FLORIDA, U.S.A. 23rd June, 1987 to 11th July, 1987 David, Doreen, John & Terence Cooper

 FLORIDA, U.S.A.

23rd June, 1987 to 11th July, 1987

David, Doreen, John & Terence Cooper

ITINERARY

23rd June : Flew from Gatwick to Miami Airport.

24th June : All day in the Everglades National Park.

The National Park entrance.

25th June : Tamiami Trail, Everglade City, Tamiami Trail, Everglades National Park

                               Baby Alligators along the Tamiami Trail, Everglades National Park.

26th June : Grassy Key, Marathon and Key West.

27th June : Marathon, Key West and Grassy Key.

28th June : Marathon, Everglades National Park and Homestead.

29th June : Tamiami Trail and Boyton Beach.

30th June : Loxahatchee Refuge, Palmdale and Venus.

Butterfly in the Everglades.

 A close shave with a Crocodile by the roadside in the Everglades National Park.

1st July : Palmdale, Venus, Pine Island, Holiday Inn sandbar in Fort Myers Beach, Big Carlos Pass.

2nd July : John Morris road, Ding Darling Refuge, Sanibel Island, Holiday Inn sandbar, Fort Myers beach.

3rd July : John Morris road, Ding Darling, Big Carlos Pass.

4th July : Big Carlos Pass, Everglades City, Tamiami Trail, Homestead.

5th July : Grassy Key, Marathon.

6th July : Fishing trip from Marathon, Grassy Key and Key West.

7th July : Dry Tortugas, Sugarloaf Key and Stock Island.

Our sea-planes for the flight out to the Dry Tortugas.

Seabirds on the Dry Tortugas.

Flying into the Dry Tortugas

8th July : Sugarloaf Key, Marathon, Grassy Key, Kendell and Greynolds Park.

9th July : Loxahatchee Refuge, John Prince Park, Lake Worth Golf Club.

Turtle laying eggs at Loxahatchee Refuge

10th July : Loxahatchee Refuge, John Prince Park.

11th July : Greynolds Park, Miami for flight to Gatwick.

Systematic Bird List

Pied-billed Grebe - Poilymbus podiceps podiceps C

Only seen on six dates in small numbers with a daily maximum of 6 seen at Loxahatchee Refuge on the 9th.

Audubon’s Shearwater - Puffinus lherminieri lherminieri C

A total of 5 were seen from the Marathon Lady off the Vaca Cut near Marathon on the 6/7.

Wilson’s Storm-Petrel – Oceanites oceanicus JFC

A Storm-Petrel that JFC saw briefly from the Marathon Lady was almost certainly this species.

Brown Pelican - Pelecanus occidentalis carolinensis C

Seen in fair numbers on fourteen dates with a daily maximum of 50 seen at Sanibel Island on both the 1st and 2nd.

Brown Pelican in a local marina.

Double-crested Cormorant - Phalacrocorax auritus floridanus C

Seen in good numbers on sixteen dates with a daily maximum of 300 seen on the Keys on the 5th.

Anhinga - Anhinga anhinga leucogaster C

Seen in good numbers on thirteen dates with a daily maximum of 40 seen at Loxahatchee Refuge on the 30th.

Adult male Anhinga in breeding plumage at Loxahatchee Refuge

Magnificent Frigatebird - Fregata magnificens C

Seen in good numbers along the Keys and at Sanibel Island and the surrounding area. Seen on nine dates with a daily maximum of 100 seen on the Dry Tortugas on the 7th.

Three Magnificent Frigatebirds on the Dry Tortugas.

Great Blue Heron - Ardea herodias occidentalis C

Seen every day but two in fair numbers. The various phases were easily seen on the Keys.

Great Blue Heron (white morph) on the Florida Keys

Great Egret - Ardea alba egretta C

Seen every day but two in good numbers.

Great Egret in the Everglades

Reddish Egret - Egretta rufescens rufescens C

Seen on eleven dates in small numbers with a daily maximum of 9 seen in the vicinity of Sanibel on the 2nd.

Reddish Egrets on Sanibel Island

Tricolored Heron - Egretta tricolor ruficollis C

Seen on every day but one, usually in good numbers.

