On Saturday, December 7, twenty-one birders joined TAS Field Trip Coordinator Brian Rapoza for a productive day of birding along the Tamiami Trail (US 41) in Collier County. The trip began at the Oasis Visitor Center in Big Cypress National Preserve, where flocks of wading birds could be seen flying in every direction and in numbers too numerous to count. Wood Stork, White Ibis, Roseate Spoonbill, Black-crowned Night Heron, Tricolored Heron, Snowy Egret, Green Heron, Western Cattle Egret, Great Egret and Great Blue Heron were all present. Other birds tallied around the visitor center included Killdeer, Greater Yellowlegs, Anhinga, Double-crested Cormorant, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, Red-shouldered Hawk, Belted Kingfisher, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Eastern Phoebe, White-eyed Vireo, Blue-headed Vireo, American Crow, Tree Swallow, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Northern House Wren, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, Savannah Sparrow , Common Grackle, Common Yellowthroat, Palm Warbler and Yellow-rumped Warbler.
The next stop, at Kirby Storter Roadside Park and Boardwalk, was a brief one, as most of the boardwalk burned to the ground several weeks ago, preventing us from visiting Kirby Storter’s bird-filled cypress dome. This visit was made primarily to give participants an opportunity to view the extent of the damage to the boardwalk. Leaving Big Cypress National Preserve behind, the group moved on to the new Big Cypress Bend Boardwalk in Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park. Along the way, some in the group were surprised to see a Crested Caracara fly over the road! Huge numbers of wading birds, as well as American White Pelicans were seen in wetland areas along this stretch of Tamiami Trail. An American Bittern, seen near the entrance to Fakahatchee’s impressive new boardwalk, was arguably the best bird seen during the group’s visit. Common Gallinule, Black-and-white Warbler and Prairie Warbler were the only other new birds seen there.
Continuing west, the group’s next stop was at the Marsh Trail and Observation Tower in Ten Thousand Island National Wildlife Refuge. New trip birds found there included Blue-winged Teal, Green-winged Teal, American Coot, Pied-billed Grebe, Little Blue Heron and Northern Parula. At Eagle Lakes Community Park, in the Naples area, the group had lunch, then explored the wetland impoundments and lakes in and around the park. Among the many new birds seen during this stop were Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Mottled Duck, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Spotted Sandpiper, Royal Tern, Glossy Ibis, Brown Pelican, Short-tailed Hawk, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Downy Woodpecker, Loggerhead Shrike, Blue Jay and European Starling.
At this point in the trip, many in the group called it a day. Those who remained made one final birding stop, at the Belle Mead Horse Trail in Picayune Strand State Forest. This trail, through a burned pine flatwoods habitat, has become a well-known location to find all of Florida’s woodpeckers, including the endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker. The group initially struggled to find any woodpeckers at all, but eventually, one was heard and then seen: a Hairy Woodpecker, arguably the most difficult of Florida’s eight woodpecker to find! This find seemed to open the floodgates; by the time we returned to the parking area, the group had seen six different woodpeckers, including one other new one for the trip, a Red-headed Woodpecker! Other new birds seen there included Bald Eagle, American Kestrel, Great Crested Flycatcher, Brown-headed Nuthatch and Orange-crowned Warbler.
By trip’s end, the group had tallied 71 different bird species. A complete list can be found in this eBird trip report.
Wood Stork: Photo by Brian Rapoza