Wood Stork

Not much time to bird besides my weekly banding jaunts. So, here is a Wood Stork near the house before dark.



Yep. Just a Wood Stork. I still flash back to trips heading home to our house in the Keys and Dad saying how rare it was to see them back in the 70's. Their numbers were so low that they were teetering on the brink. Now they have rebounded nicely and can be found all over Central Florida and elsewhere. Love them.

A Few Remaining Winter Ducks

A trip to the store always means a trip around Lake Weldona. Not many Winter ducks remaining. I think all the Ring-necked Ducks took off recently. All I could find was a flock of Blue-winged Teal drifting through the grasses.



Closer to shore, a Great Blue Heron stood staring into the water waiting to pounce.



Other than that...*yawn*...

Local Lake Search

This season has been so slow for migrants that I keep wondering why I even take my daily lake rounds to look for them. It has been consistently disappointing. A typical year usually has hundreds of Ring-necked Duck in the area. This year the best flock is on Lake Weldona with just over 30 birds.



There must be something out there just out of sight because I am starting to see more raptors on the move. This Cooper's Hawk was trying to stay hidden in a Cypress at Lake Lancaster.



On the opposite shore, the Great Blue Herons are preparing to nest in their usual oak trees.



On to Lake Davis to look for a reported bird I haven't seen in a few years. The first ducks I found were a couple of young Muscovy Ducks that were hatched last month.



Just when I thought I wasn't going to see any Anhinga, there she was.



A small flock of Blue-winged Teal have been hanging out this season. Mostly they cling to the shore under the shade. Today I caught one in the sunlight for a few seconds.



It seemed to take a while for the American Coots to show up this Winter but they are here and there around the area now.



Rounding the last part of my lake walk I spotted the birds I was after. Northern Shovelers congregate in large numbers over on the coasts but some years they venture inland. They are another duck that stays in the shade a lot.



Northern Shoveler males get pretty flashy. This is actually the 'dull' plumage.



A few more species in the area with a little while longer to go. I have yet to see a Cedar Waxwing this season which is really odd. Waiting and watching.

Black-necked Stilts

Quick spin around Lake Weldona. I have been scanning for shorebirds for a couple weeks without luck. Finally, a pair of Black-necked Stilts came into view. Usually, they settle into a retention pond a mile away behind a church but the water seems to be too high right now. Eventually, I found a total of 4 before they moved on.



A bit down the shoreline I found a Wood Stork relaxing. Should be seeing more of them as the waters draw down and make it easier to grab the smaller fish.



My search for other shorebirds will continue as April moves along...

Lust Road

I had to head over to Apopka to check on banding a Cooper's Hawk before it was going to be released after rehab. I didn't take any photos there but then I decided to stop over at Lust Road to see if I could find a rare bird being reported over there. A Western Tanager. A few birders were already there and reported seeing the bird a few minutes before. Just missed it.

Since I have now struck out on 3 Life birds of late, I wandered up and down the road looking for anything else to photograph. We could hear sparrows all around but most birds were staying low. Finally, a juvenile White-crowned Sparrow popped up onto the fence.



One of the other birders screamed out that there was an Ash-throated Flycatcher 100 yards from me. By the time I got there it had flown of. Now 4 Life Bird misses. All I got was a Northern Mockingbird on that walk back.



Back down by the gate I could see a Bald Eagle resting on one of the telephone poles.



The one good surprise was a pretty early male Prairie Warbler that flew in for a few seconds and then departed. A nice splash of yellow against a cold morning blue sky.



We hoped the Tanager would return but it was not to be. Other birds flew by and eventually Red-tailed Hawks took to the sky. The first in view was a darker morph adult.



It was soon joined by another individual.



This one is a very light morph variety. They decided to ride the increasing thermals instead of gracing us with closer views.



Time to head home. Over at Lake Weldona, a Great Blue Heron was wading in to search for prey.



Then a surprise at Lake Cherokee. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted a large bird. By the time I rounded the corner I could see that it was a Brown Pelican but it decided to fly off before I could get a good shot. We don't get a lot of Brown Pelicans in the neighborhood but they occasionally can be found in Orlando lakes in the Winter.



Last stop before the house is almost always the cemetery. Bald Eagles were nowhere in sight but I did find the Coyote again.



Turned out to be an interesting Saturday spin but I really would have liked to get those other Lifers on my Lust Road stop. Maybe next time.

Surprise Gadwalls

I had a little bit of time to stop by Lake Davis and Weldona on the way to me next chores for the day. I wanted to scan Davis for anything that might be new so I walked the perimeter for a bit to get close to the resting duck flock. Not a bunch of new birds around but I was drawn to a feeding Snowy Egret down by the reeds.



I almost didn't even notice the Western Palm Warbler feeding nearly at my feet as I watched the distant birds. There was a strange call from the reeds but it turned out to be a Common Yellowthroat that eventually flew to the West.



I headed toward the store and as I rounded the turn of Lake Weldona I saw a bird out of the corner of my eye and immediately knew it was a Gadwall. My first ever Gadwalls were found last year so they are kind of burned into my memory for now.



I have been trying to get a shot of this odd Ring-necked Duck that is now here for at least the second Winter. It is very white around the head but usually stays way out in the water. Just need to get the clouds out of the way.



I got out of the car and tried to ease toward the birds and the Sun peeked out enough for me to get a good shot. Last year I had them in rainy conditions and was not happy with the shots except for being able to add them to my Life List.



Also along the shore, a Great Blue Heron seemed to be overseeing the ducks gathered below. If I would have arrived several seconds later I would not have seen any of the Gadwalls as they tucked themselves along the bank.



Soon, the first Gadwall swam out and began to bathe and preen.



Then, two more Gadwalls drifted out from the shore to follow suit. Three Gadwalls here. I need to go back and see but I think that is how many I had on Lake Davis last year. Possibly the same group returning for the Winter.



I was trying to squeeze out a few more shots of the Gadwalls when the Ring-necked Duck came back out in the sunshine joined by an American Coot.



Not a bad score during a casual drive and the first new species of ducks for this entire season. Just wish we had more ducks around but migration has been slow all over the East Coast this year so I will take what I can get. The thing I don't get is why the city has trimmed the Cypress Trees along Lake Emerald just around the corner. Wood Ducks used to use them as resting spots. I don't get it.



I will have to keep paying attention to all of the local watering holes for a while. This finding was a nice addition to the Winter.

New Mute Swans

Besides our Mute Swan family at Lake Davis there has been an interloper from time to time that the adult chase away. I drove by Lake Weldona today and was surprised to find a new pair there, only blocks away from Lake Davis.



Wonder if they will start a little family of their own?

Spotted Sandpiper

Not much happening around the neighborhood during my daily check but I did get a nice surprise by Lake Weldona. I was watching the near shore when I noticed something streak off to the right. I searched in vain for what it could be but it was definitely small enough to be a shore bird. I thought they had all cleared out by now.

Moments later the speck headed across the lake and toward the far shore. A Spotted Sandpiper glided to a stop.



I will have to check my records for this species but I don't recall any this late in the season before. My guess would be that it is the same bird I saw a few weeks ago a couple blocks over at Lake Emerald.



Now I will have to keep my eyes more focused on the lake shores which are beginning to disappear as the water levels rise. Finally getting some rain.