Author: Rex Rowan

Matt Bruce found a Belted Kingfisher south of the County Road 325 bridge at Cross Creek this afternoon. He writes, “It would have been visible from the bridge, looking towards Orange Lake.” It’s not too late if you start driving now!

Linda Hensley, Danny Shehee, and Maralee Joos found an immature Yellow-crowned Night-Heron at Sweetwater Wetlands Park this morning: https://www.flickr.com/photos/74215662@N04/27968635896/in/dateposted-public/

If the weather cooperates, I’m going to make one last attempt at La Chua this evening, though after the recent rains all the mud may be underwater again.

Mark your calendar: there will be a bird rescue workshop in Cedar Key on July 22nd: http://flshorebirdalliance.org/media/50398/Bird-Rescue-Workshop-Flyer-7-22-16.pdf

Tomorrow evening – that’s Friday, July 1st – we’ll have the June Challenge party, at which winners will be announced and prizes handed out. Please bring a lawn chair and a covered dish. Drinks will be provided. Bob Carroll will be grilling hot dogs. Becky Enneis writes, “The slide show is looking good. So far there are photos of 95 species, and Danny Shehee is out with his camera looking for a few more. I have 175 photos in the slideshow – it’s hard to leave out the great ones, and a lot of those have come in.” Map to Becky’s place is here.

We’ve lost a minute of daylight since the solstice. How depressing.

I think I stumbled across a pair of Hairy Woodpeckers on the morning of the 27th. I was working on the Breeding Bird Atlas (Waldo quad) and while driving slowly along County Road 1471 in search of an Eastern Kingbird I heard a series of high-pitched calls from two birds chasing around in some pecan trees. All the vocalizations sounded like Hairy, not like Downy, the birds seemed on the large side, and the quick glimpse I got when one bird gave me a profile looked like a male Downy/Hairy with what *may* have been a long bill. Then both birds flew east across 1471, across the field, and toward a huge stand of dead trees on the back side of the field (the western edge of the Santa Fe Swamp Conservation Area). I’m not counting them on my June Challenge list, because Downies may have some vocalizations I’m not aware of, but I’m 98% certain they were Hairies. I waited by the side of the road for another 45 minutes, hoping they’d come back, but they never did. If you’ve got Google Earth, you can see where I was at 29° 48.534, -082° 07.789. If not, take County Road 1471 (the one that runs up the east side of Lake Alto) north to NE 134th Avenue, the entrance road to Lake Alto Park. From that point, continue north 2.1 miles on 1471. You’ll pass two houses with addresses out by the street: 17015 on the right, 16784 on the left. The woodpeckers were chasing each other through the trees at 16784. I’d say your chances of seeing them aren’t great, but it’s the best lead we’ve had for the species this June. Two or three years ago we had a pair of Hairies a few miles south on 1471, at John Winn’s LEAFS property. This present location is situated between the big swamp north of Lake Santa Fe on the east and the big swamp north of Lake Alto on the west.

Speaking of the big swamp north of Lake Alto, until yesterday I was completely ignorant that it’s a state-owned conservation property. It’s called the Lake Alto Tract of the Santa Fe Swamp Wildlife and Environmental Area, and it’s 1580 acres in extent. On spying the sign along County Road 1471, I pulled into the parking lot and tried to find a trail, but the whole place was very overgrown and I saw no blazed trees. Recreation on the site is under the authority of the Suwannee River Water Management District. The web site for the WEA is here, with a map here. The map shows a trail system, so I phoned the WEA’s biologist at SRWMD this morning to ask about it, but he wasn’t in his office. Water Management Districts aren’t getting much support under the Scott administration, I know that, so it’s quite possible that they simply don’t have the money for maintenance.

Lloyd Davis writes, “As I entered O’Leno State Park this morning at about 8:15 I heard a Broad-winged Hawk about 100 yards beyond the entrance ranger stop. Of course it is in the wrong county (Columbia), so I didn’t pull over to look for it. I went there to check for Louisiana Waterthrush but didn’t find one.” If you were to stand on the hanging bridge at O’Leno – and you were to have a bit of luck – you might see a Broad-winged circle over the Alachua County side of the river.

I tried for Louisiana Waterthrush at Gum Root Swamp this morning, but without success – though I did see three River Otters, which is success of a kind.

