Trail Walking Wekiva

With a front moving in for the weekend, threatening to cancel Sunday's banding, I was thinking of heading over to Ft. DeSoto. I figured it may be a tad crowed (later reports said as many birders as birds!) and I knew I would have to work late and have to drive early.

I decided to stay close to home and check out some trails at Wekiva I hadn't fully explored. There was an earlier report of fledging Great-horned Owls down the trails and I wanted to find them.

It was a pretty hot day but I knew I needed to get in about 5 or more miles to get where I was headed. Not a problem. Most of the hike is in the shade.

Usual suspects were around and first of the season Red-eyed Vireos made an appearance half-way through the hike. Lingering warblers and singing sparrows. When I got to the area that the owls were suppose to be, however, I found little.

I was choosing which way I should head on a new trail when I saw a white-tailed deer to my right. It watched me warily and moved on. I decided to head down that way farther and soon found a break in the brush, apparently created by animals walking through.

Following that, it opened onto the shore of Lake Prevatt. Not much of a lake left. A bit of a pond and a few mud holes and a LOT of dried mud. I walked out onto the lake bed and as I rounded a clump of bushes the far side of the lake was teaming with deer. At least 12. Another deer flushed off to my left.

Soon, a bird also flushed from the bushes to the left. It turned out to be a juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron! It flew over to where the deer were, near a mud hole. I followed to try and get a closer shot.

Once I got closer to the mud I began to notice a few tiny heads around the edge of the mud where the last of the remaining vegetation. Baby alligators! First a couple, then several. I stopped walking when I noticed the series of dark bumps resting in the wettest part of the mud. Mama was keeping watch and began to push herself deeper in the muck when she sensed me approaching.

I would have to change direction. I respect the power of gators enough to know better than to mess with one protecting young.

I got back onto the main trail and headed around the other side of the lake. There I found a few tom Turkeys out on the lake bed checking me out. Suddenly, 4 more popped up around the other corner. More surprising was that a couple of them decided to leave the lake bed and walked right past me.



Time was running out for my hike so I headed back. Nearing the net lanes again, I heard some birds scolding around the bushes near the trail ahead. Out popped a Pine Snake right in front of me! I was trying to get a shot of it but it turned and fled back into the scrub. The birds continued to scold and some warblers appeared before me.



I can't remember seeing female Pine Warblers before but here she was, down out of the high branches to chase away this 4 foot snake. A male joined her, as did Gnatcatchers, Prairie Warblers, and a Titmouse.



I didn't find anything spectacular today but at least I got some shots of the Pine Warbler. The most important event would happen a bit later. This long walk in 90 degree heat sealed my decision that had been brewing for years.

Time to cut off this ponytail.

Easter Waxwings

One final day with the visiting in-laws and we were all together for Easter Sunday. Of course, I managed to squeeze in a little birding along the way.

The most fun site of the day was a flock of Cedar Waxwings feeding on the Loquat fruit in the tree across the fence. There were around a dozen birds and they were basically oblivious to me as they fed.



Shots like these were not that easy, though. They kept hanging upside down or ended up behind leaves while looking for that perfect slice of fruit. Every now and then they were argue with one another.



A great site to have around. Won't be long before the larger flocks depart.

Monk Parakeets, No Foolin'!

A few days earlier, Paul emailed that another birder was reporting some nesting Monk Parakeets not too far from my house. By the time I could have gotten there that night it would ahve been near dark so I planned on trying for them after banding.

Directions placed me at an intersection with a convenience store on one side and a power substation on the other. Since I have seen parrots and parakeets hanging out at substations around Tampa/St. Pete I decided that must be the best place to look. The direction didn't pinpoint any one exact spot.

My main concern in these times of paranoid officials was who was going to jump me once I started scanning such a structure with binoculars. There have been many reports of birders being detained or questioned intensely by Men in Black just because they were staring in the direction of some government structure or another.

Luckily, I didn't have time to look too hard.

As I approached the the intersection I heard a loud noise behind me, away from the substation. I tracked the noise to a telephone pole located just behind the store. Whew.

The light was bad as it was noon and the birds were up in the transformer on the pole. The only spot to stand was next to a ditch in order to see the birds. There were 4 shapes that I could make out and the nest was obvious. After a few minutes, one of the birds walked out to the edge of the nest.



A minute later another pulled a stick out to the edge and tryed to place it in the right spot.