Tri-coloured Heron in the Everglades National Park

Little Blue Heron - Egretta caerulea C

Seen every day, but two in good numbers.

Snowy Egret - Egretta thula brewsteri C

Seen on ten dates in small numbers.

Snowy Egret on the beach at Fort Myers

Cattle Egret - Bubulcus ibis ibis C

Seen on every day but one in large numbers.

Cattle Egret on the Dry Tortugas

 Green Heron - Butorides virescens C  Seen every day but two in good numbers, with a daily maximum of 40, seen along the Tamiami Trail on the 25^th.

                                                                                                                                    Green Heron along the Tamiami Trail.

Black-crowned Night-Heron - Nycticorax nycticorax hoactli C

Seen at the Big Carlos Pass near Fort Myers, at Greynold’s Park and at the Lake Worth Golf Club on four dates with a daily maximum of 7 at the Golf Club on the 9th.

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron - Nyctanassa violacea violacea C

Seen on seven dates in small numbers along the Anhinga Trail, at the Ding Darling Reserve on Sanibel, at Sugarloaf Key and at Greynold’s Park with a daily maximum of 15 being seen at Sanibel on the 3rd.

Yellow Crowned Night-Heron on Sanibel Island

Least Bittern - Ixobrychus exilis exilis C

A total of 4 were seen at Paurotis Pond in the Everglades Park on the 24th, seen very easily at Loxahatchee on each of our three visits with a daily maximum of 7 seen there on the 9th.

Wood Stork - Mycteria americana C

Around 25 were seen soaring around in small groups in the vicinity of Fish-eating Creek on the 30th, 5 were seen on a small pool along US27 between Palmdale and Clewiston on the 1st and one was seen at Ding Darling on the 2nd.

White Ibis - Eudocimus albus C

Seen every day but two in good numbers.

Immature type White Ibis at Loxahatchee Refuge

Scarlet Ibis – Eudocimus ruber 

A washed out individual was seen at Flamingo on the 24th. There had been some debate as to whether it was a wild vagrant, but looking pink rather than scarlet its origins were presumably dubious.

Glossy Ibis - Plegadis falcinellus C

At Loxahatchee 2 were seen on the 10th.

Roseate Spoonbill - Ajaia ajaja C

Seen at the Big Carlos Pass and the Ding Darling Reserve on three dates with a daily maximum of 95 seen on the 3rd.

Flock of Roseate Spoonbills at Ding Darling Reserve

Wood Duck - Aix sponsa C

A single individual was seen at Loxahatchee on the 30th.

Mottled Duck - Anas fulvigula C

Seen on eight dates with a daily maximum of 75 seen at Ding Darling on the 3rd.

A distant Mottled Duck at Ding Darling Reserve

Black Vulture - Coragyps atratus atratus C

Seen on seven dates in good numbers with a daily maximum of 70 seen on the 1st.

Black Vulture at Palmdale.

Turkey Vulture - Cathartes aura septentrionalis C

Seen virtually every day in large numbers.

Osprey - Pandion haliaetus carolinensis C

Seen every day in good numbers.

Swallow-tailed Kite - Elanoides forficatus forficatus C

Seen on six dates in three main areas, being the area between Paurotious Pond and Flamingo, at Everglades City and in the Palmdale area. A daily maximum of 20 were seen around Palmdale on the 30th. Superb.

Swallow Tailed Kite at Palmdale in the Everglades National Park

Snail Kite - Rostrhamus sociabilis plumbeus C

Always present behind the Miccosukee Restaurant along the Tamiami Trail with eight seen on the 25th, 2 on the 29th and 6 on the 4th.

Bald Eagle - Haliaeetus leucocephalus leucocephalus C

We saw 2 in the pines south of the road leading to the Mahogany Hammock in the Everglades c200m. after turning off, and one in flight there on the 24th, 1 over Belle Glade on the 30th, and 1 over the Nine Mile Pond.

A pair of adult Bald Eagles sat along the Mahogany Hammock road in the Everglades.

