Florida November 2022 Part III - Fort De Soto
Dec 21, 2022 10:23:20 GMT -8
Gord, oldfulica, and 6 more like this
Post by Randy on Dec 21, 2022 10:23:20 GMT -8
This peninsula is an excellent birding location. We tried some areas for songbirds but literally were swarmed by mosquitoes so we decided to head to the beach area instead. This area changes for shorebird habitat regularly based on tides, lagoon formation, etc. Fortunately the day we were there allowed excellent and up-close views of many shorebird species. We were virtually stepping on piping plovers!
Piping plovers - there were dozens of these!
Piping Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Piping Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Piping Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
We found a couple Snowy Plovers as well:
Snowy Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Snowy Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Laughing Gulls are the default gull for the area. Although we also came across Herring and Ring-billed:
Laughing Gull at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Numerous Semipalmated Plovers were also there:
Semipalmated Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
We found a couple Wilson's Plovers:
Wilson's Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
The most common shorebird there was Dunlin:
Dunlin at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Dunlin at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Dunlin at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
There are a few common tern species, including Sandwich, Royal, and Forster's. Here's a Forster's:
Forster's Tern at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
We found a single American Oystercatcher - only the second time I've seen this species:
American Oystercatcher at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
American Oystercatcher at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
American Oystercatcher at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Brown Pelicans are everywhere and they provided a couple nice flybys - the first is an immature:
Brown Pelican at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Brown Pelican at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Brown Pelican at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
This is a great location for Black Skimmers as well. We had some fly by at one point when I was with my girls but I didn't have my camera. I got a poor shot of this one:
Black Skimmer at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
A Marbled Godwit was foraging in a distant lagoon:
Marbled Godwit at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
This is also the only place in the area I've come across a Reddish Egret and they seem to be somewhat reliable here. We only came across one however:
Reddish Egret at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
And a grumpy Great Blue Heron to finish the thread!
Great Blue Heron at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Piping plovers - there were dozens of these!
Piping Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Piping Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Piping Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
We found a couple Snowy Plovers as well:
Snowy Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Snowy Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Laughing Gulls are the default gull for the area. Although we also came across Herring and Ring-billed:
Laughing Gull at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Numerous Semipalmated Plovers were also there:
Semipalmated Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
We found a couple Wilson's Plovers:
Wilson's Plover at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
The most common shorebird there was Dunlin:
Dunlin at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Dunlin at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Dunlin at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
There are a few common tern species, including Sandwich, Royal, and Forster's. Here's a Forster's:
Forster's Tern at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
We found a single American Oystercatcher - only the second time I've seen this species:
American Oystercatcher at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
American Oystercatcher at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
American Oystercatcher at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Brown Pelicans are everywhere and they provided a couple nice flybys - the first is an immature:
Brown Pelican at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Brown Pelican at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
Brown Pelican at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
This is a great location for Black Skimmers as well. We had some fly by at one point when I was with my girls but I didn't have my camera. I got a poor shot of this one:
Black Skimmer at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
A Marbled Godwit was foraging in a distant lagoon:
Marbled Godwit at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
This is also the only place in the area I've come across a Reddish Egret and they seem to be somewhat reliable here. We only came across one however:
Reddish Egret at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
And a grumpy Great Blue Heron to finish the thread!
Great Blue Heron at Fort De Soto Park by Randy Walker
