Spring has arrived and thankfully so have some migrants. Many species of birds fly great distances in the spring and fall to reach warmer climates. The route they take often includes stopovers on the West Coast of Florida. The nice thing about spring migration is the birds are in their colorful plumage getting ready for the breeding season. The feathers of some birds change color while for others it can be the beak and legs. Take a look at these pictures of a White Ibis in non-breeding and breeding plumage.

On Saturday, March 28th, the St. Petersburg Audubon Society led a field trip to Fort DeSoto Park. As a group we saw 41 species of birds including seven warbler species, White-eyed and Yellow-throated Vireos. Other highlights were Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Indigo Bunting and Orchard Oriole. We dipped on the reported Swainson’s Warbler that was first reported the day before.

The next morning we were up at the crack of dawn to go look for ducks with our good friend Phil Eicher. Phil is a famous duck hunter but lucky for us duck season was closed. We met at 5:00 a.m. so we could see the sunrise on Tampa Bay. We had a blast in Phil’s custom Louisiana style duck boat complete with lawn chairs. There was an impressive 400 Lesser Scaup along with a few remaining Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shovelers and Ring-necked ducks. We stopped at four places and picked up three new year birds, Short-billed Dowitcher, Semipalmated Plover and Spotted Sandpiper.

We went back to Fort DeSoto three times during the week and saw great birds but no luck on the Swainson’s Warbler.  A Cape May Warbler was a nice consolation.

Next up: California and a last minute trip to Texas.

Trip : Total Species:   83  Year Birds:  16  Life Birds: 0

2015 : Year Birds: 176   Life Birds: 5

Here’s the list: 2015 Bird List