Frank Goodwin and Jane Brockmann independently confirmed two singing male Gray Catbirds at Tumblin Creek Park on the 26th. Jane wrote, “One was singing in plain view (woods to the north of the Picnic pavilion) and the other was deeper in the woods to the west of the Picnic Pavilion (both could be heard singing at the same time).” On the previous day Trina Anderson and Howard Adams saw a third catbird there: “Saw two together on the sidewalk while hearing one farther down the hill, which was confirmed by Howard Adams.”

On the subject of Black-crowned Night-Herons eating other birds, Josh Watson of the Santa Fe Zoo writes, “This is an issue when you see them in captivity as well. I know of one aviary that struggled with that very thing. The herons would roost at the very top of the building, and were therefore almost impossible to remove.” And Rob Bowden sent this photo of a Black-crowned preying on a Yellow-billed Cuckoo: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10153971559853751&set=pcb.1043952955653430&type=3&theater

Remember, the La Chua Trail should be open again on the 30th, and the water levels seem to be dropping, so there may be a few early-returning shorebirds visible from the observation platform.

June Challengers, send me your final totals by midnight on the 30th. Go ahead and list the number of AOU-countable birds and then list the non-countable exotics. If, for instance, you’ve seen 99 countable birds and the only non-countable exotics on your list were Black Swan and Helmeted Guineafowl, send me this: “99 + Black Swan, Helmeted Guineafowl.”

Speaking of Helmeted Guineafowl, here’s a question for those of you who have it on your June Challenge lists. Are these free-roaming birds? Lloyd Davis saw them south of the Mill Creek Preserve the other day and he said they were within a fenced yard. If they’re captive and not free-flying (or free-running) birds, they probably shouldn’t be counted. Let me know if you’re counting them and where you saw them; it doesn’t really matter to me, I just want to be sure that everyone’s playing by the same rules. If one person is counting them, everyone should.

Later today I’ll hold a press conference to announce that I’m withdrawing from the European Union. I’m calling it the Rexit.

Say, two things to remember: (1.) I need your June Challenge totals in my email inbox by midnight on June 30th, that is to say sixty seconds after 11:59 p.m. on June 30th. Only those who get them to me on time will be eligible for awards. (2.) The June Challenge party and awards ceremony will be held beginning at 6 p.m. on Friday, July 1st, at Becky Enneis’s house in Alachua. Here’s a map showing Becky’s place: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1p7B11MuC4CM9N3eTT7sx1HFWyIs&usp=sharing

On Friday morning Danny Shehee found at least one, maybe two, Gray Catbirds singing at Tumblin Creek Park at 6th and Depot, where one (or, again, maybe two) spent last June. He got a photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/74215662@N04/27275386433/in/dateposted-public/ The bird was seen later in the afternoon by Jonathan Mays, and toward evening by Lloyd Davis and myself.

As Lloyd and I stood by the creek at the northwest corner of the park, waiting for the catbird to show, Lloyd told me that he’d be meeting Tom Tompkins at the airport on Saturday morning in hopes of seeing a fairly reliable Cooper’s Hawk. He invited me to join them, so I did, and sure enough at about 7:00-7:15 a Cooper’s came flying over the pines south of the FAA tower and went for some Mourning Doves on the edge of the runway. Though a fence got in its way – the doves got through, while the hawk had to go over – it recovered quickly, chased down a dove in flight, and went pinwheeling down to the ground with its prey. It was a spectacular sight, but alas, neither of my companions – both of whom live and breathe photography – was wearing a camera at the time! One curious thing. When the Cooper’s first came into view it was flapping much more deeply and slowly than a Cooper’s usually does. I wondered if it was mimicking a crow to avoid alarming the doves.

Afterward Lloyd and I went to Gum Root Swamp in hope of seeing an early-migrant Louisiana Waterthrush. No such luck, though. On the 12th Barbara Shea and I had made the same walk in search of a Prothonotary Warbler and I’d been surprised at the absence of mosquitoes. They’re absent no more. Lloyd and I were slapping at them constantly.

Jonathan Mays writes, “Have you gone after Eastern Wood-Pewee yet? I did my 10-mile running loop at San Felasco (north of Millhopper Road) again on Sunday and had better luck this go, though still not easy. I heard the one that others have been seeing/reporting right where the western portion of the red trail meets the yellow trail. It was calling from pretty far off though with no chance of a visual (a Hooded Warbler was also calling in this area but way off to the east, likely where it drops down to more hammock area). I made the loop around and caught up to another pair of pewees, seen together off the yellow trail very near the #05 trail marker (those 4×4 posts with black #’s on a white background). Dunno why I had such trouble with pewee this year but at least I got 20 miles of exercise from the chase (10 this past Sunday and 10 the week before).”

