Date: 2/5/25 12:34 pm From: Dean and Sally Jue <dsjue50...> Subject: Re: [NFLbirds] January at SMNWR
Today, at 1:25 PM in the afternoon, we had our first Brown Creeper in our
yard in a number of years.
Best,
Dean and Sally Jue
Tallahassee, FL
On Mon, Jan 20, 2025 at 5:38 PM Don Morrow <donaldcmorrow...> wrote:
> It is a cold January at St. Marks NWR. Our winter birds are settled in and
> it seems like Spring will never come. The dried seed stalks of sawgrass
> shake in the cold wind. There is a bit of color from the red berries of
> dahoon and yaupon, but most of the refuge is painted in shades of tan and
> brown.
>
> There are a lot of good birds being reported at the refuge. Henslow’s and
> LeConte’s Sparrows are being seen at the helipad and a mixed flock of
> Glossy and White-faced Ibis have been staying near Lighthouse Road. A
> Short-eared Owl is being seen hunting along Bottoms Road in the Panacea
> Unit. Mixed feeding flocks along the Double Bridges have Hermit Thrush,
> Golden-crowned Kinglet, Blue-headed Vireo and Black-and-white Warbler in
> them. The on-again-off-again flamingo has lately been off-again, but a
> recent Facebook post gives hope that it continues to lurk in the area. A
> Red-throated Loon was sighted in the mouth of the St. Marks River mixed in
> with the Common Loons. It has been a good year for ducks and Snow Geese are
> more common at the refuge than in most years. I have had nineteen species
> of waterfowl over the last week including a flock of eleven Black Scoters
> in the Gulf off the Lighthouse.
>
> Tower Pond is flooded this winter as part of periodic pond management.
> The shorebirds that would have been there are scattered across other refuge
> ponds and less easily found. Long-billed Dowitchers, Wilson’s Snipe and
> Killdeer are more common than usual, but Marbled Godwits are hard to find
> and Black-necked Stilts are absent. A flock of six American Avocets are in
> for the winter, look for them on Mounds Pool 3, and the hordes of Dunlins
> that are a hallmark of any winter are once again abundant.
>
> Winter is one of the best times for birding at the refuge. Birding groups
> from around the state have been making their annual pilgrimages to St.
> Marks to look for over a hundred and eighty bird species that are found at
> the refuge in January. This past weekend Tropical Audubon from Miami, Bay
> County Audubon and Alachua Audubon were all on the refuge. They, and scores
> of Northern birders escaping their own winter, are staying in local hotels,
> and eating in local restaurants. They have a significant economic impact on
> Wakulla County,
>
> Except for the evergreen oaks, the trees at the Double Bridges have been
> stripped bare by winter storms, but if you look closely, you can see their
> leaf buds beginning to swell. Soon, it will be February. Spring migration
> will begin as Ospreys, Northern Parula warblers and Purple Martins return.
> The duck season will begin to unwind as Ruddy and Black Ducks leave. Maple
> florets will color the forests and white waterlilies will bloom on the
> refuge’s ponds.
>
> Winter is cool! Come down to the refuge and enjoy it before it leaves.
>
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