BIRDING
NORTHWEST FLORIDA.
- by Ann Forster
The major habitat types
of the upper Gulf coast are well represented in our public
access lands. The best birding is during migration on the
tips of peninsulas which serve as migrant traps. If weather
conditions are right (or wrong for the birds), the birds
stack up like airplanes at a closed airport.
The best
times are April and late September through October. In the
autumn, there is a major movement of hawks along these beaches.
Botanizing and natural history studies are good all year.
All these areas are shown on the Gulf Islands National Seashore
Map.
OPEN BEACH/ RIPARIAN
WOODLAND
Fort Morgan, Alabama has traditionally
offered some of the most exciting birding and has good access.
a walk to the point produces as many as nine species of
terns as well as Snowy and Piping Plovers, gannets, gulls,
etc.
On Saturdays many local birders are
around networking information so all you need do is ask
someone with binoculars where the action is. There is a
bird-banding station in April and October and visitors are
welcomed. If the birding at Fort Morgan is excellent, a
trip to Dauphin Island may be worth it (ferry rates are
high and the schedule is irregular). Birders usually carpool
or hitchhike. The Audubon Sanctuary is within walking distance
of the ferry landing but the legendary "shell mounds"
are several miles away. The Mobile Causeway leading off
the island has good shorebirds and wading birds (American
Oystercatcher, Wilson's Plover, Reddish Egret, rails).
Fort Pickens, Florida/ Naval Live Oaks are interesting both
as historic parks and as wildlife habitat. Birding is good
for the same reasons as Fort Morgan and a walk around the
point is beautiful and birdy. The bicycle trail from Battery
Langdon to the main fort can be excellent in late April
and has nesting Least Bitterns and Gray Kingbirds. Both
forts are major gathering points for migrating Monarch butterflies
in October.
OAK
WOODS/FRESH WATER MARSH
Bon Secour National Wildlife
Refuge, Alabama has two good nature trails. The Pine Beach
Trail has an excellent brochure which makes it a great introduction
to the special plant communities of the area.
Blackwater State Park
and Forest north of Milton, Florida is mostly old growth
yellow pine uplands and cypress/ hardwood bottoms. The southern
pineywoods complex of birds is well-represented - Red-cockaded
Woodpecker, Pine Warbler, Brown-headed Nuthatch, and Bachman's
Sparrow.
BIRDING
THE NAVARRE/ FORT WALTON BEACH, FLORIDA AREA
There is an excellent place
in Fort Walton Beach off Beal Parkway. At the first road north
of Green Acres Road, turn left and continue north on Beal
Street Extension to the end. It is locally known as the Mama
Rosa sewage plant. Mama Rosa's is an Italian cafe' at the
turn. I'm sure they don't mind the association since most
groups arrange their schedule so that they can eat lunch there.
[Comment from Website Visitor: I
clipped the below from the F.M. Weston Audubon web site Bird
Sightings... section. The directions provided are misleading
and actually lead a person to the landfill and Ft Walton Beach
spray fields and pond. The "Mama Rosa sewage plant"
is actually about a mile past Green Acres road, and Mama Rosa's
Italian cafe is on the corner. I hope this helps.
Lenny Fenimore, Ft Walton Beach]
The grounds and ponds are accessible only on weekdays. It
can be excellent for shorebirds in spring and fall and for
waterfowl and sparrows in winter. White-faced Ibis and Eared
Grebe occur almost annually.If you come toward the Pensacola
area, you should cross over to Santa Rosa Island on the Navarre
Bridge. After you have crossed the bridge, turn left, and
go to the dead-end. Park and walk out into the dunes on the
Sound side away from the Gulf of Mexico. You can often see
Wilson's Plovers and peeps which sometimes include Buff-breasted
Sandpiper. It is an excellent area for winter sparrows. DO
NOT drive onto the sand. It will not support a car and the
towing fee is outrageous.
Drive west on the island toward Fort Pickens. Stop at the
Gulf Islands National Seashore parking areas along the Gulf
and scan the horizon for gannets, jaegers, etc. There may
be flocks of ducks returning from the Yucatan in the spring.
Fort Pickens can be a good migrant trap in spring and fall.
The best areas are behind Battery Langdon and in the wooded
area to the right of the Battery Worth picnic area. There
are usually other birders around so networking with them is
a good idea.
AN
APRIL TRIP TO THE APALACHICOLA/ST. MARKS
NWR AREA HAS NO EQUAL EAST OF TEXAS.
This area combines the
best of biodiversity, botanizing, and birding. Because so
many habitats are represented in such a compact area, a
bird list of 150+ is probable.
FLORIDA
CAVERNS STATE PARK (Marianna, FL)
Wonderful nature trail
through a relict plant community composed of Canadian zone
flora left over from the last Ice Age. Because of this,
it is a migration stop-over for many warblers and other
northern nesters. In addition, it has a beautiful hardwood
bottom along the Chipola River which supports the typical
southern swamp complex - Barred Owl, Red-shouldered Hawk,
Pileated Woodpecker, Hooded and Prothonotary Warblers, Acadian
Flycatcher, Wood Thrush, etc.
Stop at the US Forest
Service on SR 20 just east of town for information. Get
a brochure for Leon Sinks and for the Scenic Byway through
Sumatra, FL home of the unique Apalachicola National Forest
pitcher plant prairies.
There is a State Park
on the island which has some birds and nice picnic facilities.
The most interesting birding can be along the Causeway where
you can find nesting Black Skimmers, American Oystercatchers,
Least Terns, and Wilson's Plovers. A Sprague's Pipit shows
up every other winter or so.
OCHLOCKONEE
RIVER STATE PARK
Old growth pine/wire
grass community with a large population of Red-cockaded
Woodpeckers as well as Bachman's Sparrow, Summer Tanager,
Brown-headed Nuthatch, Pine Warblers and other piney woods
specialists.
Good central location
for over-night. We stay at Posey's Motel and have had good
seafood at Angelo's, The Oaks, and at Posey's. Nearby birding
areas include Mashes Sand Beach, Otter Lake, and Bald Point.
WAKULLA
SPRINGS STATE PARK
This priceless sanctuary
has been protected for so long that the birds accept ogling
birders as part of the landscape. The Jungle Cruise is a
must. The magnificent stand of Bald Cypress would justify
the visit but the anhingas, gallinules, osprey, eagles,
and limpkins take center stage.
Stop at the headquarters
for information and a look at the interpretive displays.
There is an observation deck and good nature trail just
behind the building. Drive and bird down the refuge road
to the old lighthouse. Be sure and walk the Mounds Interpretive
Trail which can be a good migrant trap and has an active
Bald Eagle nest.
This beautiful blackgum
swamp is the headwater of the Wakulla River. The excellent
nature trails illustrate the unique geology and can be good
for migrant.
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