I have been meaning to track down Monk Parakeets for years but never found a chance. Nice to have them even closer this time.

Meanwhile, the morning banding session yielded the usual suspects, including this beautiful male Prairie Warbler.



We checked out the nest boxes again and now there were 4 eggs in the nest. As we approached, there were 2 Bluebirds in the area, one of which was the bird we banded the week before.



Not a bad April Fool's Day. No tricks.

A Few Minutes of Awe

We had a chance to sleep in for once. If you consider sleeping in having the youngest walk in the room and ask for stuff every 15 minutes. At least it didn't start until after dawn.

Before it got too hot I hurried outside and was going to just get rid of the leaves on the deck but figured since I was out there I might as well mow. The birds weren't that happy that I set out food and then made it all noisy but it had to be done. As soon as I completed all the yard work I was going to do I sat on the back steps to enjoy the breeze and relax.

That's when the high-pitched sounds grew and grew in the oaks at the back of the yard.

Suddenly, Cedar Waxwings fluttered out from the treetops and landed near the feeders and in the cherry laurels. I was under one of those and the birds were seaching the branches for any remaining berries left over from the Robin feasts. There were a few out on the tips of most branches.

There I sat as Waxwings were literally 2 feet in front of my face and over my head, their weight dropping them down directly in front of me over and over again. The calls filled my ears, nearly drowning out the American Goldfinches that seemed none too happy with the intrusion.

Me? I soaked in every last view I could get of these beautiful birds. They will be leaving soon.

This Year's Model

Goldfinch numbers have been lower than the previous years but there are still enough around to keep me happy. The top numbers at any one time has peaked at around 30 birds. Way down from the 100-plus last year and 60-70 the previous year.

The birds this year seem a bit more picky about which feeding station they prefer. Fourtunately, one of the favorites is right outside the boy's bedroom. Every now and then they perch in the Firebush while waiting for a chance to feed.



The males are even more selective. They are mainly staying far in the back of the yard or outside the kitchen window where the screen makes photographing them less than satisfying. The females are still pretty. Their gold is working its way into the plummage, too.

Eastern Bluebird Surprise

Ask and you shall receive?

At the end of the last post I had mentioned that we saw many Bluebirds along the trip to and from Crystal River but I was unable to get any shots of them. Except for one right outside the hotel room that is verrrrrrrrrry far away. I showed the photo to the wife and said that I really needed a good shot of a Bluebird again.

The last shot I even got of a Bluebird was years ago in Winter Park. I never saw them in that area anymore.

Today, as I checked the nets while banding at Wekiva, I rounded the back loop of nets and saw a bird in the lower panel. At first, I was surprised by the color of the bird. We don't get many medium-sized birds with blue feathers. My first thought was that it might be a Scrub Jay. Some do live within the park.

I got closer and the other colors became more evident. Not a Scrub Jay. A Bluebird!



There are many nest boxes set up around the park and some years there are successful clutches of eggs resulting in chicks. Last year, there were no eggs in any boxes. When the chicks do hatch, they are banded in the nest. Adult birds don't end up in the nets.

Until today.

Even better, one of the nearby boxes had two eggs inside and another Bluebird leaving the scene. Maybe this signals the return of babies to the park.



Beautiful bird.

Seaside Sparrow

Without much of a chance to do much birding I was looking forward to our short vacation trip to Crystal River. I had been mentioning I would like to check out a spot there some day, even if it meant I drove up alone some morning to get there at dawn. To get that out of my head, the wife chose it for a family trip.

Weather outlook was pretty good and I was getting prepped to find a new Life Bird: Seaside Sparrow. I made tape loops of the bird's calls and songs and studied these and images to make sure I wouldn't casually miss what might be a quick glimpse of this small bird.

As we headed out, the weather reports were taking a turn for the worse. If I were lucky, the front would stall and leave some time for warm birding. If not, winds were scheduled to pick up behind the front and the temperatures were forecast to drop rapidly.

I wasn't lucky.

The front came through very quickly, bringing high winds, rain, and impending temperatures in the 40s by morning. I hadn't considered that last part and neglected to bring any long-sleeved shirts or jackets. Just a Kissimmee Prairie T-shirt and thin pants as I figured it would be hot and muggy. Oh, well.

Headed out to be at the beach at dawn and found slightly lower winds but it was around 40 degrees. Brrrr.

