The Smith Oaks Rookery: Spectacle of Life, Specter of Death

Moving on to the other side of High Island...the other big sanctuary here is Smith Oaks. As a migrant trap, it is better than Boy Scout Woods for many species, but this post is about the awesome, enormous rookery on the east side of the sanctuary. Before visiting the rookery, I lacked a decent photo of a Roseate Spoonbill (how embarrassing)...I no longer have that problem.

The Smith Oaks rookery is sprawling, loud and stinky; a spectacle. I was really impressed with it. The spoonbill show is something else...just look at these things. Why are they the way that they are? We are fortunate to have the world's best spoonbill species here, all of the others are vanilla in comparison.

I think we were too early to see spoonbill chicks, which is too bad. Surely they must look absurd.

It could be sharper, but this crop pleases me to no end for some reason. Makes me think of dinosaurs.

Roseate Spoonbill-Common Gallinule combo. The UTC is a region rich in combos.

Spoonbills are the main attraction, but Great Egrets seemed to be the most abundant species and they are difficult to ignore.

I don't think I've had the chance to sit and watch Great Egret nests close up before....it all felt very National Geographic. Speaking of which...

There are hella alligators at the rookery. This fairly large one slipped into the water and started hunting as we watched.

After some time it reemerged, taking a very direct path towards something...

...which turned out to be a Great Egret chick that had fallen from its nest.

I believe this was the chick's final moment before it went to that great big nest in the sky.

The last crunch.

The gator dispatched the egret chick very quickly and was back in the water in short order. Damn! Was not expecting to watch something like that unfold, let alone capture it all on the crusher. For the egret chick, you might be thinking "life is pain", but if not the for merciful reptile it would have died the slow and brutal death of exposure and starvation. Next time you run across an alligator, thank it for its service.

A couple days later we saw probably the same gator come striding out of the colony with another egret chick, though this time we did not bear witness to the chick's demise. I bet the local alligators hardly eat for much of the year compared to when the rookery is active.

Neotropic Cormorants also breed in large numbers here. In trip bird news, we managed to see all of one Double-crested Cormorant for the whole trip, an immature at this rookery.

These Almost-Geri demanded that Dan stop taking spoonbill photos and take their picture instead. In time, they will expect even more from us Non-Geri. That is the way of things...the way of The Geri.

Though the rookery is incredibly distracting (rightly so), don't forget to keep looking for migrants next to the viewing platforms (tired migrants aren't necessarily put off by throngs of loud Geri and photogs) and along the main rookery path. This glowing Blackburnian Warbler was right next to the observation deck pictured above.

More migrants in the next post!

The Human Birdwatcher Project Presents: Birding By Yourself - A Lonely And Embarrassing Habit.

Ospreys are everywhere in Florida. They are confident birds, and make good eye contact (unlike many birdwatchers).

Back in the fall of 2009, I was working for Bat Conservation International in western Pennsylvania. When that project wrapped up, I thought "Well....I've heard a lot about Florida. It's where people go to die. And there are birds there that I must see. This is the closest I've been there, so....ROAD TRIP."

And so I birded my way down the eastern seaboard, being chased by Nor'easters the entire way down to Georgia. The birding was good when it was not raining (Brown-headed Nuthatches made for good company), but there were times in which I wish I had company...except for that one very embarrassing incident in Virginia City, which I will not divulge the details of.

Since a lot of bird bloggers are posting from Florida these days, and I want to get back there, that's what we will deal with today...but only by taking a serious look at people's social birding habits. That's right...the Human Birdwatcher Project has returned to action.

Florida Scrub-Jay was a lifer. It's all about the endemics. Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

In much of the country, a White Ibis is a fantastically rare bird. In Florida, they are parking lot birds.

I go birding by myself a lot. I'll admit it. There are distinct advantages and disadvantages to this. The advantages are this:

1) Complete freedom. You can go wherever you want, whenever you want, and stay as long as you want.

2) Birders, as a rule, generally suffer from various glaring personality flaws. You do not have to worry about getting annoyed with anyone but yourself.

3) It's a lot easier to photograph birds when you are rolling Han Solo.

4) There is a time and place for solitude. For me, that time and place needs to happen relatively often.

Royal Tern. Fort Clinch State Park.

You gotta love the native forest and "prairie". At this spot I found a massive flock of Eastern Bluebird, Pine Warbler, Bachman's Sparrow (!!!) and...

Red-cockaded Woodpecker. Sweet sweet victory. Three Lakes Wildlife Management Area.

