I arrived at Myakka River State Park at 8:00, just as the gate opened.  There were already five cars in line waiting to go in.  I made the usual stops.  As typical, found many Turkey Vultures with a few Blacks along the river.  Noticed a lot of Robins, Catbirds, Palm Warblers, and Yellow-rumped Warblers in the wooded areas.  Obtained good shots of a Limpkin at the dam; also of a Pileated Woodpecker in the trees before the dam.  Noticed very few wading birds and no shorebirds.  I did not observe any ducks, other than a few Mottled Ducks.  The naturalist down at the boardwalk said there had been hundreds of shorebirds up until Christmas. Although we had only an inch of rain down in the Punta Gorda area, apparently at the Park and further north, they had 4 inches of rain, which caused the Myakka River to rise quite a bit, covering the normal shoreline.  This resulted in the departure of the shorebirds and many wading birds.

I left the Park around noon and headed east on SR 72, turning left at Sidell Road.  Three Scissor-tailed Flycatchers have been observed along this road about 0.2 to 0.3 mile north of 72.  Unfortunately, I was not able to spot any of them.  I then continued north on Sidell Road, turned left on Clay Gully Road and followed it to Fruitville Road, taking it to the Celery Fields.

My first stop was Ackerman Park (turn left at Coburn).  Saw the usual Laughing and Ring-billed Gulls, about a dozen Blue-winged Teal and a few Lesser Scaup.  The next stop was the small bridge on Palmer Road.  I saw two Limpkin in the distance along with some Egrets and Herons.  The only ducks observed were Mottled and the feral Mallards.  The small pond by the gazebo was practically deserted, although I saw a number of Savannah Sparrows.  I turned left on Center Road and spotted a pair of Red-tailed Hawks.  Coming back and proceeding east on Roberts Road, I found a field with a mixture of about 100 Sandhill Cranes and Glossy Ibis. 

I arrived at Ollie’s Pond (for directions click here) around 8 am.  I walked completely around the pond looking for good photo opportunities. Observed Egrets (Great, Snowy), Herons (Great, Little Blue, Tricolored), Moorhens, Cardinals, Catbirds, Doves, Grackles, Robins, Phoebes, Palm Warblers, & White-eyed Vireos.  Someone told me they observed a Least Bittern here several weeks ago; however, I was not able to find it.  Also did not hear or see any Bobwhites, which are usually present.  I talked to a local resident; he said he hasn’t heard any since last year.

On the way home, I made a quick stop at the Bayshore Live Oak Park in Port Charlotte.  Observed Plovers (Black-bellied, Semipalmated), Western Sandpipers, Ruddy Turnstones, one Oystercatcher, Brown Pelicans, Egrets (Great, Snowy), Gulls (Laughing, Ring-billed), and Cormorants.