Out on the beach, Skimmers, Laughing Gulls, Black-bellied Plovers, and Sanderlings were flowing in from the Gulf to rest in the shelter afforded by the beach and a few dunes and marsh. Very few other birds were in evidence.

I was told that there was a section of the marsh just before the beach that the sparrows were usually found. I headed over with tape recorder, camera, and binoculars in hand and stepped out in to the harsh winds whipping up past the shore instead of standing next to the road. I was told that playing the tape from the road would bring up some sparrows but the wind was getting so strong that I doubt anything heard my playback.

Into the Spartina Grass I sloshed. I figured going after the birds was going to be my only chance. Fortunately, it only took a few minutes to start hearing the birds call. Soon a few sparrows were darting out of the grass just feet in front of me.

I finally found one bird keeping very still but singing as it held on to the swaying grasses. Getting my camera to focus on a small waving blob in the high wind was proving to be a task but I did get my first Seaside Sparrow!



I knew there were several more in the area. I could hear them talking to each other as I slowly made my way around the marsh. The only other chance for a photo was of this birds looking toward the sun as I was deciding I was tired of freezing.



I tried many other birding spots in the surrounding few miles but never heard any other Seaside Sparrows. In fact, there were not to many other birds found anywhere since they were hunkered down, waiting for a better day. The only other birds in abundance during the trip were Bluebirds which lined CR 44 all the way to Crystal River.

Couldn't get a shot of them, though.

Cardinal Visit

We were grinding out pages here at work when I heard, "Drew! There is a bird over here right next to the window!" Like I am interested in birds or something...sheesh.

I didn't tell Chandler at that moment but I was quite impressed when he did a dead-on Northern Cardinal as we walked across the building to see the bird. Indeed, that is exactly what it was.



This silly bird was standing on the very thin window ledge and calling like crazy. It stayed there for a while and barely seemed to acknowledge me as I leaned in close for a photo.

It left soon afterward to hang out with the other Cardinals here. They breed in the bushes all around the office complexes and I can't wait to hear the demanding chicks in the next couple months.

Orlando Wetlands

I had heard from some birders that they had seen a Gull-billed Tern out at Orlando Wetlands so I thought I had better get out there. It was seen in a part of the Wetlands I had never been over to. Just didn't even know it was there. I always stayed so focused in the main sections.

This other part is just across the road you drive in on as you approach the parking lot. How I missed it all these years, I don't know.

Got there at dawn and made my way across the berm from the parking lot. I did hear a Virginia Rail in the cattails so at least I would have one Lifer no matter what. As directed earlier, I took a turn at the Red-shouldered Hawk's nest and crossed to the other side of the road.

Up a slight incline there was indeed a whole other world over here! I wouldn't have time to walk all of the trails but decided to at least head around the main pond/lake in front of me. Once the sun was up and just after a sundog display, I turned around to face the wetlands for this shot.



There were a lot of Palm and Myrtle Warblers along with scores of Boat-tailed Grackles. Small flocks of Blue-winged Teal and Hooded Mergansers moved nervously from shore to shore. No Gull-billed Tern in sight.

I did manage to find a few Green-winged Teal and a few Lesser Yellowlegs. A Forster's Tern cruised overhead. Ibis foraged in the swallow water. Away from the water was very few birds sounds in the bushes.

Most evident were Common Yelllowthroats and every now and then a Savannah Sparrow or Catbirds would make a brief appearance.



There was a warbler type bird that flew out across the path as I rounded the far side of the water. I tried to track it down but could never get a clear look before it vanished into the woods. I had to settle for a curious Swamp Sparrow instead.



My time was up so I had to walk faster back to the car. Next time I hope to make it around a few more trails. I always consider a day at the Wetlands an excellent way to spend some time. Might have to take the bike next time to cover more ground.

Washington Oaks Finds

The Florida Parks service was having a little shindig for volunteers in the district and this year it was honoring the 1 millionth volunteer hour, give or take a few, at Washington Oaks Park near Ormond Beach. I was looking forward to seeing what the ceremony might be like and to try and get in a bit of birding.

Even if you never make it into the main part of the park, my favorite part of this area is the beach with its coquina rock formations, shells, and the occasional fun bird sighting. Today we even found a starfish, I think and Armored Star, that I let the youngest hold as it crawled across his hand. We decided not to hold any of the numerous jellyfish that the wind had pushed on shore.