Bald Eagle soaring over the Everglades

Cooper’s Hawk - Accipiter cooperi C

Singles were seen at the Nine Mile Pond in the Everglades on the 24th and on Sugarloaf Key on the 7th.

Red-shouldered Hawk - Buteo lineatus extimus C

Seen on nine dates in good numbers with a daily maximum of 12 seen in the Everglades on the 24th.

Red-shouldered Hawk in the Everglades Nat. Pk.

Short-tailed Hawk - Buteo brachyurus fuliginosus C  A single individual was seen both perched and in flight along the US27 road, about 5 miles north of Palmdale and Fish-eating Creek on the 30^th.

Red-tailed Hawk - Buteo jamaicensis umbrinus C  Singles were seen just north of Palmdale on the 30^th and near Old Venus on the 1^st.

Crested Caracara - Caracara plancus audubonii C  A single individual was watched feeding on the road along US74 near Palmdale on the 1^st.

 Wild Turkey - Meleagris gallopavo osceola C  We saw 10 along Sheppard road near Old Venus on the 1^{st .}

Northern Bobwhite - Colinus virginianus floridanus C We saw 12 along the Route 731 near Palmdale on the 30th.

      Northern Bobwhite near Palmdale

Sandhill Crane - Grus canadensis C

We saw 20 feeding in small groups in the vicinity of Palmdale on the 30th, and 5 along Route 74 on the 1st.

Sandhill Cranes near Palmdale

Limpkin - Aramus guarauna pictus C

We saw singles on a small pool between Clewiston and Palmdale on both the 30th and the 1st and at the John Prince Park on the 9th.

Limpkin near Palmdale

American Purple Gallinule - Porphyrula martinica C

Only seen at Loxahatchee and near the campground at the John Prince Park with around 10 individuals seen at each location

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American Purple Gallinule at John Prince Park

Common Moorhen - Gallinula chloropus cachinnans C

Seen most days.

American Coot - Fulica americana americana C

Seen on a total of five dates in the Everglades and Loxahatchee.

American Oystercatcher - Haematopus palliatus palliatus C

Seen at Sanibel, at the Big Carlos Pass and along the sandbar stretching south from the Holiday Inn at Fort Myers Beach with a daily maximum of 13 seen at the Big Carlos Pass on the 3rd.

Black-necked Stilt - Himantopus mexicanus mexicanus C

Seen on eight dates in small numbers with a daily maximum of 6 seen at the ponds along Peachtree Street on Grassy Key on the 8th.

Grey Plover - Pluvialis squatarola C

Seen on eight dates in small numbers.

Semipalmated Plover - Charadrius semipalmatus C

Seen on four dates with good numbers seen in the Fort Myers area and 9 on Grassy Key on the 5th.

Wilson’s Plover - Charadrius wilsonia wilsonia C

We saw 2 on the sandy bank at the Holiday Inn at Fort Myers on the 1st and 2nd and 5 on the Keys near Marathon on the 5th.

Killdeer - Charadrius vociferus C

Seen in small numbers on seven dates with a daily maximum of 7 seen at Loxahatchee on the 10th.

Short-billed Dowitcher - Limnodromus griseus C

Seen on seven dates in fair numbers with a daily maximum of 70 seen in the Fort Myers area on the 1st.

Marbled Godwit - Limosa fedoa fedoa C

Seen on four dates being encountered at the Big Carlos Pass, the Holiday Inn sandbar, and at Ding Darling, with a daily maximum of 20 seen on the 1st.

Marbled Godwits with Black Skimmers on the sandbar at Fort Myers.

Whimbrel - Numenius phaeopus hudsonicus C

We saw a single individual at the Holiday Inn sandbar on the 1st and 2nd.

Greater Yellowlegs - Tringa melanoleuca C

Seen on five dates in small numbers with a daily maximum of 8 seen on Grassy Key on the 5th.

Lesser Yellowlegs - Tringa flavipes C

We saw a single individual on Grassy Key on the 8th.

Willet - Catoptrophorus semipalmatus C

Seen on ten dates in good numbers with a daily maximum of 40 seen on the 1st.