Jonathan also told me that he’d found Helmeted Guineafowl, which is not ABA-countable but which will serve as a tiebreaker, along CR-241 north of Alachua but south of the Mill Creek Preserve and CR-236.

I was surprised and somewhat horrified to see Black-crowned Night-Herons snatch up Common Gallinule chicks on two occasions at La Chua early this month, but a little research shows that they eat a lot of young birds, including other herons. Some examples (the tender-hearted might want to skip these):
– An immature Black-crowned flew in and took this fledgling Green Heron right off its perch: http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/black-crowned-night-heron-juvenile-attacks-green-heron-fledgling-i-watched-amazement-as-fly-grab-off-its-perch-64823097.jpg
– Adult eating a Cattle Egret chick: http://ibc.lynxeds.com/files/pictures/Black-crowned_Night-heron.JPG
– Another Cattle Egret chick, a pretty big one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkE6e7IjkyM

Paynes Prairie volunteer Tom Wronski writes, “The La Chua trail will be closed for three days, from Monday June 27 to Wednesday June 29, for a habitat restoration project which involves herbicide application. The Cones Dike trail and Bolen Bluff trail will be closed for a single day during the week of June 27 to July 1. Call the Ranger Station for more details before planning a visit to those trails, 352-466-3397.”

A second reminder: If you’ve taken some nice photos of birds and/or birders during The June Challenge, please email them to Becky Enneis at raenneis@yahoo.com for the slide show she’s assembling for the June Challenge party (which, by the way, will be held at 6 p.m. on Friday, July 1st).

In the last birding report I requested information on some hard-to-find birds:

Short-tailed Hawk: Pete Hosner reported a dark morph immature at the northeast corner of Bivens Arm lake on the 15th; and on the 19th a boatload o’ birders exploring Newnans Lake, namely Debbie Segal, Bob Knight, and John Hintermister, saw a dark morph being chased by Red-winged Blackbirds over the mouth of Prairie Creek (they didn’t see the Herring Gull that John Middleton photographed there on the 9th).

Cooper’s Hawk: Jonathan Mays recommended the Depot Park area, though he acknowledged that it was hit or miss. One was seen by several birders at Watermelon Pond on the 18th.

Pied-billed Grebe: Earlier in the month I checked the retention pond at the intersection of NE 35th Avenue and NE 4th Street (despite the address, it’s on 35th two blocks WEST of Main Street, at the SW corner of the intersection), but I found nothing. However on the 16th Ron Robinson called to tell me he was looking at a grebe in that very pond, so I went out and saw it. Then Will Sexton tried for it on the 17th and missed it, and I couldn’t find it on the 19th. Was it just passing through, does it hide in the willows lining the pond, or was it killed by one of the feral cats that a morally confused citizen is feeding there? Anyway, a few other places were suggested as well. Two were at Lake Lochloosa: Peter Polshek recommended the Burnt Island fishing pier area at the Lochloosa Conservation Area, while Jonathan Mays recommended the public boat ramp in the little community of Lochloosa on the east shore of the lake. John Dickinson said that he and Mike Manetz had seen several from the La Chua observation platform on the 14th. And on the 17th Danny Shehee sent me a photo of one that he’d taken in the canal at the southeast corner of Sweetwater Wetlands Park.

No reports of Gray Catbird, Wood Thrush, Hairy Woodpecker, Broad-winged Hawk, or Belted Kingfisher, but there are still eleven days left in The June Challenge. You can never tell what you’ll find if you go out. This morning Diane Reed went looking for June Challenge birds at Six-Mile Landing north of St. Augustine and found a Hudsonian Godwit! As the song says, it could happen to you. But only if you go out.

