South Florida: day seven and eight

A wet and windy November afternoon, fondly recalling warmer times, seems a fitting time to wrap the posts of my trip to south Florida, back in January …

Mangrove Cuckoo.

Having had a hugely successfully trip, the last couple of days were relaxed and we chose to return to the Everglades proper in the far south of the state, as we’d enjoyed our time here previously so much. Birding was mainly looking for a couple of remaining targets, exploring new spots and revisiting productive ones.

Local birders had informed me that a Mangrove Cuckoo was at Black Point Park and Marina. This Neotropical cuckoo is infamously hard to see in the Everglades, the only place the species is found in the US. However, a wintering bird had been located in the mangroves at the marina and was pleasing visiting birders daily.

Mangrove Cuckoo.

An early morning visit paid off, with the bird eventually showing well after a long game of cat and mouse. It even offered some of its famous vocalisations to boot. A really smart bird and one that wasn’t expected ahead of the trip.

A visit to Biscayne NP wasn’t for birding, but a few Brown Pelicans, Double-crested Cormorants, Laughing and American Herring Gulls and American Royal Terns were good value.

American Royal Terns, Double-crested Cormorant and American Herring Gull.

American Royal Tern.

Brown Pelican.

Dump Marsh Preserve, to the north, held loads of iguanas – an escaped pest in Florida – as well as several species of turtle. Also there were trip ticks in the form of Green-winged Teal and Greater Yellowlegs.

Green Iguanas.

Florida Red-bellied Cooter.

While driving around the farmland south-west of Homestead, I noticed a kingbird perched on a wire, which I initially took to be Western Kingbird – a new species for me and a fairly common winter visitor to Florida.

However, some features didn’t seem right. The bill was far heavier than I’d have expected and the bird was very bright, almost like a giant Grey Wagtail. A thumb through Sibley soon showed that this was in fact a Tropical Kingbird.

Tropical Kingbird.

This species is a vagrant to Florida, though increasing, with only 40 records prior to 2005 (and around 20 since). Thus, it was a most welcome surprise. I took a few shots before it flew off over a field, not to be seen again.

Tropical Kingbird.

Later on, back at Luck Hammock, I was delighted to bump into a small flock of Blue Grosbeaks, a fairly unusual wintering species here. A few Cedar Waxwings flew overhead and, back at the Gumbo Limbo Trail afterwards, Brown Thrasher finally made it onto the trip list.

Blue Grosbeak.

Northern Mockingbird.

Great Crested Flycatcher.

Cedar Waxwing.

The final day saw little birding, but a final homage to Lucky Hammock yielded a real treat and one that had eluded me prior – male Painted Buntings. This species isn’t reported due their demand on the illegal cage bird trade, so it’s not easy to pin them down and so far I’d only seen a female.

As a result I was chuffed to watch a small flock for half an hour or so, as they quietly fed in tall grass and crops. Absolute stunners. Another final gift from Lucky Hammock was another lifer – a Lincoln’s Sparrow, which was gone almost as soon as I’d identified it.

Painted Buntings.

Lincoln's Sparrow.

On the way the way up to the airport we stopped at ‘Cortadito Cowbirds’, a Cuban restaurant in Miami famous for its population of Bronzed Cowbird. Several of these hulky passerines incongruously loitered around the car park for an easy lifer.

The rest of the day was spent exploring Miami, where interesting birds were few, save a couple of Magnificent Frigatebirds that glided overhead.

Bronzed Cowbird.

In all, it was an excellent trip. 152 species was a brilliant haul and some truly iconic species were included in that figure. However, it was the nature of the birding which made the trip so memorable – incredible ecosystems and habitats, huge numbers of birds and so many super tame and confiding ones too.

American Kestrel.

These longer trips are well worth it, especially as I’ve been really trying to cut down my carbon footprint. Recently, I’ve been flying several times a year which just isn’t justifiable. This year I’ve only flown thrice, and one of those was for work. Hopefully my planned trips next year (two so far!) are equally fun.

South Florida: day five and sixhttp://godalmingareabirds.blogspot.com/2019/06/south-florida-day-five-and-six.html