30 September - (in her Englewood yard) I have two more bird species to add to my
earlier posting from today...a male Black-throated Blue Warbler, bringing the warbler species to a total of 14,
and a young Indigo Bunting. It was definitely the best day of birding I’ve ever had in my neighborhood of any
migratory period to date.
Susan Daughtrey, Englewood
30 September - Anticipating a good fallout, my son and I readied ourselves to go
bird Pinecraft Park in Sarasota early this morning, walked outside, and never even got in the car. My neighborhood in
SW Englewood was absolutely frantic with migrating birds. We spent three hours outside this morning, and there are
still birds popping around now at 2:00 p.m. To date we have seen 13 species of warblers, many male and female
Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, E. Wood Pewees, Yellow-throated and Red-eyes Vireos, male and
female Summer and Scarlet Tanagers, and a FOTS Tree Swallow and Gray Catbird. Our day’s
total is 53 so far, and we intend to continue enjoying this bonanza throughout the afternoon until dark. The Warbler
species are as follow: Blue-winged, Tennessee, No. Parula, Yellow, Chestnut-sided, Magnolia, Black-throated Green,
Yellow-throated, Pine, Black-and-white, American Redstart, Common Yellowthroat, Hooded. I have never seen such variety
in such numbers here before. At times, we honestly didn’t know where to look next. YAHOO!!!
Susan Daughtrey, Englewood
29 September - John Ginevan and I birded Robinson Preserve for a few hours this
morning. The nice breeze kept most of the mosquitoes at bay. We started in the brushy area near Manatee Avenue and
headed up the trail. We had: 1Yellow Warbler, 1 Prairie Warbler, Several Blue-gray Gnatcatchers,
1 Ovenbird, 1 Yellow-throated Warbler (Right over my head), 1 Spotted Sandpiper under the bridge,
2 Roseate Spoonbills, 1 Little Blue Heron, Many Osprey, 8 Brown Pelican, 3 Snowy Egret
7 Great Egret, Several White Ibis, 3 Killdeer, 3 Red-bellied Woodpeckers, 2 Downy
Woodpeckers, Double-crested Cormorants, Many Northern Cardinals, Fish Crows, Several Black
and Turkey Vultures.
Like the previous post, Blue-winged Teals were seen in large numbers. We had a flock of 30 or so fly around us
for a bit then headed north. From here, we drove to the main entrance. We had: Several Wood Storks, Anhinga,
2 Reddish Egret, Many Semipalmated Plover, Many Black-bellied Plover, 2 Wilson's Plover,
4 Pectoral Sandpipers, 1 Western Sandpiper, 15 Least Sandpiper, Many Willet, 5 Short-billed
Dowitcher, 2 Caspian Terns, 2 Forster's Terns, 15 Laughing Gull, Several Roseate Spoonbills,
12 Chimney Swifts. 200+ Blue-winged Teal were found in the pond. This is the largest number John has had
here since he started recording birds at this park (3 years - before it opened to public).
The two Avocets from yesterday were not relocated. The Avocet were a new species for the park, as were
the Gull-billed Terns from a few weeks ago.
Dan Irizarry, Bradenton
29 September - Lots of shorebirds near the lagoon at Access 8 on Siesta this morning,
including numerous Sanderlings, Least Sandpipers, Western Sandpipers, Willets,
Semipalmated Plovers, Black-bellied Plovers, 11 Snowy Plovers and one Piping Plover. The
PIPL was roosting near the upper wrack line among a few Snowies. It looks just like a Snowy Plover in pale winter
plumage until it stands up and shows off those bright orange legs!
Michelle van Deventer
Perhaps of interest - A presentation titled "Exotic Birds From Exotic Locations" at Selby Library in downtown Sarasota
on October 7th at 2:00 PM. None of the birds were photographed in mainland US (Which means some of them were photographed
in Hawaii.). The presentation will take about one half hour with time for comments and questions.
