May 09: Gavin Bieber on his and Evan Obercian's just-completed tour, Florida: The South, the Keys and the Dry Tortugas
We just wrapped up a fun week exploring from Fort Myers to Key West. We started with a day in the dry pine forests and upland scrub of the central peninsula and fantastic views of a pair of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers. A day trip out to the unique Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas was sunny and hot but still produced 13 species of warblers and some other spectacular migrants such as Scarlet Tanager. The colony of Masked Boobies continues to grow on Hospital Key, and we even managed views of two passing Audubon’s Shearwaters on the way out to the fort. Some of Florida’s most special birds,like Mangrove Cuckoo and White-crowned Pigeon posed for us nicely this year. We even lucked into two excllent vagrants; Bananaquit and Fork-tailed Flycatcher, both on Key Biscayne just south of downtown Miami. As always, Florida isn’t all about the birds, and this year we had unusally good views of two American Crocodiles, and some scenes that would be hard to replicate outside the state like this trio of Black Vultures devouring the remains of an American Alligator. I look forward to this tour every year, as it combines great eastern migration birding with Florida's highlight species, a chance for rarities from the Caribbean and a wealth of reptiles, amphibians, butterflies and even fish!
A well-researched Red-cockaded Woodpecker showed well
Of our 13 migrant warblers, the Blackpolls may have traveled the farthest
Always a knock-out, this Scarlet Tanager brightened up the Tortugas
Masked Boobies seem to grow in strength on the small sandy keys of the Dry Tortugas
Mangrove Cuckoo is never assured but this year one was remarkably confiding
The subtily beautiful White-crowned Pigeon
Two infrequently seen American Crocodiles
The recycling brigade - Black Vultures dine on a dead American Alligator
Posted: May 09, 2017