After making that first beach investigation it was time to head into the park proper and check the activities. We were given a schedule of events and lunchtime and headed off to look around. I had high expectations for some good birds in this part of the park but there was very little activity all day. A few expected birds but nothing too exciting.

Once lunch and the ceremony speeches were concluded the boys were getting bored. Time to hit the beach one last time. They headed toward the rocks while I was more interested in a large gull seen as we crested the dunes.

I followed it down the beach a while and tried to get some photos to ID later and it finally allowed me to slowly get in range. Turns out it was my second ever Greater Black-backed Gull. This time a juvenile.



I finished getting more shots and was turning to join the family when I noticed a black shape in between the waves. It was moving fast and the waves were crashing quickly, making a good view difficult. A few minutes later, the bird moved closer to shore and revealed itself.

A male Red-breasted Merganser!



I have read reports of them along the eastern coast in the past but always managed to miss them. The last time I had seen this species was out in Washington State. A very pleasant surprise!

Made up for the common birds seen all day.

Really Ruby-crowned Kinglet

One of the first Ruby-crowned Kinglets I ever saw was at Mead Garden and the crown was what gave it away for me since I had never seen one before. Out at Wekiva, we band a LOT of Kinglets. Most them are females so we don't get to see the crowns.

We even had one last winter that had only ONE ruby feather indicating it was a young male.

This morning we captured one of the most ruby of all the male Ruby-crowns I have ever seen.



Can't mistake that ID!

Nashville Warbler

Once a month for the past couple years, there has been a census count for the birds that frequent Mead Garden in winter park. I try to get to as many as possible but those darned Scouts keep coming up with things to do!

However, I did manage to return for the February count to meet up with birding friends and count some birds. Waxwings and Robins were in full force as were American Goldfinches. We managed to find all of the resident Woodpecker species and most other expected birds for the Garden.

My favorite part of the count is to go out on the boardwalk which has been suffering from neglect since Hurricane Charley torn through our fair city. Jeanne didn't make things better. Only part of the walk is open for the general public but we are aloud to head into the more dangerous portions for the count.

Local birding expert Bruce Anderson and I chose to brave the closed portion of the walk while others waited near the butterfly garden. We tallied up all Waxwings and Robins and a few hawks as we made our way around the back portion of the walk.

Staring out across the Primrose Willows, Bruce called out that he had an Orange-crowned Warbler in front of us. I almost didn't look since we had a couple of those already but I slowly glanced up to check it out anyway. I noticed an eye-ring and for some reason exclaimed, "No, it looks like a Nashville!"

Granted, I had never seen one in person but I do stare at a lot of books. Nashville just seemed exactly what it was. Bruce and I looked for a little longer and he agreed with me. The eye-ring was that noticeable even from the distance we were from the bird.

Remembering I had a camera with me, duh, I tried a couple shots but was not sure they would turn out that well with the bird about 25-30 yards out. I was right.



Nonetheless, it was enough to confirm this uncommon bird in Central Florida. After I posted about the birds to the lists, there were a couple of other sighting of the same bird before it left the area.

I remembered to bring my copy of Bruce's book, The Birdlife of Florida, with me and asked him to sign-it for me. He wrote to "...remember our Nashville Warbler" and I will tape this photo next to that.

Any day with a Life Bird is a good day.

Berries for the Masses

Decided to take a walk around the office park. Don't get a chance to do that too often and with the temperatures at a very comfy level, why not?

One of my favorite stops has become across the street from our office. It has a larger pond that is divided by a roadway between parking lots. Part of the pond goes underneath a parking structure and the Hooded Mergansers use that part to hide from anyone or thing it fells is looking a bit too hungry.

On the northern edge of the pond is a row of Brazilian Peppers and just beyond that lies part of Lake Destiny. This time of year, the peppers are loaded with berries. In turn, they are full of birds.

I usually walk past the peppers and loop around behind them to view the lake and continue on with my walk back to the office. Today the birds were flying out right in front of me so I stopped and got the camera ready.

The majority of the birds were Myrtle Warblers who were greedily swallowing up berries as quickly as possible. Making it difficult for them was a very territorial Northern Mockingbird who would chase any Warbler it saw stopping on a branch. This was what was causing the birds to fly out in front of me.

Eventually, a few Waxwings signaled their approach with their high calls and landed among the branches above and next to me. They seemed to be trying to blend in and avoid the Mockers detection. It worked for a while and the Waxwings could manage a few gulps before being found out.

