The Click Ponds: Part I & II

 Saturday afternoon's dreary and dismal weather was a stark contrast to Monday's sunny, blue skies. I went to the Click Ponds, located adjacent to the wetlands, on both of these days. I didn't see anything out of the ordinary on Saturday, but I did enjoy the variety of birds I was able to see.  I spotted two Common-ground Doves in a tree near the entrance. These doves are a bit more interesting than their Mourning counterparts; they have bright chestnut primaries that are visible when in flight. They are also the smallest of the dove family.  The trees and bushes to the right of the ponds were loads with birds. There were large numbers of Palm and Yellow-rumped Warblers and probably quite a few others that I missed. Boat-tailed Grackles and Robins were also abundant throughout the area.

Juvenile Red-winged Blackbird
Click Ponds

I also saw two juvenile Red-winged Blackbirds who appeared to be under the guidance of an adult RWBB.

American Robin
Click Ponds

The visiting Robins were on mission to consume every berry in the area and a Green Heron was fishing from some old pipes.

Green Heron
Click Ponds

While I was sitting in my parked car observing some Hooded Mergansers, a Wilson's Snipe flew right in front of my car. It then proceed to loop around me again, land in the reeds right in front of me, and, strangest of all, just stare at me. This is the second one I've seen in the past week.

Wilson's Snipe
Click Ponds

Monday I spotted this American Bittern who was relatively out in the open, for a Bittern anyway.

American Bittern
Click Ponds

Female Boat-tailed Grackle
Click Ponds

As I was watching some Boat-tailed Grackles dance around I noticed a small Sora hiding in the reeds. This is the first time I have seen one here. I wasn't able to get a decent photo as the Sora was doing its best to stay concealed.

Hiding Sora
Click Ponds

This Palm Warbler appears to be developing its breeding plumage noted by the rufous cap that is developing.

Palm Warbler
Click Ponds

This young Mockingbird was waiting at the exit to wish us farewell.

Northern Mockingbird
Click Ponds

Warblers at the Park

This past weekend, I stopped off at the beach in Cape Canaveral to see if any different gulls or terns were mulling around. They weren't and the wind was ripping, so away I went. I passed by a really small park with many different types of trees, so I decided to stop and see if any birds were out and about. Turned out to be quite enjoyable as I quietly sat on the ground and listened to the variety of songs. I didn't see a very large number of species, but I did see some interesting interactions.There were several dozen Yellow-rumped Warblers enjoying the berries on the ground.

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Yellow-rumped Warbler

A few Palm Warblers were also in the area.

Palm Warbler

I even picked up a new lifer, one of the smallest warblers, a Northern Parula. I only caught a quick glimpse, snapped a few photos, and off it went.

Northern Parula

Northern Parula

There were several Northern Mockingbirds enjoying the berries as well. This one was taking a rest in the bushes after consuming its lunch.

Northern Mockingbird

There was also a pair of Eurasian Collared-Doves engaging in some sort of interaction. It looked like they were fighting, but they could have been mating. They would lift a few feet off the ground, then collide with one another midair I thought someone was going to end up with a broken wing. I didn't manage to get any presentable images of that, sorry.

Viera Wetlands at Sunset

Changing things up this week, I headed over to the wetlands after work on Monday. I decided to diverge from the usual activities as I noticed the sky displaying some unusual cloud formations. The wetlands is a great place for sunsets, which I thought these clouds might bring.

I saw the usual variety of herons, waterfowl, songbirds, and raptors. I also spotted a Wilson's Snipe, which I have only seen there on one other occasion. This fellow only made a split second appearance and was off. This is a photo of the one I saw at the Wetlands in November of 2010.

Wilson's Snipe
Viera Wetlands

This Hooded Merganser was doing its best to camouflage itself among the hundreds of Coots.

Palm Warbler
Viera Wetlands

Red-winged Blackbird
Viera Wetlands

Most of clouds dispersed by the time the sun went down, but we enjoyed the sunset none the less.

Random Birds in the Florida Keys

I had a little bit of time each day to explore a few areas of the Keys for some birds. I visited an area called "Tea Table Relief", as I noted in a few earlier posts, twice, seeing an interesting mix of birds each visit. The birds seen in this area included: Brown Pelicans, a "Great White" Heron, Cormorants, Ospreys, gulls, a Red-bellied Woodpecker, a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Black Vultures, Palm Warblers, Magnificent Frigatebirds, a Northern Mockingbird, a Belted Kingfisher, White Ibis, and several European starlings.

Northern Mockingbird
Florida Keys

White Ibis
Florida Keys

European Starling
Florida Keys

Red-bellied Woodpecker
Florida Keys

Palm Warbler
Florida Keys

Palm Warbler
Florida Keys

A visit to the Windley Key Fossil Reef Geological State Park didn't turn up any birds, but there was some really cool fossilized reefs to check out. There are three quarries and several trails that you can explore on your own or they have guided tours. The park is a good place to see migrating songs, but they have all apparently migrated on.

Fossilized Reef
Windley Key

This Warbler was hanging out in a tree at the hotel in Islamorda. I think it is a Prairie Warbler. Poor guy had some large growth on his leg.

Prairie Warbler
Florida Keys

This is where I was hanging out!

Palm Warblers were found at all the places I visited. This one was at Founder's Park.

Palm Warbler
Florida Keys

Another area I made a very quick trip through was "Anne's Beach" located around MM 74. It is a great place to bird watch as it offers a boardwalk through the mangroves that parallels the shore. Here I only saw 2 birds, but migrating songs can be found here at other times of the year. I'm not quite sure what this one is.

White Rumped Sandpiper
Florida Keys

Road to Moccasin Island

A cold front passed through the area this week bringing with it most frigid temps we've experienced this season. I decided to take a drive and see how the birds were keeping warm. We drove the road to Moccasin Island out and back and were pleasantly surprised with the variety of birds that were out and about.

Belted Kingfisher

There were two Belted Kingfishers, about three trees apart from one another, watching the creek for an early morning snack.

Eastern Phoebe

This solitary Eastern Phoebe just seemed to be enjoying the sun.

Savannah Sparrow

Numerous Savannah Sparrows and Palm Warblers were perched along the way.

Palm Warbler

Cattle Egret

There were lots of Cattle Egrets among the cattle as well as along the road chasing down the crickets.

Red-shouldered Hawk

Turkey Vulture

This guy looked like he was daring me to try and steal his raccoon.