Our June 18th Burrowing Owl field trip was a great success. Thirty-seven birders turned out to see the owls. Michael Drummond and land manager Stephen Montgomery of the county’s Environmental Protection Department escorted us to the edge of the field in which most of the owls have their burrows. I was manning the gate by SW 250th Street, so I didn’t get to count the birds, but I heard that 10-11 were seen. There are two other nests not visible from where we were standing. Afterward several of us found some Orchard Orioles – an adult male, a first-year male, a female, and at least two recent fledglings – along 250th a little to the north. Then we walked into the Watermelon Pond Wildlife and Environmental Area and got a nice look at a singing Bachman’s Sparrow, not to mention Eastern Meadowlarks, an Eastern Kingbird, some American Kestrels, and (for a lucky few) a Northern Bobwhite. A small remainder of the group ended the morning at the Newberry Cemetery, where we found two Northern Flickers, one of them gorging on wild cherries. Marvin Smith of Valdosta, who with his friend Robert Emond made a two-hour drive to join us, sent me the photos of two owls and the male Orchard Oriole below. Thanks to Marvin for the photos, and thanks to Michael and Stephen for coordinating this annual visit to a restricted parcel of county-owned land. (It’s restricted, by the way, not only for the owls’ protection, but because cattle are allowed to graze the property to keep the grass short for the owls, and arrangements have to be made for the cattle to be moved into other fields for the duration of the field trip.)

I missed the best sighting of the day. I arrived in Newberry half an hour early and started down SW 250th Street. I was carefully watching the telephone lines and surrounding landscape for birds as I drove along. Ron Robinson was in his car a couple of hundred yards behind me, and as we passed Horseshoe Pond he saw a big Striped Skunk emerge from the vegetation on the east side of the road and cross over to the west side, behind my car but in front of his. I wasn’t looking in my rear-view mirror, so I missed it. I’ve only seen skunks twice in my life, and both looks were less than ideal, so I was very sorry to hear from Ron that I’d missed this one. We went back in hope of relocating it, but saw only its tracks.

Know what a congregation of Stingrays is called? Click the link to find out. (Thanks to Donny Griffin for sending this to me.) https://www.facebook.com/tampabaynews/videos/10154197536390409/

Speaking of stingrays, we saw a lot of them when we did the bird surveys at Seahorse Key, Snake Key, and North Key on the 10th. The Brown Pelicans, Double-crested Cormorants, and wading birds have not returned to Seahorse Key. Though decoys were set out in hopes of luring them back, they didn’t work, and all the nesting is on Snake Key, just as it was last year. Roseate Spoonbills and Reddish Egrets are nesting there, and probably 200 or so Magnificent Frigatebirds were roosting, but the day’s only really unusual find was a Prairie Warbler singing in the mangroves at North Key, far north of the usual nesting area for that subspecies.

If you’ve taken some nice photos during The June Challenge, please email them to Becky Enneis at raenneis@yahoo.com for the slide show she’s assembling for the June Challenge party (which, by the way, will be held at 6 p.m. on Friday, July 1st).

Geoff Parks posted to Facebook (and Mike Manetz notified me) that a Spotted Sandpiper was in the sediment pond at Sweetwater Wetlands Park today. The sediment pond is the same place where Spotteds have been all winter. Leaving the little shelter/restroom area at the parking lot, go down the trail to the gate, and after going through the gate go left down the paved road. When it comes to a T, go left to the Sweetwater Branch outflow. This is the latest spring migrant ever recorded in Alachua County.

Ron Robinson found an active Orchard Oriole nest in the Newberry Cemetery the other day. Go in the main entrance, and … arrgh, Ron gave me exact directions and I wrote them down but now I can’t find them. Go up to the flagpole, maybe? Turn left, look for a headstone that says, “Carter,” and it’s hanging over that headstone. Unless I have it completely wrong. I’m positive about the Newberry Cemetery part, at least.

Chip Deutsch had a successful morning on the 12th: “This morning I headed to Cellon Creek Boulevard and the Hague Dairy, finding several species that I needed for my June Challenge list. Found quite a few Purple Martins at Cellon Creek, which was a treat. Two Eurasian Collared-Doves, too, as well as all of the other species that I had targeted for that site (except that the Northern Bobwhite, ever so close to the road, did not show itself). The most amazing sight was a congregation of more than 30 kites over an overgrown field on the NE side of the dairy: at least 10 Swallow-taileds and at least 23 Mississippi Kites!!! All swooping back and forth, it was really wild, quite a sight! There must have been many bugs in the air. Yet one of the benefits of the June Challenge, getting us sweating in nature, beyond just ticking off species.”

