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Recap - Lake McKethan Field Trip

12/17/2021

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The morning started quiet enough as 10 members of the Citrus County Audubon Society met at Lake McKethan.   Soon we could hear a Sandhill Crane calling from the other side of the lake…. calling and calling and calling.   It didn’t take long for this lone crane to fly across the lake to join us.  As we walked around the lake, he walked with us…calling all the way.
Other birds that we heard were the loud Pileated Woodpecker, a few Red-bellied Woodpeckers and a Red-shouldered Hawk calling.
Until the sun got shining there were few warblers other than some Yellow-rumped Warblers chipping.  When we got to the sunny side of the lake things started to jump.  In the trees that is.  Soon we found more Yellow-rumps, Chickadees, Titmice, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, E. Phoebes, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, and a Downy Woodpecker.  We found a White-eyed Vireo and a secretive Blue-headed Vireo that one member got a photo of.
While looking over the lake we saw Common Gallinules, White Ibis, a Little Blue Heron, P.B. Grebes,  and a Belted Kingfisher.  In the sky there were Vultures flying. 
A short trip through the woods to the open field and we watched 10 or more E. Bluebirds mob a Kestrel that landed in the tree near them.
In total we logged 33 species and had a fun time doing it.    
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Recap - Fort Island Beach

12/10/2021

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Ten members of Citrus County Audubon attended our field trip to Ft. Island beach on Friday, December 10.  The morning started out mild and sunny and ended up quite warm.  Upon arriving at the beach area, we were greeted by about 2000 gulls.  Mostly Laughing Gulls, with maybe 100 Ring-billed Gulls thrown in as well as a few Herring Gulls.  On the north jetty were the usual Ruddy Turnstones and Royal Terns but with them were 12 American Oystercatchers.  At both far ends of the beach were some Willets and just two Short-billed Dowitchers.  On each of the buoys was perched a Royal Tern.  We spotted just one Forster’s Tern on the rope.  As we walked the beach we identified Sanderlings, Least Sandpipers, Dunlin, and Semipalmated Plovers.  When we got to the south end of the beach, we had 250 Skimmers and two Black-bellied Plovers in winter plumage.  In the water beyond the south jetty, we spotted a Horned Grebe.  In the marsh were a couple of Marsh Wrens and a Clapper Rail calling. All totaled we found 49 species.  The best birds were found at the end of our walk.  We spotted a Seaside Sparrow, a Sora, a Swamp Sparrow and a Black and White Warbler. It was a very good day for birding; many of our group said how much they enjoyed the field trip.

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Photo used under Creative Commons from Lip Kee