STA5 And The EAA: Late Summer 2012

When Tom Obrock advised me that Vince Lucas, Walt Winton and Dr. Jose Padilla planned to travel to STA5 and the Everglades Agricultural Area, I jumped at the chance to accompany them.


The sunrise above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.

As Tom couldn't make the trip himself, I traveled alone on the morning of 18 August 2012 to meet up with the others at STA5. I approached the man-made wildlife mecca a little early on the new Deer Fence Road access which was the inauguration of the trailhead. In the predawn light, hundreds of birds were on the move. I would capture most of my representative images of the area here. Following Dr. Jose, Vince and Walt, it was thereafter more a visual tour of the wildlife with it perhaps in its fewest numbers of species as the Fall migration begins to unfold. Margaret England, President of the Hendry-Glades Audubon Society, tallied 51 species on eBird which were noted by the 29 participants touring STA5 on this day. This trip to STA5 would perhaps be the last for Vince who co-compiled the bird checklist for STA5 with Margaret, and will be well remembered for this endeavor after his move to the state of Washington. Shortly before 11:00am, Dr. Jose would lead us (certainly with some direction from Vince) into the Everglades Agricultural Area for some further observations of the wildlife. Great numbers of shorebirds, waders and ducks were seen in fields adjacent to the sugar processing facility. After making observations of Uplands Sandpiper in the sod fields, we attempted to find a recently sighted Buff-breasted Sandpiper. It would remain elusive to us. If I could offer any advice to the engineers of Canon, Pentax, Nikon, Sony, and others, it would be to enhance the brightness of the viewfinder of cameras to the degree of a scope. This would make the photography experience more enjoyable and easier to capture a better image when using 2x extenders in particular.


The Cattle Egret above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The Black Vulture above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The Barn Swallow above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The juvenile Little Blue Heron above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The Black-crowned Night-Heron above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The Common Ground Dove above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The Black-bellied Whistling-Duck above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The alligator above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The Purple Swamphen above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The Purple Swamphen above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The Glossy Ibis with unidentified species above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


Dr. Jose Padilla above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The Fulvous Whistling-Duck above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The Red-shouldered Hawk above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The primarily Blue-winged Teal above was photographed at STA5 in August 2012.


The scene above was photographed at the Everglades Agricultural Area in August 2012.


Walt Winton and Vince Lucas l-r above were photographed at the Everglades Agricultural Area in August 2012.

Too Few Birds At Ding Darling NWR

I have often heard negative reports on the quantity of birds observed at the Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge, not to mention around the state of Florida.


The Double-crested Cormorant above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


My serious observations of wildlife in Florida merely began in 2007. There are only a handful of occasions out of a few hundred dedicated to observing wildlife where I have been disappointed with the endeavor. This week was not one of those times. Florida should be expected to offer great opportunity for wildlife observation due in part to its climate, water resources, and proximity to migration routes. So what might explain the decline in birds seen by veteran birders? If you have an opinion about this, I would very much like to know what it is. At Ding Darling this week, I thought an accommodating tide would favor countless birds to observe at the Refuge. Shorebirds were abundant, but wading birds were otherwise surprisingly few in numbers. Species observed though not photographed were Mourning Dove, Ground Dove, Osprey, and Mr. Cardinal. I otherwise present here a representation of what was seen as a solitary bird or a species seen exceeding a hundred individuals. I chose to skip the Shell Mound Trail as it was about noon when I passed it. A highlight of the day included the remarkable experience to observe a blast off of shorebirds that I'm sure was caused by a wayward call of a Willet. The Refuge volunteer behind me commented that she looked for an eagle that would have likely caused the event, though the predator wasn't seen. It was equally as rewarding to hear the birds fly onto the scene in large flocks. This must be experienced if you haven't had the pleasure. Wildlife observers in Florida can often see birds appear quite tame. I typically like to keep the greatest distance from them possible when photographing them. A few birds seen this week at Ding were occasionally too close to focus on. I must remember to bring my 2X converter to Ding which I have used on a couple of occasions at STA5 and Harns Marsh Preserve. Nikon has recently announced its 36.3 megapixel D800 camera which would allow for greater distances kept from the wildlife while allowing for a hefty crop of images captured. Canon has apparently decided not to participate in the megapixel war, for now. Another highlight of my trip to DDNWR this week was to observe a pair of Yellow-crowned Night-Heron that I spent a half hour with. The herons exhibited nesting behavior within 15 feet of the drive not surprisingly uncaring of all the visitors to the Refuge that passed. My experience this week was quite different from that made at the Refuge a year ago almost to the day. Press here for my report of Too Many Birds At Ding Darling NWR. In closing, I highly recommend you consider participating in the March 28-31, 2012 Big "O" Birding Festival. A hundred species of bird or more will likely be seen on a given day. Spotting scopes and binoculars have been noted to be popularly used at STA5 during the infrequent tours allowed at this South Central Florida birding mecca.


The Great Egret above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Roseate Spoonbill above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012. Note the importance of sharpening an image when comparing this and the unsharpened image below.


The Roseate Spoonbill above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Red-breasted Merganser above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The American White Pelican above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Pied-billed Grebe above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Snowy Egret with Roseate Spoonbill, White Ibis and Willet above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Black-bellied Plover above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Double-crested Cormorant above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Double-crested Cormorant above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The American White Pelican above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Willet above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Great Blue Heron above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Double-crested Cormorant above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Red-breasted Merganser above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Semipalmated Plover above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Willet above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Belted Kingfisher above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The primarily Dunlin above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Short-billed Dowitcher with Dunlin and Willet above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Dunlin above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Dunlin above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Short-billed Dowitcher above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The American White Pelican above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Willet above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Little Blue Heron with Shot-billed Dowitcher and Dunlin above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The American White Pelican above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Double-crested Cormorant above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Reddish Egret above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Ring-billed Gull above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Tricolored Heron above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Little Blue Heron above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Reddish Egret above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Double-crested Cormorant above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Red-breasted Merganser above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Yellow-crowned Night-Heron above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Yellow-crowned Night-Heron above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.


The Yellow-crowned Night-Heron above was photographed at J. N. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge in March 2012.