On the 12th, Barbara Shea and I met at Gum Root Swamp and walked the trail that parallels Hatchet Creek. We found Acadian Flycatcher, which I needed, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, which she needed, and right at the lakefront, Prothonotary Warbler, which both of us needed.

Does anyone have a reliable location for Pied-billed Grebe, Cooper’s, Broad-winged, Short-tailed Hawk, Hairy Woodpecker, or Gray Catbird? If so, let me know, and I’ll pass the word. Remember, although this is a competition, it’s a *friendly* competition. If you keep birds to yourself, you’re breaking one of the rules of the Challenge.

 

You will *not* be able to get a picture of this quality on Saturday, June 18th, when we gather to see Watermelon Pond’s Burrowing Owls. The only way you can get a picture like this is by doing two things: (1.) securing a job as a county biologist, which allows you access to the property on which the Burrowing Owls live, and (2.) having the photographic gifts of Michael Drummond, which few possess.

However you will be able to SEE these Burrowing Owls from a distance and add them to your June Challenge list, or just take delight in their existence. We’ll meet at the gate to Watermelon Pond’s Metzger Tract at 7:30 a.m. – again, that’s on Saturday, June 18th. To get to the gate, go west from Gainesville on State Road 26 (Newberry Road) to the traffic light at the junction with US-41 in Newberry. At the traffic light turn left onto 41 and go 2.9 miles to SW 46th Avenue. Turn right onto 46th and go 1.2 miles to SW 250th Street (a dirt road). Turn left onto 250th and go 3.0 miles to the gate. There are gates on both sides of the road there, and you can park at either one (so long as you don’t block it), but we’ll be entering the one on the left. We’ll be walking about half a mile to the fenceline from which we’ll be able to observe the owls. If this is not clear to you, please let me know and I’ll send you a map.

John Middleton of Lafayette County, who is not (alas) doing The June Challenge, got a great June bird during a visit to Alachua County on the 9th. While sitting in a boat at the north end of Newnans Lake, photographing Ospreys, Bald Eagles, and various waders, he saw a rather seedy-looking gull fly over and got a few nice pictures of it. It turned out to be a yearling Herring Gull, the only Herring Gull ever recorded in Alachua County in June. Here’s one of John’s photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/30736692@N00/27575810556/in/dateposted-public/

As mentioned in the last birding report, I spent four and a half hours at Palm Point on the morning of the 7th and saw storm-blown Sooty Terns, Black Terns, Forster’s Terns, and Laughing Gulls. Trina Anderson spent an hour at Palm Point that afternoon and saw a Caspian Tern, even got a photo. That evening Mike Manetz and I went back in hopes of finding the Caspian, but though two Sooty Terns were still present we never saw our target bird. That’s four or five hours I’ve put into seeing a Caspian Tern this month, with nothing to show for it.

Also on the 7th, Anne Kendall saw a bird that’s been hard for June Challengers to find: “There was a King Rail with three chicks at the Paynes Prairie boardwalk on 441. They were about 3/4 of the way out on the north side when I saw them but the chicks walked under the boardwalk while I watched.” (Anne also corrects her earlier advice about the Yellow-throated Vireo: “The Yellow-throated Vireo at the Campus USA Credit Union is SW 12th Street and 4th Avenue, not NW as I told you in my email.”)

I went to Sweetwater Wetlands Park this evening in hope of seeing the Ring-necked Duck. I went all the way to the far end of the property, where it’s been hanging out, but I couldn’t find it. Then I noticed a little Striped Crayfish Snake crossing the trail. It was moving slowly, and it seemed to me that it would be an easy target for a Red-shouldered Hawk or Cattle Egret. So I picked it up and walked it down to the water’s edge in the direction it had been going, and as I bent down to let it go the Ring-necked Duck flushed from the grass at the edge of the canal and swam out into the open. If not for that snake I’d never have seen it. Thanks, snake! A little bit west of that point, I heard a Common Yellowthroat and a Prothonotary Warbler singing, both of which I still need for the Challenge, but I wasn’t able to spish them out into the open. Farther on I ran into Bryan Eastman and Nina Bhattacharyya and we were in the midst of a conversation when a Wilson’s Snipe fluttered up from the drainage ditch between cells 1 and 2. We have only a few June records for that species.

