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Hi all, So, it has been a year since that fateful day that none of us will ever forget. A year ago today, I decided to put forth another one of my ramblings for anyone who needed a diversion. Today, as we are barraged with images, sound bites, and interviews of 9/11. Again, I feel the need for a diversion. As with most stories, there will be lessons to learn, humor to be tolerated, and a few rare bird sightings to be divined. I hope you enjoy this. So what is this? After two Big Years, I think I will dub 2002, the Busy Year. I can't recall being this strapped for time, even during the Big Ordeal that was 2000-2001. But the stories must go on. What a weekend this was! The last time I saw two life birds in one day in Florida was 23 Dec 99 when I saw the white trash Snowy Owl at St. George's Island SP and later the Winter wren at Florida Caverns SP. During two vigorous Big Years, 30 life birds, and 44 state birds, it never happened again. Bells Vireo, duh! Last Saturday, thanks to the Hairy Man (and the old salt), it would happen again. The time was about noon. I was sitting in one of the tropicbird observation platforms (lounge chairs.) A commotion was heard and the word jaeger was uttered. Pomarine or Parasitic? Well, there is a third possibility, Long-tailed does come through early. The bird was flying low and actively pursuing Sooty terns for different reasons than we were. I managed a few good looks before it vanished for good. Twice, I saw the two white shafts on the primaries that are diagnostic for Long-tailed. Perhaps annoyed by the competition, it harassed another jaeger (Parasitic) allowing a good comparison of size. The bird was a dark juvenile (adults do not have a dark morph in this species.) In size it was approximately the same size as the Sooty terns from which it sought its ill-gotten gain. Within minutes, a small black and white shearwater flew by. Cool, another Audubon's. Fleeting thoughts of Manx flicker in my mind. The undertail coverts look dark, or are they? Murray says no, it's a Manx. Further observation and one close banking view showed that indeed Murray was right, the undertail coverts were white, setting off the pink legs. The wing linings were clean, bright white. Flight pattern was a bit different from Audubon's: deeper wing beats, not quite as stiff (wing tips undulating) and wings raised higher in flight. One person on board got some video of the bird which may serve to document this sighting. Thanks Murray for lifer #2! I would see most of the birds that were sighted that day with the exception of the Red phalarope sighted by Brian "Hey, look at my eyebrow ring" Ahern. I think I saw the bird fluttering away, but I had no idea what it was. If the bird gods are not too crazy, maybe Roger and I will see some in Mayport this winter. After the trip, several of us, including Bob "Jonesin' for Sailfish" Wallace, went to the local restaurant/bar for supper and the chance to watch the beginning of the Miami - Florida tragedy. After that it was all I could do to get a shower and get some rest. I have been getting up at 0430 to beat the heat at work for weeks and 0330 to get to Ponce Inlet in time for the trip, so I was happy but tired. Sunday, we met several more friends including Dr. Beard, er Bob Paxson. Unfortunately, the weather would not prove as friendly that day and the captain decided against going out. The group set out for some of the local birding hotspots, of which there are many. Andy's Father's Son had come up for the trip and it was decided that I would be responsible for his entertainment and education this day. We hit Lighthouse Point Park first. Songbirds were virtually absent. Most of the group went to the pier for a brief sea bird watch which yielded nothing. There were a couple of oystercatchers on the spit in the inlet along with several laughing gulls and a few species of terns. The group would take the 45 minute drive to the other side of the inlet and visit Smyrna Dunes Park. Andy and I went on to Apollo Beach (north end of Canaveral National Seashore a.k.a. Turtle Mound.) I was interested in looking for more songbirds. Sometimes the slow days produce some interesting sightings among the few birds present. As we headed down Eldora Road, a chunky warbler flew towards and past us. Redstart, just like the ones we saw offshore. Check to make sure. Bright yellow belly, gray head and breast. What plumage is that? Certainly not a redstart. Which warblers have the combination of bright yellow belly and gray head and throat. Only the non-Kentucky Oporornis species have this. According to Sibley, Connecticut has dull yellow underparts. This bird flew by at close range and was quite bright yellow. Mourning is the overwhelming favorite although McGillavray's reaches Central America by mid-August. They could also reach Florida by early September. For now, we are calling in MournGillivray's warbler. The bird flew on and I decided it was not worth stopping to search for the bird when they are virtually impossible to find. Andy thought otherwise. Andy doesn't realize that when I decide to do something (or not) it doesn't matter how much you keep asking me, I'm not changing my mind. At the Eldora State House (name?) we found a Northern waterthrush, the first of many that day. Pelagic watching at Parking lot #2 proved fruitless, especially compared to yesterday's boat trip, so we headed on to Blackpoint. Along SR 3, we stopped north of Dummitt Grove and scanned the tree tops for kingbirds. All that we saw were Eastern. There were about 30-40 on the wires and tops of orange trees. At Blackpoint, the water levels had risen, moving the birds at #6 back toward #5. There were less birds overall, especially shorebirds, so after eating lunch, we went on to the FIND site. We were able to drive in and check out the water. 