Date: 3/4/25 12:54 pm From: 'Cathleen Nesmith' via NFLbirds <nflbirds...> Subject: RE: [NFLbirds] The last field trip
Ditto Natasza! Thanks so much Don!
Katy
From: <nflbirds...> <nflbirds...> On Behalf Of N.Fontaine
Sent: Tuesday, March 4, 2025 3:51 PM
To: Don Morrow <donaldcmorrow...>
Cc: Robert Crawford <rlcrawfd...>; <nflbirds...>
Subject: Re: [NFLbirds] The last field trip
I'm glad that you will continue to write. I love reading your summaries.
Cheers,
Natasza
On Tue, Mar 4, 2025, 3:42 PM Don Morrow <donaldcmorrow...><mailto:<donaldcmorrow...>> wrote:
I'll still be writing and will continue doing shorebird and duck surveys at the refuge. I am just allowing someone else the opportunity to lead the Winter field trips.
On Tue, Mar 4, 2025 at 3:27 PM Robert Crawford <rlcrawfd...><mailto:<rlcrawfd...>> wrote:
I will sure miss your reports.
On 3/4/2025 3:23 PM, Don Morrow wrote:
I am not sure how long I have been leading the refuge’s winter wildlife tours, but for at least twenty-five years my annual schedule from October through March has included a monthly day at the refuge with three-hour field trips starting at 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.
There is no standard agenda for these field trips. I try to find a route that has a good chance of showing off what the refuge offers in winter; ducks, shorebirds, gators, otters, bobcats, and nesting eagles. My routes usually go out on the levees, but may also snake down Lighthouse Road. I go wherever I think there might be something interesting.
I have led car caravans, driven an 18-passenger van and used a Wakulla Transportation bus that came with a driver who would surreptitiously keep me updated on college football scores. For years we used the “people mover,” an open wagon pulled by a refuge pickup truck. This year, I have been driving the refuge’s seven-passenger van.
There are people who have been coming on my field trips for years and, always, new people that I have never before met. I have always had birders, some experts and some beginners. I have learned identification tips on the job from some very good birders and taken pleasure in teaching others the fundamentals of duck identification.
Over the years, as digital camera technology has improved, I have had more and more photographers looking for that perfect shot. I have tried to balance giving them time for photos with moving the field trip along.
I also get folks who just want to get a ride around the refuge and see something new. There are no skill requirements or entrance tests to come on these tours. Everyone has always been welcome.
Leading field trips requires patience and thought. There’s the basic logistics. What route to take. How long to stay at each stop. Finishing up, sort of on time. I have tried to ensure that everybody gets something out of the trip and that questions are answered, even if the answer is “I don’t know.”
I have led several hundred refuge field trips and taken a few thousand people out to see their refuge. My time leading the St. Marks winter wildlife Tours has, however, come to an end. Last Saturday afternoon, I led my last winter field trip for the refuge. Like all field trips, it had some highlights; a pair of mating eagles in a pine tree, a White-faced Ibis and a Glossy Ibis standing near each other for comparison. It was a good way to end things.
I will still be doing field trips at the refuge for birding groups and perhaps an occasional refuge event. I have, though, decided that it is time for someone else to take over the winter wildlife tours. I am hoping that the refuge will choose a younger and, perhaps, more diverse voice to replace me. Regardless, whoever is chosen will, I am sure, do a great job.
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