I was lucky enough to find both an American Robin and a pair of Northern Flickers within a minute of each other on the afternoon of the 7th. The flickers were on the lawn at 2014 NE 7th Street and the robin was on the ground at 2101 NE 7th Street. On the 8th Jonathan Mays found two robins by parking his car at Northeast Park and then running up and down 6th Terrace, 7th Street, and 8th Street repeatedly until he located the birds on 7th Street. On the 9th Tina Greenberg found a robin in the same yard where I’d seen the flickers.

I got my 100th June Challenge bird on the 8th. Though not a rarity, it was in some ways the most unexpected thing on my list. It was a Eurasian Collared-Dove, and it was feeding on the ground in my next-door neighbor’s yard. I’ve never seen a collared-dove on this street in the entire 24 years that I’ve lived here. As of the 11th I’m up to 106. At least three or four people are ahead of me.

We spent hours staring at Newnans Lake on Tuesday the 7th, and passed some time wondering how big it was. So I’ve measured it using this web site. From Palm Point across the lake to the Windsor boat ramp is a little over 2 miles. From Powers Park looking northeast to the northern end of the lake is just under 4.5 miles. So birds that look like they’re on the far side of the lake are probably out in the middle. In fact, while most of us were at Palm Point, Debbie Segal phoned from the Windsor boat ramp and pretty much confirmed that. Birds that looked to us as though they were flying right past Debbie looked to Debbie as though they were flying right past us.

In case you’ve ever wondered, here are the sizes of Alachua County’s largest lakes (according to this web site): Orange Lake 12,550 acres (9th largest in the state), Newnans Lake 7,517 acres (16th largest), Lake Santa Fe 5,850 acres (18th), Lake Lochloosa 5,700 acres (20th), Little Orange Lake 576 acres (on the Alachua/Putnam line), Lake Alto 573 acres, Lake Wauberg 254 acres, Lake Alice 82 acres (including associated marsh). I don’t know the sizes of some others, including Prairie Lake, Sunshine Lake, and Burnetts Lake. Watermelon Pond is probably too variable to measure.

If you’re in the market for a new pair of binoculars and you’re willing to spend $350, Pete Dunne (in the April issue of BirdWatching magazine) recommends the Zeiss Terra (“a fine yet reasonably priced binocular that I strongly recommend”). I’ve never tried it myself, so I can’t vouch for it, but here’s some more information from Eagle Optics (and if you order before June 19th you get a $50 rebate!): http://www.eagleoptics.com/binoculars/zeiss/zeiss-terra-ed-8×42-binocular

There’s a new informational resource out there. It’s called County Rare Birds, and it allows you to look up the recent sightings that eBird’s filters have interpreted as rare for any county in the United States and Canada. In some cases these won’t really be rarities – Lloyd Davis reported a Mallard, for instance, but it’s a tame, retention-pond bird (that’s how eBird wants to treat Mallards now, don’t ask me why) – but in most cases they’re good birds. The best way to understand what the web site has to offer is to click on the link. Once you’re at the site, use the “Search Your Location” function in the left sidebar to find Alachua County. When the list of rarities comes up, you can click on the location to see a Google Map showing where each bird was seen (usually just a park location), and you can click on the eBird checklist for more details on the sighting. Here’s the link: http://countyrarebirds.com/

Tropical Storm Colin blew only a few birds into Gainesville this morning. About twenty people showed up at Palm Point to scan the lake. The final tally was 7 Sooty Terns, 4 Black Terns, and 2 Forster’s Terns. Peter Polshek continued south to Lake Lochloosa after seeing the Newnans Lake birds, but he found only three Forster’s Terns there.

I just now (11:50) got messages from Debbie Segal and Deena Mickelson that a Whooping Crane can be seen at very close range from US-441. Going south from Gainesville, 441 dips down onto Paynes Prairie, and the first thing you’ll see on your right (west of 441) is a cow pasture. The Whooping Crane is in that pasture. Hope it sticks around long enough for June Challengers to see it!

Tropical Storm Colin is on track to cross North Florida tonight (Monday night). Tropical storms that come ashore on the Big Bend can be very good for pelagic and coastal birds on our big lakes. So you want to be at Palm Point first thing tomorrow morning, because storm-blown birds may not linger much beyond first light. Here’s the storm’s predicted track as of Monday morning: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/graphics_at3.shtml?5-daynl#contents

Geoff Parks tells me that “at least one” American Robin is singing east of NE 6th Terrace a little south of 23rd Avenue.