I thought it would be easy to get some shots of these close birds and, indeed, they were landing in plain view just feet from me. Excellent opportunities! Better than I ever have had. Camera up, press the shutter to focus, bird GONE!

Every time the Waxwing would come into focus, the Mockingbird would dive in and chase it off. This went on for almost an hour. I did finally get one photo that actually looked like a Waxwing but it was not easy.



I could have stood there all day had I not had work to do and a family to get to later. The number of Myrtle Warblers was impressive and the Waxwings were and added treat. Goldfinches called from the trees in the parking lot.

Time to break the spell and head back across the street.

Hammond's Flycatcher

A report was posted to the lists about a Hammond's Flycatcher out at Hal Scott. Several reports were filed over the next few days saying some had relocated the bird, some doubting the ID, some swearing by the ID. I thought I wouldn't go after it as it was the middle of the week and I couldn't find time to head out there for days.

Specialty birds rarely hang around for too long. But the reports kept showing up. What the heck? Might as well go for it.

Detailed directions through the Hal Scott area were provided. Head down this path. Go past THIS rock. Stop at THIS lone orange tree, etc. I wasn't familiar with this part of the preserve but I would have my directions in hand.

Fortunately, when I arrived in the parking area, a few other birders were heading out for the Hammond's. I was getting my cameras together when I heard, "Here for the Hammond's?" in the pre-dawn darkness. "Yep." We were off.

During our mile-long hike we spotted Bluebirds, skittish sparrows, doves and heard Nuthatches and woodpeckers. The flycatcher spot was ahead.

We were told by another birder who had arrived on bike just ahead of us that it was seen in certain spots but usually came close to the trail. After 15 minutes standing on the trail I couldn't take it and headed into the woods toward the creek. I can hardly stand still too long.

I stopped about 100 yards from the trail and stood to listen to the surroundings. Goldfinches. Waxwings. Kinglets. I decided to try and see any of the birds I was hearing way up in the treetops for practice and found a small bird I thought was a Ruby-crowned Kinglet preening up in the branches.

Then it started 'flycatching'! Was this our target bird? Too high up to be sure so I tracked it through the branches. Suddenly, it swooped down toward the creek and foraged, 30 feet in front of me. This WAS the bird.



I got a couple shots for my collection as I was verifying it in my head. I knew I had to alert the others but feared calling out too loudly would scare the bird away. They couldn't see me easily through the trees. Even if they could they were all staring straight up!

"Over here!" I said in a deep enough register that I hoped wouldn't be too bird un-friendly. I kept a lock on the Hammond's and everyone hurriedly rushed to my spot.

Another group of birders arrived and saw our location and hurried over as well. Soon, we had 25 guys oohing and ahhing as shutters clicked and introductions were made. We tracked the bird for 30 minutes before heading out.

Some folks told me they had been out there 4 times so far without seeing the bird. Some had been there once or twice and sat for hour upon hour without seeing it. I walked out on a day I wasn't going to and found it in 15 minutes.



Dumb luck. I'll take it.

Twilight Swans

I had posted about the new swan released at Lake Davis last year. Soon after that, I didn't see it on the lake any longer and began to worry that the owners earlier fears had come through. Maybe a dog had gotten this young swan.

Time passed and I eventually saw one and then two swans at the lake. Then they, too, would be gone only to return later on. These new birds must have fully functioning wings instead being clipped. It would be an advantage over attacking mongrels.

Soon, I got used to seeing them come and go and didn't pay a lot of attention if they were gone. One evening, I had to take some film up to be processed and decided to swing by the lake on the way out. It was getting nearly dark and I thought I saw a new gull on the water so I pulled over to have a look.

On the other side of the lake the pair of swans had grown to a small flock of SIX!



The next morning, the oldest boy calls out, "Seven!". Indeed there was.

As of today, they continue to move from lake to lake in the area. I know they go across the park to Lake Cherokee which is virtually dog free but other than that I do not know.

The thrill of one morning was heading out to work and there were 4 of them flying over the tree tops, over me, and over the freeway straight for Lake Davis.

A perfect way to start the morning.

Quick Trip To Viera

Richard and Christine were giving banding demonstrations over on the coast for the Space Coast Birding Festival and today they were setting up at the Enchanted Forest. I wanted to join them and even managed to talk the boys into coming along for some outdoor fun.