Willet on the sandbar at Fort Myers

Turnstone - Arenaria interpres morinella C

Seen on eight dates in small numbers with a daily maximum of 10 seen on the 5th.

Red Knot - Calidris canutus C

We saw 8 at the Holiday Inn on the 1st and 92 there the following day.

Semipalmated Sandpiper - Calidris pusilla C

Seen on three dates in the Fort Myers area with a daily maximum of 40 seen on the 2nd.

Semipalmated Sandpipers summering on the beach at Fort Myers.

Least Sandpiper - Calidris minutilla C

A single individual was seen at Grassy Key on the 5th.

Pomarine Skua - Stercorarius pomarinus C

We saw 2 from the Marathon Lady on the 6th.

Ring-billed Gull - Larus delawarensis C

Seen on four dates in small numbers with a daily maximum of 15 seen on the 1st.

Great Black-backed Gull - Larus marinus C

We saw 4 a the Holiday Inn, and 1 on the Dry Tortugas.

American Herring Gull - Larus argentatus smithsonianus C

We saw a single individual on the Dry Tortugas on the 7th.

Laughing Gull - Larus atricilla megalopterus C

Seen on fourteen dates in good numbers.

Gull-billed Tern - Sterna nilotica arenea C

A single individual was seen at Grassy Key on the 6th.

Sandwich Tern - Sterna sandvicensis acuflavidus C

We saw 2 on three dates at the Holiday Inn sandbar.

Royal Tern - Sterna maxima maxima C

Seen on nine dates with a daily maximum of 700 seen at the Holiday Inn sandbar on the 2nd. Superb.

Royal Terns on the beach at Fort Myers.

Forster’s Tern - Sterna forsteri C

We saw singles at Flamingo on the 24th, Loxahatchee on the 30th and from the Marathon Lady on the 6th.

Least Tern - Sterna antillarum antillarum C

Seen on seventeen dates in good numbers.

Bridled Tern - Sterna anaethetus recognita C

We saw 70 from the Marathon Lady on the 6th. Superb.

Bridled Terns taken from a pelagic boat on the Marathon Lady out from Marathon

Sooty Tern - Sterna fuscata fuscata C

We visited the breeding colony on the Dry Tortugas on the 7th. An estimated 100,000 pairs breed on the islands. Superb.

Sooty Terns on the Dry Tortugas

Brown Noddy - Anous stolidus stolidus C

We estimated that we saw c.2,000 on the Dry Tortugas on the 7^th. 

Brown Noddy on the Dry Tortugas

Black Skimmer - Rynchops niger niger C

At the Fort Myers Beach Holiday Inn sandbar, we saw 20 on the 1st and 15 on the 2nd.

Black Skimmers on the sandbar at Fort Myers Holiday Inn

White-crowned Pigeon - Columba leucocephala C

Seen on nine dates being encountered in the Everglades and on the Keys with a daily maximum of 50 seen on both the 25th and the 5th.

Collared Dove - Streptopelia decaocto C

Pure individuals were seen at Homestead along with a variety of presumed hybrids.

(African Collared (Barbary) Dove - Streptopelia roseogrisea risoria C)

Apparently pure individuals were seen at Marathon on the Keys. They are apparently hybridising with Collared Dove which is a more recent introduction.

Mourning Dove - Zeanaida macroura carolinenesis C

Seen in good numbers every day but one.

Juvenile Mourning Dove at Marathon.

White-winged Dove - Zenaida asiatica C

Seen on four dates with a daily maximum of 15 seen at Homestead on the 23rd.

Common Ground-Dove - Columbina passerina passerina C

Seen on ten dates with a daily maximum of 20 seen at the end of Boot Key Bridge Road at Marathon on the 26th.

Common Ground Dove at Marathon.

Key West Quail-Dove - Geotrygon chrysia C

A single individual that had been in residence for some time was seen in mangroves at the end of Boot Key Bridge Road at Marathon on the 28th. Superb. Apparently only the sixth US record.

Key West Quail-Dove in the mangroves at Marathon

Canary-winged Parakeet -Brotogeris versicolurus C

We saw a pair flying around calling just south of the Alamo Car Rental depot at Miami on the 11th.

