2006 - Florida Birding

Michelle and I have been talking about taking our first cruise for several years and this summer we took the plunge. We also wanted to spend some time birding and hiking in Florida, and since we were already down there, decided to extend the trip to Key West and the Dry Tortugas to look for some island specialty birds.

We started our journey on June 18 which turned out to be a a long day of driving south (775 miles) and put us just north of Daytona Beach. Michelle had spotted a Swallow-tailed Kite in South Carolina so she was already picking up life birds on the trip. We also saw Great, Snowy, and Cattle Egrets, Wood Storks, Mississippi Kites, Boat-tailed Grackles, Glossy Ibis, White Ibis, and Anhinga along the way south.

The next morning we were up early and decided to spend a few hours birding the Ocala National Forest area before we had to begin boarding the cruise ship at 1:00 p.m. Our first stop was Alexander Springs (76 million gallons/day). The birding here was fairly slow, but we did find two juvenile Armadillos beside the trail. We then hiked the Yearling Trail near Lake George and located several Florida Scrub-Jays and Red-headed Woodpeckers. Then we drove to Port Canaveral and boarded Royal Caribbean's Sovereign of the Seas for a four-night cruise to the Bahamas. I had taken my spotting scope along thinking that I might have some time to do some birding from the decks - it never left my cabin. There is simply too much fun stuff to do on a cruise. We ate about four times a day, went to at least two different shows each night, played games, danced, etc. - and that is not including the day trips to Coco Cay and Nassau. The only seabird we saw was a single Sooty Tern off the coast of Florida. Our first stop was Coco Cay - a private island owned by Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. Michelle and I spent the morning snorkeling the reefs off the island. The variety, number, and color of the fish and coral were spectacular. It was an experience that neither of us will soon forget. After a cookout lunch provided by the cruise ship we hiked the nature trail on the island where we spotted Gray Kingbirds and our first ever Bananaquit.

At Clewiston, we located a flock of Common Mynas in the parking lot of a McDonalds. We found this species in several other towns and cities along the way south. Anhinga and several species of wading birds were found every quarter mile or so along the roadways. We stopped at Lake Okeechobee but found very little out over the lake. A roadside lake along Rt. 27 produced Black-necked Stilts with young, Mottled Ducks, both Ibis, and several heron and egret species. We did not find any new species at Markham Park or Sawgrass Recreational Area but we did get to see a drug bust in the parking lot - complete with about six police cars. A quick stop at Pembroke Pines just before a thunderstorm did not produce the Purple Swamphens we were hoping for. We then drove into Homestead that night to place us close enough to the Everglades National Park for some early birding.

The next morning, June 25, we drove into the Everglades National Park. We bypassed some of the earlier trails in order to get to the best breeding grounds of the Cape Sable Seaside Sparrow. As soon as we stopped we could hear several sparrows out in the sawgrass but it took over 30 minutes before we were finally able to scope a distant bird. After only half a minute the bird left its perch and we never were able to locate another sparrow, although we heard several more during the day. We then drove to Flamingo - 38 miles from the park entrance and the end of the line as far as driving south along the Florida peninsula. There was a light rain so we scoped several species out in the bay including a Reddish Egret, Black-bellied Plover, Marbled Godwit, Great White Heron, and a Sandwich Tern. The highlight was a Manatee frolicking in the bay - sticking his tail and flippers into the air. The hurricanes of 2005 have taken their toll on Flamingo and the lodge and many of the other buildings are still closed. Only the Visitor's Center and Marina were open. Finally the rain stopped and we birded the extensive grounds around Flamingo. We spotted our first Gray Kingbird in the U.S. (we had seen many in the Bahamas) and a beautiful Florida Red-shouldered Hawk. Osprey could be found almost on every other tree. At the marina we spotted and videotaped one of our target species - the American Crocodile. Alligators were everywhere in Florida but the Crocs can normally only be located with any regularity at Flamingo. We had met a local birder who told us about a small flock of Shiny Cowbirds in the area. We looked for them for almost an hour before giving up and heading to the famous Snake Bight Trail. We knew that Flamingos had not been spotted there in 2006 but we were hoping for a Mangrove Cuckoo along the first mile or so of the trail. The trail has a reputation for mosquitoes and it was well deserved. Michelle and I were covered from head to toe in bug suits. As an extra precaution, we sprayed each other with DEET. Even then we just managed to limit the damage to about a dozen bites each, as there was a cloud of mosquitoes around us at all times. We did not find the Cuckoos but the trail through the mangrove swamp was beautiful with many different flowers and bromeliads along the way. Our next stop was the Paurotis Pond and the Wood Stork rookery there. It was amazing to watch the hundreds of young storks start begging as small groups of adults would come back to the rookery from the everglades. There were also many other species of wading birds in the area and alligators patrolled the waters under the rookery in case any young storks fell out of the nest.

On the way to Mahogany Hammock Michelle spotted our first Snail Kite of the trip. We got great looks as it hovered over the sawgrass and picked snails off the stalks. The weather started to clear so we headed back to Flamingo for one more try at the Shiny Cowbirds. After about 10 minutes we found a small group near the marina. Their call is liquid like the Brown-headed Cowbird but has many more syllables. I managed about 10 seconds of film of one bird. By this point it was getting late and we headed back to Homestead to celebrate Michelle's birthday with a good dinner. A small group of Roseate Spoonbills seen over Homestead finished out the day.

The next morning we were off to the Keys. Instead of taking Rt. 1 to Key Largo we headed down the lesser used Card Sound Road. At the end of the road we turned SW along Key Largo. A cuckoo flew out of the Mangroves on one side of the road in front of us and we stopped the car. We never did see the cuckoo again (in fact we missed the Mangrove Cuckoo on the entire trip) but Michelle spotted a pair of White-crowned Pigeons and a Florida Red-shouldered Hawk while we were parked beside the road. We drove on for a few more miles and stopped in a hammock of trees. Here we found the first of many Black-whiskered Vireos we would see or hear over the next few days. At the Dagny Johnson Key Largo State Park we found Black-whiskered Vireo, Common Ground-Dove, White-eyed Vireo, Least Terns, White-crowned Pigeons and several other species. As we got into the car to leave three Magnificent Frigatebirds came sailing over the trees heading south.

Our next stop was Long Key State Park where, in addition to many wading birds, we located a Florida Prairie Warbler, Gray Kingbirds, and more Common Ground-Dove. Mosquitoes and spiders were plentiful along the nature trail but the many dragonflies were working hard to keep their population in check. Next we stopped at the Marathon Government Center to watch the Least and Roseate Terns that nest on the building's roof. We got good looks at both species (the Roseate was a life bird for us). Our last birding stop was at the National Key Deer Refuge. We did jump a single Key Deer out of the brush as we hiked along. At the beach we found more Gray Kingbirds and a few shorebirds. From there we headed to Key West - getting a room at Simonton Court near Duval Street. Our room was located in an old sailing captain's home and this has be one of the nicest places we have ever stayed. If you ever visit Key West I would highly recommend staying downtown at one of the places near Duval Street. That night we headed down to Duval Street for some shopping and a great seafood pasta at Crabby Dicks restaurant. Key West is known as the Conch Republic and the people there live the laid-back, anything-goes, Jimmy Buffet lifestyle.