other lurkers but couldn't find anything.
Well, I haven't exactly 'worked it', but my few days of leisurely Floridian birding have been great, and the opportunity for Jenny and I to hang out with Paul and Satty greater still. Who knows when that chance will repeat itself?
 

   

Birding Out Of Area

Finding ourselves unable to refuse a kind offer to join my brother Paul and his wife Satty down in Florida for a week, we headed south on Saturday.
Jenny was looking forward to some sunshine and a relaxing few days in good company. I, naturally was thinking about the handful of potential new birds I could possibly see without it interfering too much with everyone else's plans.
A very long day traveling to Tampa, involving the 5.15am ferry from Duke Point, Nanaimo and a 11.15pm arrival time meant that Saturday was a birdless affair, with the exception of a few northern harriers seen at Tsawassen and Vancouver Airport. 
After a late night (early morning) catching up and imbibing a few ales, we awoke Sunday morning to bright sunshine. Following a leisurely breakfast we took a stroll along the beach to nearby John's Pass. On the way we encountered good numbers of ring-billed and laughing gulls, royal and Forster's terns, brown pelicans (pictured) and sanderlings. The occasional ruddy turnstones, willet, American herring gulls and black-bellied plovers also put in appearances along the water's edge.
Scanning over the channel at John's Pass, I added a few more species to the list including great egret, double-crested cormorant and, always a treat, black skimmer. Then I spotted a bird that has been eluding me for years - American oystercatcher. Somehow or another, this distinctive and common wader has managed to go unseen by me, until now. About time too!

A solitary great-black backed gull was also sat loafing on a sand bar and a screeching cloud of green flashed by as a flock of (black-hooded?) parakeets passed noisily through.
We also encountered boat-tailed grackles and belted kingfishers, plus numerous Eurasian collared and mourning doves.
By a bird rehabilitation centre at Indian Shores, there were also gathered many wild birds, obviously tuned into the fact that easy pickings might be had. These included common species such as black and turkey vultures, great-blue heron, white ibis, black-crowned night heron (pictured) and snowy egret.
Later, near our temporary home at Madeira Beach, we were treated to views of loggerhead shrike, osprey, tricolored heron and green heron (pictured).
All in all, given that I wasn't really birding, I had a pretty good day, ave-wise. It was great to re-familiarise myself with a few species that I haven't seen for a few years, and better still, I got a world tick on day one!