128 White pelicans along with tons of Black terns, a few Least terns, and shorebirds, including an avocet were present. We poked around the groves a bit, looking for buntings before heading back down SR3 into the refuge again. .... Composition interrupted, back to work .... Driving the highway, Andy was ever vigilant in his assignment to find an Olive-sided flycatcher or Tropical Kingbird. "What are those birds?" he says. I glanced at the flock and they looked like kingbirds. Pulling off the road, we confirmed that they were indeed kingbirds, 120 of them. The flock seemed a little confused, changing directions twice before they split up with some going south and others turning back north. We checked again at the orange grove north of Dummitt Grove and found several more kingbirds. The total for this run was 165, all Easterns. A quick run through the orange grove was relatively unproductive. Andy noted that he had more species of plants stuck to him than bird species seen. A good lesson in bird finding. There are many more misses than hits. Oak Hammock was the next destination, where Andy's Father's Son's Father and Mother would rescue him from more plant walks. I went on to find some more song birds and had about equal success to the Dummitt romp. With the fading daylight, I headed to Viera and the Click Ponds to finish off the day with Upland SP, Buff-breasted sandpiper, golden plover, Fork-tailed flycatcher, or the search thereof. Is it possible to have four strikes? Well tonight I would have just that. I got to the Click Ponds with enough light to make an adequate search for phalaropes, etc. The water was a little higher after the storm and shorebirds were down in number. A few new ducks had arrived. In the southwest corner, a flock of blue-winged dabblers actively fed next to the berm. ... Another interruption, homework assignment ... Okay, let's wrap this thing up before it's 9/12. Blue-winged dabblers as in dabbling ducks with blue wing patches as in shovelers and teal. There were about a dozen Blue-winged along with three FOTS Northern shovelers, all in eclipse plumage. Actually, I'm not sure if eclipse is the right term for the females' plumage. Have you ever looked closely at an eclipse Northern shoveler? They have a really strange iris color. Combined with the unkempt look of eclipse plumage and that over-sized bill they look almost psychotic. It was rather like looking in a mirror. But those weren't the interesting birds present. One of the birds in the group was a big honker. No, it was not a goose (e.g. one who honks) but just a larger bird (e.g. generic term for anything bigger than normal.) Actually it was only about 5% larger than its brethren (systhren?) but how else was I going to work that joke in? Its bill was noticeably larger and deeper at the base. Most of all, it had a decidedly browner color. How many of you know where I am going with this? I checked out the iris color and it was definitely brown. I could not make it red for anything. Dead end? Well, not so fast. I continued to study this most intriguing slightly honkerous bird. When I got out to put the 'scope on it, the flock flew another ten feet to the staggering distance of 20'. I zoomed in and studied the facial pattern; the deeper grass now covered the honkingly large body. The face was plain brown with little or no streaking. No eye line or eye arcs whatsoever. No definite dark cap. The pattern on the back was plainer than its fellow dabblers. I didn't have my waterfowl book with me (as far as I knew) so I continued to consult Sibley. The lack of a red eye threw me until I realized that only the male Cinnamon teal possesses this field mark. So, it matches pretty well with adult female Cinnamon teal. I'll have to check the waterfowl book when I get home and find it in my truck. Upon consulting and studying the Waterfowl book, Sibley and the accounts of these species from the Life Histories of North American Birds (Big honker, Honkerus reallybiggus, has yet to be published) I decided that indeed it was an adult female CITE. I wanted to look again to study it some more, perhaps the next day. In my studies, I found some problems with the waterfowl guide. Some of the same problems I have found with the Seabirds and Shorebirds books in this series. The illustrations are somewhat less than adequate. In this case, the "typical" female Blue-winged teal is not typical of what I have seen in my many days perusing females. I mean teal, of course. What is illustrated and described for Cinnamon teal I cannot say, but both conflict with Sibley. I'm going with Sibley, he's the Man. But book reviews are not entertaining, so I won't dwell on that. The point is, don't assume that a Blue-winged teal is a Blue-winged teal. For that matter, don't assume that they are all female. I used to wonder why all of the early arriving Blue-wings were females until I realized that the males were still in eclipse plumage upon their return. Every year, dozens of CITE filter through the state unnoticed in the hundreds of thousands of BWTE. Most records of CITE are later in the season when they attain there breeding plumage and, the males at least, are easier to pick out. For bird nuts like me, the eclipse males and females are a more interesting, if less gaudy, quarry. So, Tuesday evening I went back to see if it was still there. No big brown honkers were seen. Little buffy honklets (now do you see why I had to work that joke in?) were abundant, for their species, in the sod fields east of the Click Ponds. What's a Little buffy honklet? One of the original target birds, Buff-breasted sandpiper. There were seven of them among the many Black-bellied plover in a few sod fields on the east side of the ponds. This was the only field in which I saw Black-bellied plovers (no goldens, darn it.) So, now the Holey Eye-browed One informs us that there is a Yellow-green vireo at Fort DeSoto. Hmmm? Tomorrow is the regional meeting here at the preserve, but Friday, my birthday, I can probably get away for a life bird birthday present. So many life birds, so little time. I hope you enjoyed this little trip. David Simpson [log in to unmask] Fellsmere, FL ______________________________________________________________________ FLORIDABIRDS-L Listserv mailing list information: For policy and subscription info: http://bkpass.tripod.com/index.html For archives: http://www.lists.ufl.edu/archives/floridabirds-l.html To set nomail: Mailto:[log in to unmask] Set floridabirds-l nomail (then to reverse and return to mail, change the word to "mail") Listowner: Click on: Mailto:[log in to unmask]