On the way, we swung by Viera Wetlands to see what we could see. The Masked Ducks had moved on. There didn't seen to be a lot of special stuff there but some had seen a Cinnamon Teal and I hoped to add that one to the list. No luck on that, either.

Many other ducks were there, however, including Blue-winged Teals and Green-winged Teals.

An early swing around the Click ponds included a couple of foraging Bonaparte's Gulls which is always nice to see.



Taking our time rounding all of the cells at the wetlands, we found hundreds of Coots and Teal. I could barely make out the Green-winged Teals as they were sticking to the reeds. Suddenly, a Northern Harrier circled in and flushed everything out of one corner and into the open. At least I could see the Teal a little better now even though they were still pretty far away.



My favorite shot of the trip was this drake Northern Shoveler gettin' all Kung-fu on us.



Always something interesting out at Viera.

Living Statues

I was having a nice moment watching our Wintering Myrtle Warbler chase some Goldfinches around the backyard. Usually this event would play out farther out in the yard but this morning they flew straight toward the backdoor.

Suddenly, the Myrtle flew across the deck, onto a flower pot, and froze right there. I was happy to have a great view of this sometimes skittish bird sitting about 4 feet in front of me. A minute later I realized that it had grown completely quiet outside. Not one peep.

Every bird that had been flitting around sparring for feeder opportunities had frozen in their tracks as well. The Myrtle right in front of me, Mourning Doves near the bird bath, and Blue Jays in the laurel trees. Nothing moved.

The next thought I had was that there must be a predator around that flew in undetected by me but definitely not by the creatures that really needed to know what was going on.

I headed back to the front of the house and grabbed my camera to try and at least get a Warbler shot. Never had to open the door and didn't want to cause this small visitor to become hawk treats on my account. You can almost see a state of fear in his eyes.



The only time he did move was to get a better look out into the yard. He turned enough to show why they are called Yellow-rumps.



Nearly 10 minutes later, the doves and Warbler had managed a side exit one by one. That left Gimpy, the Blue Jay with a broken leg that is part of the larger troop that patrols the neighborhood.



He refused to budge even after I finally decided it was safer to search for the predator. I took many photos as I walked back and forth, scanning the oaks for whatever might be out there.

Not finding anything, I went toward the back of the yard and decided to reposition the bird bath that was out there. I shifted it until it was more level and stood up. Directly ahead of me on the other side of the fence in the oak tree I could see what all the fuss was about.



The Cooper's Hawk sat still but was swiveling its head from side to side, searching for lunch. I went inside to get the longer lens. It was still there when I got back. So was Gimpy. 10 minutes later, the hawk flew off.

10 minutes after that the Myrtle was chasing the Goldfinches again.

It was very interesting to have living statues all around the yard for a while and proved again that birds can see things we can't always see. Their lives might just depend on it.

Quick Swing Down Lust Road

I left Vermi back at the lake and decided to swing by Lust Road to see if anything was out. It was pretty quiet.

I was trying to relocate the Vesper Sparrows for a better shot than before. I did hear some bird calls and slowed near the gate. Movement was backlit near the fence so I walked out to investigate. Just on the other side of the fence were a few adult White-crowned Sparrows.

I was attempting to get a good shot of them but they retreated to the bushes. I figured I might get some to reappear by pishing. Almost immediately, a juvenile White-crowned popped up right in front of me.



There were some Vesper Sparrows farther down the fence but they quickly dove behind the it and into some tall weeds not to be seen again that day. Might have to try again next Winter.

There were a few Kestrels having just as hard a time finding sparrows as I was.

Another Visit with Vermi

What better way to start a new year than a return to visit the Vermilion Flycatcher? We didn't stay up all night welcoming in the year so it was a little easier to get up and over to Lake Jessup by dawn.

A little easier.

Weather was still a mess. Rain bands were streaking across the state quickly from West to East and the temperature was chilly but not too bad. It left me all alone with the wildlife. Everyone was either sleeping in or didn't want to get soggy shoes.

I was actually hunting for Sparrows this morning but I never found the target birds I was searching for. The cattle were moving farther out in the pasture but still eyed me as I stomped through the grass and mud.

I decided to head in the direction of the herd to inspect a new swath of land I hadn't walked before. As I glanced to my right I noticed that I was almost on top of the Vermilion Flycatcher just ahead of me! In the gloom I hadn't even noticed his bright red feathers for some reason.

