Trip Report – Seaboard Grade 12/03/2019 By Phyllis Cady
Tree Swallows fly over the march – by Deb Peterson
Red-shouldered Hawk – by Deb Peterson
It turned out to be a beautiful day, cool but sunny. Twelve hardy birders showed up dressed warmly with jackets and hats, but we shed our coats as the day warmed up. Seaboard Grade is in the Babcock-Webb Wildlife Management Area and intersects with Tucker’s Grade road. As we started out down the road it was very quiet and we only saw a few Blue Jays, a berry eating Flicker, and a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. As it warmed up the pines and oaks along the road were filled with Warblers, Robins, Woodpeckers, Gnat-catchers, Swamp sparrows, and Wrens. The canals along the road had Anhingas, Night-herons, Common Yellowthroats and a watchful alligator. By the time we got to the marsh area there were hundreds of Tree Swallows flying low over the marsh grasses. There were Sandhill Cranes nesting and a Northern Harrier was gliding low over the marsh in the sunshine.
Little Blue Herons flew over, a Boat-tailed Grackle showed his iridescent colors in the sunlight, and it was hard to tear ourselves away from that scene and head back to the cars. Several continued on down the road and added a Hairy Woodpecker and a Carolina Wren to our list but the rest of us turned back. We added a Limpkin and a Red-shouldered Hawk on the drive back to the pay station and had a total of 47 species! This was the highest count I have had on a PRAS Walkabout anywhere… it must have been the excellent birders that joined us today. Thanks to everyone who came out for this walk. Photos by Deb Peterson.
Bird list follows:
Anhinga
Blackbird, Red-winged
Cardinal, Northern
Catbird, Gray
Cormorant, Double Crested
Crane, Sandhill
Eagle, Bald
Egret, Great
Flicker, Northern
Gallinule, Common
Gnatcatcher, Blue-gray
Grackle, Boat-tailed
Grackle, Common
Grebe, Pied-billed
Harrier, Northern
Hawk, Red-shouldered
Heron, Great-blue
Heron, Green
Heron, Little Blue
Heron, Tricolored
Jay, Blue
Ibis, White
Killdeer
Kingfisher, Belted
Limpkin
Mockingbird, Northern
Night-heron, Black Crowned
Phoebe, Eastern
Robin, American
Sapsucker, Yellow bellied
Shrike, Loggerhead
Sparrow, Swamp
Stork, Wood
Swallow, Tree
Vireo, Blue-headed
Vulture, Turkey
Warbler, Palm
Warbler, Pine
Warbler,Yellow-rumped
Warbler, Yellow-throated
Woodpecker, Downy
Woodpecker, Hairy
Woodpecker, Red-bellied
Woodpecker, Pileated
Wren, Carolina
Wren, House
Yellow-throat, Common
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