Tom Isgar
28 September - Hi Everyone, So I spent a little time birding this afternoon. A quick
run through - Pinecraft Park had: Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, 1 Ovenbird, 1 Black-and-white Warbler,
2 Eastern Wood-Pewee. From there I took the scenic route home and stopped at the Broadway Beach access point on
Longboat Key. At low tide, there's a drop in the sand level, allowing a nice eye-level view of the birds. Very nice if
you like photography! There were the usual suspects there: 1 Immature Great Blue Heron, Many Terns: Royal Terns,
Sandwich Terns, Common Terns, 1 Black Skimmer, Many Laughing Gulls. Shorebirds: Willet,
Sanderling, Black-bellied Plover
/
Dan Irizarry, Bradenton
27 September - Had some stunning finds this morning at Pinecraft Park, including some
life birds. Even after a light rain we spotted an Eastern Wood Pe-wee, Hooded Warbler, Swainson's
Thrush, Scarlet Tanager, Great Crested Flycatcher, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Red-eyed
Vireo, and the Golden-winged Warbler, who was foraging high in the trees under dead leaves. It was a gorgeous
bird who gave us plenty of good sitings. Meeting Jeanne, John, Stu and Barry gave us more luck as we also saw the
Blackburnian Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Black & White Warbler, Yellow-throated Warbler,
American Redstart, Tufted Titmouse, and a Cerulean Warbler. Other birds seen, not by us, were
Magnolia Warbler and Prairie Warbler. All the regulars were active as well. Happy birding!
Kharli Rose & Colin Downey, North Port
27 September - Went to Robinson Preserve with my girlfriend for about an hour and
half in the afternoon. I seem to get some new birds each time I go there. I had: 50 Laughing Gulls, 2
Caspian Terns (first I've seen there), 1 Forster's Tern, 1 Sandwich Tern, 2 American Avocets
(First time I've seen there; also first of fall for me), 50-60 Wilson's Plovers, 20-30 Semipalmated Sandpipers,
20-30 Black-bellied Plovers, 10 Least Sandpipers, 1 Spotted Sandpiper, 7 Pectoral Sandpipers
(First I've seen there), 50 Killdeer, 1 Reddish Egret, Tricolored Heron, Great Egret,
Great Blue Heron, 1 Red-tailed Hawk (first I've seen there), 5 Turkey Vulture, 10 Osprey,
30 Willet
I'll be heading to Fort De Soto in the morning so I can get the Long-billed Curlew....at least I know now
it's been seen by the roped off section!
Dan Irizarry, Bradenton
27 September - This morning on Siesta Key, near Public Access 10, I found a Common
Nighthawk on the road with a broken wing. I brought it to a nearby veterinarian friend who stabilized the wing until
the Wildlife Center of Venice opened. It was an absolutely beautiful bird – healthy weight, stunning plumage. Hopefully
the wing can be successfully mended. Much gratitude to the good folks at WCV for their work!
Michelle van Deventer
27 September - Hi! Peter - yesterday, a second look, thru a scope, showed least
terns instead of common terns. The large flock of black skimmers (30+) resting on the beach with the terns
was a positive ID and was exciting.
Hugh Yaeger
26 September - Spent a few hours in N. Lido woods with John Ginaven and Stu Wilson
this morning. We came across a load of thrushes: about 20 Swainson’s and one Veery. Also had a
nice haul of warblers: about a dozen Yellow (none with red stripes, so female/young), a female
Black-throated Blue, a single Palm, a few parulas, several Yellow-throated, two
Prairies and a beautiful Blackburnian. John was the only one of us who saw a Scarlet Tanager. The
resident Great Crested Flycatcher was there too, but we didn’t see any Great Horned Owls, a breeder in
that park.
Jeanne Dubi, Sarasota
Please send your input about rare and/or interesting bird sightings to:
SRQbirdalerts@msn.com
SRQBirdAlerts is brought to you by Peter Rice in association with the Sarasota Audubon Society. Visit them at
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