Vermi, as I took to calling him, let me get pretty close. Every now and then he would fly off in another direction but I was able to approach again to about 20 feet everytime. Then I would head off to look for sparrows and come back and hang out with Vermi some more.

This continued for a couple hours as I tried to cover the cameras when the rain swung through. I got lucky enough to not be under the full brunt of showers blowing by but I eventually was cold and wet enough to call it a morning.

I said my good-byes to Vermi and sloshed out of the pasture. I also started the year with a picture I was happy with.

Sharp-tails

It was becoming Sparrow season for me suddenly. Finally got good looks, and bad photos, of Vesper Sparrows a few weeks earlier and the LeConte's was new to the list. Now, there came a flood of emails from fellow birder Danny Bales all about Sharp-tailed Sparrows out at the Cape.

Time to twitch.

After confirming the spot Danny had been reliably finding the Sharp-tails over on the Shilo Marsh I found a morning to run over and do some walking in the muck. Shilo Marsh is on the northern edge of Merritt Island Nation Wildlife Refuge and usually can be accessed through roads winding around the Indian River.

The roads were closed for hunting season, however, so I had to head through Titusville and toward the Volusia county line. The spot was down a gritty road chock full of potholes that eventually finds its way to the marsh. The parking lot where boaters set off for hunting and fishing held few clues to the birds hiding deep within the marsh grasses.

More accustom to hiking through pine flatwoods and across beaches, I have little in the way of proper marsh footwear. Most have waders or galoshes. I had only swin shoes. Not too safe in case of snake encounters but a boy can't make a detour to the shoe store when the sparrows are waiting!

I slowly entered the marsh in the area indicated by email. I could make out weak trails leading out toward the water and into the grass. Most likely these trails were left in evidence by Danny's early visits. Not many other humans are casually walking in this environment.

As the mud flowed into my shoes, small birds began leaping ahead of me to find a new hiding spaces. Most of these were Savannah Saprrows. Once I got farther into the marsh the Savannahs were replaced by Swamp Sparrows. The target sparrows should be close but they prefer an even more specific zone down near the edge of the water.

30 minutes after slowly sloshing, watching, and listening I got my first Sharp-tails. I spent the next hour or so among them and tried to get a few photos. Not an easy prospect with such a shy subject. Throw in cloudy skies from large front that hit hours before and shadows can trick one into seeing things.

Persistance paid off as I had a few Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrows occasionally leaping into view acting as scouts.



The Nelson's seemed to be the most numerous. Took quite a while to actually convince any Saltmarsh Sparrows that I wasn't there to harm them. But, before I left for the day, a few made their way toward me as the sun started to break through the clouds.



Now I have Sparrow Fever! My thoughts quickly started tryign to figure out how I could find a Seaside Sparrow before the year was through. It seems that window is closing fast. Christmas is here.

I was happy enough to have passed the 300 mark for the Life List.

LeConte's Sparrow

Headed back to Lake Jessup to try and focus on Sparrows. I had the Vermilion Flycatcher checked off and there are so many more birds to search for. In fact, I barely flinched when Vermi showed up again a couple hours after sunrise. We waved hello and went about our merry way.

The only problem with locating the Vermilion was that I felt I had to share the news with the birding world. Now the place was beginning to crawl with humans and their 600 mm/stacked telephoto SLR digitals where last week I was all alone with much less hardware and a cheery morning.

A few heavily armed guys approached me to ask if I had seen the flycatcher. "Yep," says I, "he is right over thataway." I had already begun my sparrow search but I led them over to where Vermi flew to and they set up. Told them to have fun, I was hunting other prey this day.

Sparrows were everywhere out here. Mainly Savannah Sparrows but someone thought they had seem a LeConte's out here not long ago. Habitat sure is favorable for all kinds of sparrows and a LeConte's would be new for me.

Sparrows are hard to see in a place like this. The wire grass and bent over reeds make an excellent hiding place and you usually don't even know they are there until you are almost on top of them. Then, they fly up and away from you and dive into the next hiding place before you can even ID the species.

Not long after I showed the birders the flycatcher I noticed one sparrow that landed quicker than most. It also behaved differently in the fact that after it landed it actually came up unto the weeds and...posed. Turns out that this was my first LeConte's.



Pretty sparrow. More yellow/orange than most brown and white sparrows we usually see around Florida.