Red-crowned Parrot - Amazona viridigenalis C

We saw 30 arrive into their roost just north of the clubhouse at the Lake Worth Golf Club on the 9th. Introduced to Florida.

Yellow-headed Parrot - Amazona oratrix C

We saw 30 arrive into their roost just north of the clubhouse at the Lake Worth Golf Club on the 9th. Introduced to Florida.

Yellow-billed Cuckoo - Coccyzus americanus C

We saw 2 along the Anhinga Trail and 1 at the nearby Research Station in the Everglades Park on the 24th and 2 along the levee at Loxahatchee on the 10th.

Mangrove Cuckoo - Coccyzus minor C

We saw 2 leaving mangroves and visiting a large Flame Tree in the garden of a private residence at Everglade City on the 25th. Superb.

Distant shot of a Mangrove Cuckoo at Everglade City.

Smooth-billed Ani - Crotophaga ani C

We saw a single individual at Eco Pond near Flamingo on the 28th, 2 at the levee at Loxahatchee on the 30th and 1 there on the 10th.

Burrowing Owl - Athene cunicularia floridana C

We counted 12 at the Sombrero Golf Course on the 26th, 1 there the following day, exactly 25 there on the evening of the 5th, and 1 along the US27 between Clewiston and Palmdale.

Burrowing Owl in the heat haze on Sombrero Golf Course on the Keys

 Common Nighthawk - Chordeiles minor chapmani C  This species proved to be very common with a daily maximum of 200 being seen on the 30^th.

 Antillean Nighthawk - Chordeiles gundlachii vicinus C  We saw this species perched in the trees at the Sombrero Golf Club, flying around Marathon Airport in the evening and at the college on Stock Island just before reaching Key West. A daily maximum of 5 were seen at the College on the 7^th. Distinguished by call from the Common Nighthawks it was also seen on the Keys.

                                                                                        

                                Antillean Nighthawk on the Sombrero Golf Course on Marathon

Chuck-will’s-widow - Caprimulgus carolinenesis C  We saw 2 along the road leading to the Research Station near the Anhinga Trail on the 25th.

Chimney Swift - Chaetura pelagica C  Seen on seven dates in small numbers with a daily maximum of 12 seen at the Lake Worth Golf Club on the evening of the 9th.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird - Archilochus colubris C  We saw singles in Everglade City on the 4th and along Nature Trail C in the John Prince Park on the 10th.

Belted Kingfisher - Ceryle alcyon C  A single individual was seen at the John Prince Park on the 10th.

Red-headed Woodpecker - Melanerpes erythrocephalus erythrocephalus C  We saw 1 along the US 27 and nine along Sheppard road and Route 731 on the 30th. Superb.

Red-bellied Woodpecker - Melanerpes carolinus C  Seen in small numbers on fifteen dates with a daily maximum of 5 seen along the Tamiami Trail on the 25th.

                                                                                                                     Record shot of a distant Red Bellied Woodpecker in the Everglades

Downy Woodpecker - Picoides pubescens pubescens C

We saw a single individual in the trees at the opposite end of the lake to the tower in Greynolds Park on the 11th.

Northern Flicker - Colaptes auratus auratus C

Seen on thirteen dates in small numbers with a daily maximum of 8 seen on the 30th.

Pileated Woodpecker - Dryocopus pileatus pileatus C

Singles were seen at the Loxahatchee HQ on the 30th and at Sanibel Island on the 3rd.

Great Crested Flycatcher - Myiarchus crinitus C

Seen in small numbers on nine dates with a daily maximum of 8 seen at Mahogany Hammock in the Everglades, on the 24th.

Eastern Kingbird - Tyrannus tyrannus C

A total of 14 were seen over four dates being seen at Paurotis Pond in the Everglades, near Palmdale, and at Kendall.

Grey Kingbird - Tyrannus dominicensis dominicensis C

Seen on fourteen dates in good numbers with 25 noted on three different dates.

Grey Kingbird on the Keys.

Purple Martin - Progne subis subis C

Seen in small numbers on seventeen dates with a daily maximum of 15 seen on the 8th.