Jonathan Mays shared an entertaining story of a high-spirited chase around the county in search of June Challenge birds. Even for someone with Jonathan’s ability (and luck), things don’t always go right: “Adam Zions and I birded all over southeastern Alachua County on Sunday. Made the lap around Tuscawilla Prairie … nada. Hit all access points around Orange Lake … ditto … nada. Then, knowing things were awaiting us at Lochloosa … you guessed it … nothing. So, went to Newnans Lake …. more … nada … from both Powers Park and Palm Point. We headed towards town as the clouds started to build. Happened to swing through the new Depot Park area when Adam spotted a Eurasian Collared-Dove on the powerlines going into GRU. TICK! Then, the hits kept coming (though not necessarily Challenge birds): Red-headed Woodpecker along 4th Street, a yellow male House Finch, Loggerhead Shrike, flyover Laughing Gulls (no idea where they’re going), and Northern Rough-winged Swallow. So we decided to settle in till the storm passed at the closest local brewery (totally in luck – First Magnitude). From there and in the safety of their tarp and picnic table umbrellas, we had 2 Northern Rough-winged Swallows easily in view for most of the stay, 2 Barn Swallows same, and 2 Tree Swallows flying over (observed on our way in, not after we were leaving). Then, and my best bird of the day, had a Cooper’s Hawk fly through hunting, probably, rare swallows. Also had 3 Eastern Bluebirds (an adult and 2 youngsters) and 2 House Sparrows … the latter was a June bird for me. With the clouds building, we went back to Palm Point and enjoyed some killer clouds but no doubt the fewest avian species I’ve ever had there. Lesson – stay at your local brewery!”

Tom Wronski notifies local birders, “I volunteer at Paynes Prairie, and the La Chua Trail will be closed for 3 days sometime between June 7-17 for herbicide application. The exact 3 days will be decided upon based on weather conditions. I thought the June challengers should know that their access to La Chua will be restricted soon. I’ll let you know which 3 days when I’m informed by park rangers.”

Fans of H.P. Lovecraft finally have a presidential candidate of their own: https://cthulhuforamerica.com/

(Reminder: There will be more posts than usual at the beginning of The June Challenge. It will go back to normal before long. I’m saying this because this morning, after posting twice yesterday, I received emails from two people asking to be removed from the mailing list!)

This is one of those rare Junes that’s almost better than spring migration.

Chip Deutsch and Matt Bruce saw two Gull-billed Terns at La Chua this morning. Matt wrote, “We watched for about five minutes as the birds flew over the water on the east side of the trail near the last bend before the tower. We got to see them at very close range (maybe ~30′ at one point). They had full black caps, short tails, distinctly stout black bills, pale gray backs, and a little bit dark gray along the edge of the wingtips.” They were gone when several of us walked out La Chua this evening.

A Ring-necked Duck has been at Sweetwater Wetlands Park since the 3rd, in the channel south of Cell 3. I was uncertain of its identity for a while. At first I thought Ring-necked because of the distinct peak at the rear of the crown. Then I started to think that it might be a Redhead, because molt might cause the peaked crown (it’s missing its flight feathers and is thus in eclipse plumage) and the banding on the bill is so faint, more like a Redhead’s. The general opinion among experienced birders, however, is that it’s a Ring-necked. Bob Carroll got a photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/74215662@N04/26860625233/in/dateposted-public/

A walk out La Chua this evening was profitable. I dressed for rainy weather, so of course there wasn’t any rain at all. Mike Manetz pointed out the Hooded Merganser that Frank Goodwin found on the 1st at Gator Point and Ben Ewing found an adult Yellow-crowned Night-Heron and a Whooping Crane while scoping from the observation tower. Also present were up to four Blue-winged Teal, two Roseate Spoonbills, and about 25 Semipalmated Sandpipers. Alas, no Greater or Lesser Yellowlegs and no Dunlin.

Anne Casella advises, “After birding this morning, I stopped at the Campus USA on NW 12th St and NW 4th Avenue at 11 am. While I was at the cash machine, I heard a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher so I parked and got out to look for it. A Yellow-throated Vireo began singing in an oak tree across the street and was very easy to see. It then flew to an oak in the Campus USA parking lot, still singing away. A lot easier to see than the Yellow-throateds at San Felasco.”

I’ve still got some printed June Challenge checklists on hand. If you’d like one, send me your mailing address and I’ll put one in an envelope for you.