After a few minutes (yes, it stayed there for a couple minutes instead of seconds) it dropped down into the weeds and basically ran in the opposite direction. Though you see sparrows when they fly up and away to escape, they often prefer to run along the ground. With thick grasses all around you can loose or never even see the birds that are all around you.

Vermilion Flycatcher

Got an email from Paul saying he and Ken were out at a new location: North Lake Jessup Conservation Area. There, they found a Vermilion Flycatcher that was earlier reported during a November bird count in the area.

I have been trying to track down this species for 3 years with only email posts and roundabout directions to go by. Once I tried to follow the directions, I either got lost or the bird in question was not there.

This time Paul provided not only photographic proof but exact directions to the spot they had all found the bird. I wanted to head there right away but had other commitments and would have to wait another day or so hoping the bird would remain in the same spot.

Good thing I stopped biting my nails 20 years ago or I would have been searching for Band-aids...

Next opportunity to head for the bird would be after banding at Wekiva. Not the best time to hunt for birds since I wouldn't arrive until at least 11 AM, but you take what you can get. So, I bolted from the banding station as soon as possible and made my way through the lefts and rights toward the area.

I did make it to the spot by 11 AM on the dot. Following the precise directions provided, I head down the trail and made my way through the ancient oak woods and emerged in a pasture area at the northern edge of Lake Jessup on a clear and warm day. Here were the lone oaks described to me and the weedy growth areas teaming with sparrows.

Sparrows would draw me back here later. I had a flycatcher to try and find in this vast pasture land.

I began by taking in the vista and then slowly walked toward the lone oaks sprouting from the gold and dried brown grasses, scanning the vegetation as I stopped and started. The bird was seen near the water perched on a sign on one day and in an oak another.

As I moved the binoculars from left to right I stopped quickly by the time I got to the cattails about 200 yards ahead of me. There it was! A single dot of brilliant red against the rich greens of the lakeside plants. Vermilion Flycatcher? Check!

I was honestly happy enough with this view. I got the bird and a positive ID with the binoculars. So what if it was from far away. My cameras wouldn't register much more than a speck out there so why even worry. Instead, I decided to move a little closer to the smallest oak out there using it as a blind to get a few feet closer and be able to enjoy the fact that it was indeed here.

Then something weird happened. The bird flew directly at me! It landed in the small oak I was approaching and began to preen while perched in the center branches.

Every now and then it would fly out of the tree to grab a quick bite and land at the tree top and look at me. I was shooting film from 15 feet away. Like I say, birds dig me.



I took a lot of shots of this bird. For some reason, my trusty digital just ended up giving me extremely grainy shots. That's why I carry 2 cameras. As long as they keep processing film, I am safe.



The flycatcher and I spent at least 30 minutes together. It would continue to feed and then head back into the branches to preen. Eventually, it headed off into the dense forest edge and disappeared.



It was a magical morning out in the pasture. Just me and this gorgeous little bird. It was the first time I had been to this location and definitely would not be the last.

A Return to the A.R.C.

On fairly short notice, I got a call that Richard and Christine were being summoned to the Avian Reconditioning Center in Apopka. Seemed there were a few owls to band before release which was going to be that evening. It was a Wednesday morning. I would have to be late for work. What's a poor boy to do?

Band owls, that's what! Like I get that opportunity sitting at a desk. Easy call.

I first wrote about the ARC in my very first post nearly a year ago. It is a wonderful organization that takes care of injured or orphaned raptors and releases them back into the wild if they are able to recover. You can find a direct link to their site over at the earlier post linked in this paragraph.

This time they had 5 Barn Owls and a few Screech Owls that were bound for freedom that night. Turns out that the Barn Owls were going to be used in the war on an exploding mouse population currently plaguing the Apopka region. The mice were reaching overwhelming numbers in the rural farming lands just as they did in 1999.

So, these 5 young birds were going to be released nearby in hopes that they would have very healthy appetites.

In a light but steady rain, Scott and Carol McCorkle started bring the owls over to a dry space where the birds could be weighed and banded one by one.



Richard started banding right away and the procedure went fairly quickly almost in a an assembly line fashion.



Sometimes the owls were nervous. Sometimes they seemed rather relaxed.



Once the Barn Owls were all taken care, the Screech Owls were brought out. Richard even asked me if I wanted to have a try. Duh! Got to band my first Screech Owl today.



How cool is that?