I went up to Fort DeSoto Park this morning with the hope of finding some migrants.  I met up with the PRAS group being led by Bill & Eleanor Marr.  We started out at the Mulberry bushes.  The following birds were observed: Summer Tanager, Cerulean Warbler, Hooded Warbler, Yellow-throated Warbler, Palm Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Indigo Bunting, Cedar Waxwings, and Ruby-throated Hummingbird.  The next stop was the East Beach Woods.  Some White-eyed and Red-eyed Vireos were observed in the picnic table area.  Not too much in the woods.  Five Yellow-crowned Night Herons, two on a nest, were observed high in the trees.  On the beach, the usual Laughing, Ring-billed, and Herring Gulls, Forster’s, Royal, and Sandwich Terns, Ruddy Turnstones, Sanderlings, Western Sandpipers, and Willets were observed.  Very little of note was observed at the East Beach turn-around.  At this point I had to leave due to some afternoon commitments.  The group continued to the North Beach lagoon and the Arrowhead picnic area.  They saw a total of 91 species, not a bad outing.

On Wednesday morning, I visited Saddle Creek Park in Lakeland, arriving there about 8 a.m.  I saw the usual waders along the shores of the lakes, such as Egrets, Herons, and Ibises. I even saw a Limpkin near the entrance to the 1.25-mile nature trail.  Along the trail I saw the usual Cardinals, Catbirds, Boat-tailed Grackles, Blue Jays, Mockingbirds, and Palm Warblers. I did not see any migrants.   I left the Park around 10:30 and stopped at Lake Parker.  This area proved more interesting.  In addition to the usual Egrets, Herons, and Ibises, I saw several Purple Gallinules, a family of Limpkins (one adult and three chicks), and a Wood Duck.  The birds along the shore of Lake Parker seemed more people friendly, which leads to better success with a camera.

A group of 18 members of the PRAS traveled to Kissimmee Prairie Preserve on Saturday morning.  We left Port Charlotte around 7:15 and reached the Preserve around 9:30, a 100-mile drive.  We were met by Charles Brown, the Park Manager.  We divided into three groups of six.  Charles took each group of six on a 1-hour swamp buggy ride through different parts of the Preserve and provided a wonderful discourse on the Park and the plants and wildlife that inhabit it.  Central to the management of the Park are the frequent prescribed burns that tend to return and maintain the Prairie to its formal state.

While one group was on the buggy ride, the other two groups birded different areas.  One of the most productive areas was the hammock in back of the Park Office.  A well-marked trail has been established in this hammock.  Several migrants were observed including Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Northern Parula, American Redstarts, White-eyed Vireos, Black-and-White Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Prairie Warbler, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Hermit Thrush, and the Common Yellowthroat.  Other notable birds seen on the buggy rides and elsewhere in the Park included Bobwhite, Bobolink, Caracara, Sandhill Cranes, Red-shouldered Hawks, Eastern Kingbird, Eastern Meadowlarks, Loggerhead Shrikes, Wild Turkeys, and Carolina Wrens.  Altogether, we saw 50 different species within the Park.  A big thanks to Charles Brown who helped to make this a very enjoyable outing.  Also a big thanks to Dylan Figueroa who gave a presentation about the Park at our monthly meeting the previous Thursday.

I visited the Babcock-Webb WMA this morning hoping to see a King Rail.  I did hear one, but he never showed himself.  However, I did enjoy observing and photographing a number of other birds, including Eastern Bluebirds, Great-crested Flycatchers, Brown-headed Nuthatches, a Great-horned Owl, three Wilson’s Snipes, a Bachman’s Sparrow, Brown Thrashers, Eastern Towhees, a Wild Turkey and a Hairy Woodpecker.  An enjoyable morning.