After an overnight stay at a local motel (outrageous prices), I started the morning with a visit to Wakodahatchee Wetlands.  My hope was to obtain good images of a Sora and Least Bittern.  Again, no luck.  I saw the same birds at this location as I did at Green Cay, which I guess you would expect since the habitat is about the same and they are only about a mile apart.  I did see nesting Anhingas and Great Blue Herons.  I also saw quite a few Softshell Turtles.  I guess most of the duck population had started their migration north, since I saw only Mottled Ducks and a few Teal at both locations.  Nevertheless, I was able to obtain some good images of the local birds, even with the very windy conditions.

I then went to the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, which was only a few miles from Wakodahatchee, arriving there about 11 am.  I went in the east entrance on Lee Road. There is a $5 entrance fee, which is waived if you have a Golden Age pass.  The first thing I saw was several photographers setup with there cameras pointed up into the trees.  There was a Great Horn Owl nest with mom and one chick in the nest and pop on guard duty nearby.  After taking some images, I then made a quick loop around the first two cells.  By this time it was quite windy and the sun was high in the sky, making it difficult to get good images of anything on the water.  Again, I saw the same birds as seen at the other two places, with the exception of the Great Horned Owls and a lone Roseate Spoonbill.

I chose the northern route, that is, through Clewiston, to go home.  In Clewiston, I stopped by McDonalds for a quick lunch.  This is the McDonalds of Common Myna fame.  I wasn’t disappointed; there were two Common Mynas foraging around in the parking lot.

On Tuesday morning, I went over to the Babcock/Webb WMA, arriving there about 7:45.  I traveled the loop via Tucker’s Grade, Seaboard Grade, Tram Grade, Oil Well Grade, and back to Tucker’s Grade.  I spent most of my time on Seaboard Grade, which usually has more observable birds than other areas.  I did see the usual wading birds (Egrets, Herons, and White Ibis).  However, other birds were difficult to come by.  I did not come across any of the feeding flocks that one usually sees.  I did see quite a few Pine Warblers and a few Yellow-rumps and Palms.  The only woodpeckers observed were Red-bellied and Downy.  A single Northern Flicker was also seen.  Along the second turn-out on Seaboard Grade, I observed a Purple Gallinule, a first for me in Babcock/Webb.

I did notice a few butterflies alighting on Thistles for some nectar.  I saw both the Giant and Palamedes Swallowtails, but was not able to get any good images due to their continuous movement.  On the way out I spotted a Limpkin on the bank of one of the Marl ponds and was able to get some nice close-up images.

I returned on Wednesday morning with the goal of obtaining some good images of Swallowtail butterflies.  However the wind had picked up noticeably and very few Swallowtails were seen, although I did obtain some good images of Skippers on the Thistles.  I stopped at the second turnout on Seaboard Grade and was surprised by a large Otter who approached within 10-15 feet before he realized there was a human standing there.  Also saw some deer.

This morning, Tony Licata, Don Youso, Dave Lancaster, and I drove to Key West for the express purpose of seeing the Loggerhead Kingbird, which has been seen at Fort Zachary Taylor every day since the first sighting on Match 8^th.  This is a very rare bird for Florida, as well as the United States.  Although this bird has been apparently seen before in Florida, it had not been officially authenticated.  I believe the appropriate paperwork has now been or will be submitted to the appropriate organizations for authentication.  When authenticated, it will be the first official listing of this bird in Florida and the US.

We left at 6 a.m. and arrived at Fort Zachary Taylor at noon.  As we drove into the Beach parking lot, we saw a woman with binoculars and asked her if she has seen the bird.  She certainly had.  Her name was Kathryn and she was a member of the local Audubon society in Key West.  She told us to park and she would show us some spots where the bird had been seen.  At the second spot she showed us, she heard its call and we immediately spotted it, within 15 minutes after parking.  Amazing.  Thank you Kathryn.

After obtaining good looks and taking pictures, we ate lunch.  After lunch, we birded the area along the nature trail and again found the Kingbird, this time more in the open.  The bird was quite cooperative, assuming various poses for the dozen or so birders and photographers that gathered around him.  Other notable birds seen at the park included a Short-tailed Hawk, Broad-winged Hawk (juv), Blue-headed Vireo, and a Black-and-white Warbler.  We left the Park around 3:00 and drove along some side streets in Key West looking for White-crowned Pigeons.  Unfortunately, we were not able to find any.  We than started the long trek home, arriving in Punta Gorda around 10 p.m.

There is a small marsh behind the new Walmart on Kings Highway, just north of I-75, in Port Charlotte.  This marsh has a variety of birds, including Coots, Mottled and Ringneck Ducks, Great and Snowy Egrets, Great Blue, Little Blue, and Tricolored Herons, Glossy and White Ibis, Pied-billed Grebes, and a pair of nesting Sandhill Cranes.  I first observed the Cranes on the nest on February 14^th.  I, and a few other interested observers, have been watching this pair, hoping to see some chicks.  However, as of April 2^nd, the birds are still sitting on the nest.  Since incubation time is normally 4-5 weeks, it is unlikely that these eggs will hatch.  However, I’ll keep watching to see what happens.