Purple Martins at Marathon.

Red-whiskered Bulbul - Pycnonotus jocosus C

We saw 8 behind the Methodist Church two blocks east of US1 in Kendall on the 8th.

Carolina Wren - Thryothorus ludovicianus C

Seen in small numbers on four dates with a daily maximum of 2 at the Cypress Swamp on the 30th.

Northern Mockingbird - Mimus polyglottos polyglottos C

Very common being seen daily.

Brown Thrasher - Toxostoma rufum rufum C

We saw 2 along FL27 just north of Homestead on the 25th and singles around Old Venus on the 30th and the 1st.

Eastern Bluebird - Sialia sialis grata C

We saw 30 on the loop made by the US27, US731 and the US74 near Palmdale on the 30th, and 15 there the following morning.

Blue-grey Gnatcatcher - Polioptila caerulea caerulea C

We saw a single individual along the small boardwalk along the Tamiami Trail.

Loggerhead Shrike - Lanius ludovicianus C

We saw 4 around Old Venus on the 30th and 12 between there and Fort Myers Beach on the 1st.

Blue Jay - Cyanocitta cristata C

Seen in small numbers on nine dates mainly being encountered in residential areas with a daily maximum of 15 being seen along the SW104 in Kendall on the 8th.

Blue Jay near Kendall.

Florida Scrub-Jay - Aphelocoma coerulescens C

We saw 5 along Sheppard Road on the 30th and 1 along Route 731 the following day.

American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos pascuus C

Seen on eleven dates proving common in the Everglades NP.

Fish Crow - Corvus ossifragus C

Seen on three dates proving common at Sanibel.

Common Myna - Acridotheres tristis C

We saw a single individual at its nest in a lamp-post at a roundabout in Everglade City.

Starling - Sturnus vulgaris C

Common.

House Sparrow - Passer domesticus C

Common.

White-eyed Vireo – Vireo griseus maynardi C

Seen on three dates at the entrance to the Mangrove Trail at West Lake in the Everglades where the daily maximum of 6 were seen on the 25th and the form maynardi seen on Sugarloaf Key. 

Black-whiskered Vireo – Vireo altiloquus barbatulus C

Seen on five dates with many more heard. A daily maximum of 6 were seen on Sugarloaf Key on the 8th.

Pine Warbler – Dendroica pinus C

We saw 15 on the Old Venus Loop on the 30th.

Prairie Warbler – Dendroica discolor C

Seen on eight dates with a daily maximum of 20 seen along the dirt road along Route 939 at Sugarloaf Key on the 7th.

Prairie Warbler on Sugarloaf Key.

Common Yellowthroat – Geothlypis trichas C

We saw singles along the Anhinga Trail on the 24th, 1 along the Tamiami Trail on the 25th and 1 at Sanibel on the 2nd.

Eastern Towhee – Pipilo erythrophthalmus alleni C

Seen on four dates with the daily maximum of 6 seen on both the 1st and 2nd.

Northern Cardinal – Cardinalis cardinalis floridanus C

This species proved common being seen every day but one.

Blue Grosbeak – Guiraca caerulea caerulea C

A single individual was seen on the Dry Tortugas on the 7th.

Red-winged Blackbird – Agelaius phoeniceus floridanus C

Seen daily.

Eastern Meadowlark – Sturnella magna argutula C

This species proved common being seen on most days.

Boat-tailed Grackle – Quiscalus major major C

Seen daily.

Male Boat Tailed Grackle in John Prince Park.

Common Grackle – Quiscalus quiscula quiscula C

Seen every day but one.

Shiny Cowbird – Molothrus bonariensis C

We saw 6 including 5 males at Flamingo on the 24th and 1 there on the 28th. A very rare species in the US but perhaps destined to become a pest due to its parasitic behavior.

Brown-headed Cowbird – Molothrus ater ater C

We saw 8 at Flamingo on the 24th, 2 there on the 28th and one at Fort Myers Beach on the 1st.

Spot-breasted Oriole – Icterus pectoralis C

We saw 5 in Greynold’s Park including one sat on its nest.

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