Date: 10/16/26 12:29 pm From: Don Morrow <donaldcmorrow...> Subject: [NFLbirds] October at SMNWR
I watched the International Space Station in the night sky above St. Marks
NWR on Thursday morning. It was closely followed by an unmanned Cargo
Dragon capsule that was moving to link up with it. They passed soundlessly
overhead as Black-crowned Night Herons were flying in to roost, barking in
the dark, mindless of the technological marvel taking place 250 miles above
them. Slowly, the light gathered and Gray Catbirds began to call,
announcing another Fall day at the refuge.
These mornings at St. Marks are cool and colorful. Goldenrod is in bloom
and Muhly grass is a pink haze along the edges of the levees. Butterflies
are swarming; Cloudless Sulphurs, Gulf Fritillaries, Long-tailed Skippers
and the first few Monarchs.
Outlying rain bands from Hurricane Isaias dropped a lot of rain on the
refuge and the pools and ponds are full. Favorable winds gave a boost to
migration and in two nights, fifteen million birds passed through the
refuge. Most of these were thrushes, warblers and flycatchers, just passing
through. Yellow Warblers are easy to find right now. Look for them on
Goldenrod as they search for insects. Thrushes make use of fruit on
migration and I’ve recently found Swainson’s Thrushes at the refuge feeding
on Yaupon, Sweetbay and Viburnum. This migratory pulse also brought in
wintering birds; Swamp Sparrows, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Eastern Phoebes and
Northern Harriers.
Our winter duck population starts climbing in October and then jumps up in
late November. Waterfowl populations are usually still low in mid-October,
but generally show the first increase in diversity as a few pintails and
wigeons begin to show up among the usual Blue-winged Teal. I found 56
Blue-winged Teal and a single Northern Shoveler on the refuge on Thursday.
Most of the teal were skittish and easily spooked, a sign of active
migrants.
The refuge’s Land Protection Plan calls for one area to be closed in order
to provide an area for waterfowl to rest, unmolested. Signs have gone up
closing the Gulf-side levee on the southeastern side of Mounds 3. This
closure is for the winter season.
The refuge’s current high water levels have inundated shorebird flats and
the refuge biologist is working to adjust water levels to accommodate both
ducks and shorebirds. On Thursday, I had only a handful of shorebirds, but
they included a Black-necked Stilt, a Red Knot and a Dunlin, all on Tower
Pond. Dunlin normally begin to arrive in October and by November, they will
be the most common shorebird on the refuge.
The American Ornithological Society has decided to split one of our most
common shorebirds, the Willet, into two species. The new Saltmarsh Willet
is our local breeder and the new Prairie Willet is our wintering bird,
currently on the refuge. If you keep a bird list, your total just went up
by one with no effort.
One other thing that you can do with almost no effort is come down to St.
Marks. We have birds, butterflies and glorious Fall weather waiting for
you.
