Wednesday, January 15: Flint Pen Strand

The temperature this morning was higher than it was at this time last week, but it didn't feel like it. A steady north wind and temperatures in the low 50s plus cloudy skies made it seem chilly.

Birds seemed to agree. Most, like the Spotted Sandpiper at the left, stayed in areas where trees sheltered them from the wind. The sandpiper still found plenty to eat, just getting ready to swallow a morsel in the photo. It plied the south shore of the west lake where the cypress dome helped mitigate the wind's effects. An immature Little Blue Heron and a Tricolored Heron worked the same area.

The Great Blue Heron at the right was on the eastern shore of the lake where the tall reeds somewhat sheltered it.

Other birds either found shelter in the reeds and vegetation, or like the Snowy Egret in the photo, just hunkered down in the open and hoped for the best.

By late morning, the clouds cleared, the sun came out, and the sky was blue. Birds were much more active then. and the first insects began to stir.

The temperature had not made it out of the 60s by the time I left a little after noon. No dragonflies of any sort were seen, and only seven species of butterflies were spotted. Two dozen Gulf Fritillaries were the most common. No other species made it to half a dozen.

Only 45 species of birds were identified. Notable absences were Northern Mockingbirds, Sandhill Cranes, and the American Coots that had been present for the last four weeks.

The most frequently seen species were Tree Swallows with 183 individuals estimated. There weren't any huge flocks, just small groups of about 20 that stayed close to the watery spots in the marsh, swooping down for low flying insects.

After the swallows, 32 Glossy Ibis, 23 Long-billed Dowitchers and 21 Little Blue Herons were the most often encountered.

The dowitchers stayed in compact flocks and frequently foraged with Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs.

There were fewer ducks this week, and as water levels slowly recede, they were mostly in the lakes instead of the marsh: six Pied-billed Grebes, three Mottled Ducks, and two Blue-winged Teal.

Raptors were just one Red-shouldered Hawk, one Osprey, and one American Kestrel, and the only warblers were Palm, Yellow-rumped, and Common Yellowthroats.

A nice audio observation happened a little after 11am when two Barred Owls began calling to each other from the cypress dome east of the lakes parking lot. If they are nesting this season, it's about the time they should be on eggs that are about ready to hatch. I wandered a short way into the cypress dome until the vegetation became too dense to continue, but I couldn't spot the owls or a likely nesting spot.

While some butterflies became active late in the morning and early afternoon, other insects were scarce. Even Honey Bees were hard to find. On the bright side, there weren't any gnats, Deer Flies or mosquitoes.

One interesting little wasp was the Mole Cricket Hunter at the left. it was on the service road south of the lakes. It's not native but is an introduced bio control agent meant to attack and eliminate Mole Crickets. It's odd that it would be at the edge of the marsh, because that's definitely not where Mole Crickets would be found. They prefer healthy, mowed grasses like on a golf course. Maybe the wasp was just taking a short vacation to the beach before going back to work.

The only other observation of note was a set of fresh Florida Panther tracks in the mud just north of the east lake, and some older panther scat along the service road south of the lake. Deer and Raccoon tracks were the only mammal tracks, other than people and dogs.

My yard

The huge number of noisy Common Grackles that had been dominating the feeder area had disappeared although a few individuals remained. So the Painted Buntings, Cardinals, and woodpeckers were able to feed in relative peace.

Nighttime visitors on the trail cams were the regulars: Virginia Opposums, Gray Foxes, Raccoons, Cottontail Rabbits, and Southern Flying Squirrels. With fewer foxes and other predators, the flying squirrels were more numerous and open.

Early Tuesday morning, the small Eastern Spotted Skunk returned. It was foraging near one of the flying squirrels when it and the squirrels passed close enough to each other that their tails apparently touched. Both little animals jumped and immediately ran off. Here's a short video of their encounter.

Another encounter happened Tuesday night. One rather amorous Virginia Opposum, if opossums could ever be considered amorous, tried to make contact with a female, who rather definitly rejected its advances. Here's a video of that encounter.