Blog The Beach

On a Thanksgiving Day trip to Fort Desoto we encountered this sign as we were about to cross the wooden footbridge to North Beach. Of course I wanted to see an actual Piping plover, since I can’t recall ever noticing one before. Not that I’d been looking or anything, but since they are here, I ought to at least try to see them. Didn’t see any Thanksgiving afternoon, so I came back two days later, in the morning.

Sure enough there were several on the North Beach mud flats. They are quite small and got spooked when a much larger Black-bellied plover swooped onto their turf. I found it easy to observe them by sitting down quietly in the mud. They came fairly close. Even so, they are so small that I had to use my digital zoom to get the photo below (cropped), so the photo quality isn’t going to win me any awards, but it works for the web.

I don’t often get to areas where Sandhill cranes can be seen, but whenever I’m driving on I-4 from Tampa to Orlando, I stop at this large rest area. Almost every time I’m here I see this pair of Sandhill cranes foraging on the lawn. They are quite tame.

I had some difficulty getting this photo because there were so many people walking around, and I didn’t want people in my bird picture.

Sandhill cranes are about 3 feet tall. They are mostly seen in fields and prairies. They eat insects, frogs, and even small rodents. I always enjoy seeing big birds.

Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa) on Pass-a-Grille Beach.

Most of the shorebirds I see on the Gulf coast are Sanderlings, Willets, Ruddy Turnstones, and Short-billed Dowitchers. This morning I was startled to see several beautifully cinnamon-colored Marbled Godwits mixing it up with the Willets and Sanderlings on the beach.

I confess that I did not know what they were, but I knew that I couldn’t recall noticing them before. I’ve really been a slacker for quite a few years when it comes to “birding.” When I was young I was quite an avid birdwatcher.

I went home and consulted my Golden Field Guide, Birds of North America (1966 / Robbins, Bruun, Zim, & Singer). It’s dog-eared and some of the pages are falling out ( I purchased it in about 1973 for $3.95) but it has served me well for 35 years and I’ve more than gotten my money’s worth from it.

Marbled Godwits they are. Here’s what the guide says about them:

“Rather common in West, rare in East. Breeds on praries, meadows, and pastures, and winters along the coasts. The brown plumage is mottled above and barred below. The very long bill turns up. Note the cinnamon wing linings.”

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has more info about the Marbled Godwit.

The upward curved bill was the major feature I noticed, along with the beautiful color of this rather large sandpiper. Note in the photo below that it is slightly larger than the Willets beside it (gray birds).

While taking the Hubbard Marina dolphin watch cruise at John’s Pass, we passed by Dog Leg Island, a thin sliver of mangrove  island covered with nesting birds. Pelicans and American egrets were well represented, but this family of great blue herons caught my eye. That’s a big baby to have to feed every day!

One of the most beautiful birds in Florida is the snowy egret. They are pure white. Several other egrets in Florida are also pure white: American egret, cattle egret, great white heron, the white ibis, and the rare white phase of the reddish egret. So how can you tell a snowy egret apart from the rest?

The snowy egret has a black bill and YELLOW FEET. It is the only white egret with black legs and bright yellow feet!

You’ll see them fishing in the shallow water on the beach and you’ll see them hanging around on fishing piers too. They will sometimes approach you quite closely if you sit still.