Now, there are also some distinct disadvantages:

1) Birdwatching is, intrinsically, an extremely nerdy pastime. This is easier to deal with in large groups, although the effect is usually magnified.

2) Pishing around a bunch of nonbirders makes you very conscious of how ridiculous you must look. If I was a nonbirder watching somebody spitting and sputtering at a large shrub, I would think they were batshit crazy.

3) You often have a lot more motivation to Keep Going to find that good bird if you around other birders.

4) Extra eyes and ears are crucial to finding More Birds. And the more birds, the better. Obvi.

5) You can do a lot of learning and/or teaching about birds with other people with you. Both of these are good things.

6) Birders are huge gossips. You cannot gossip by yourself. Well, you can, but that's usually called "Schizophrenia".

7) Obviously, doing something fun with like-minded people is a big part of what makes human culture tick. We are social creatures. Simple.

This young Bald Eagle was being mobbed by an Osprey in Everglades National Park. An aside: as some of you know, google has now somewhat integrated Picasa, Blogger and Google+ with each other. As a result, for some reason I get a lot of people I don't know commenting on my bird photos. Most of them are from other countries, and they leave pretty hilarious compliments. The comment I received for this photo was "Huauuuuuuuuuu!". I love it.

Florida birding is weird. You have to get used to the fact that there are alligators everywhere. In most places I have lived, there are not giant, dangerous reptiles in every wetland you go to, and so the presence of these ancient beasts is....strange. I liked having them around, but I guess people can get pretty scared by them. I suppose I can understand...

And there you have it. Clearly, birding by yourself excessively could have massive and horrible consequences. A lot of people are into this mode of birding, but now they must ask....at what cost?

Personally, I know a lot of you who bird on the lonesome often. You may even prefer it. This does not mean you are doomed. But I can point to a lot of birders who are known to have almost exclusively birded alone for many years, and these are clearly not the people you want to become.

Caution is warranted.

White Ibis, Great Egret, Roseate Spoonbill and a Willet. Wading birds are one of the things that make Florida famous to birders. With the exception of White-faced Ibis, they have every wading bird you can find in the United States. I am fiending to go back and get some award-winning Roseate Spoonbill and Reddish Egret shots. Someday....even if its by myself.

She's So Beautiful, She Keeps My Prescriptions Full

Ain't it nice when we can all get along? Suwanee Cooters with American Alligator, Wakulla River, Florida.

Even though I've been reduced to a state of deep catatonia for the past several days due to chronic health problems, I've been pretty stoked to be back in San Francisco. The birding isn't exactly top-knotch, but we can't have everything, can we? Regardless of this, I'm leaving tomorrow for Portland, Oregon, which has been hyped so much to me that I can't picture it being much more interesting or lively than a septic tank. To top it off, there are a few people that I harbor a deep hatred for who live there, who I will no doubt have to see and make awkward conversation with.....it's just my luck. But with my attorney present, as well as the one known as Breakfast Tits, The Red-headed Stranger, Shutter, and the Wandering Abysmaltross, how can I go wrong? So no BB&B for a little while, but enjoy your Thanksgiving and everything that makes life worth living. Call in sick, drink too much whiskey, watch some birds, and spend some money you don't have. Why not?

Happy Thanksgiving,

Seagull Steve and Felonious Jive

Begging For Tips Is Begging Just The Same

One of the friendly faces in Florida's Big Cypress Swamp.

EL PASO, Texas. My fall tour is coming down to the home stretch.....I'm perched at the western edge of Texas, bound for Flagstaff, Arizona tomorrow night. It will be a long and perilous drive, fraught with stress because I won't be able to pick what music to listen to, with the glut of great new music that has come out lately (see the list over on the right there). At the moment, Strike Anywhere is really leaving an impression....its a breath of fresh air, after being in the south for so long. I also managed to catch Dead To Me and Banner Pilot in San Antonio last night, which is the first show I've been able to see since NOFX back in February. The new Dead To Me jams sounded pretty sweet.



A late-afternoon thunderstorm rolls in over the mangroves at Sannibel Island, Florida. You can see why people have an interest in dying here.

To my colleagues in Tallahassee, College Station and the legendary Schertz, I am deeply indebted to you, and I will repay my debt in blood.....or beer. Thanks again for having me over. The great ornithologist Felonious Jive sends love as well.

Bird Of The Day: Red-tailed Hawk. Yeah I didn't get out of the car much today. Tomorrow should be better though......




What is this. A kettle? Is this a kettle of storks? Or a flock? Whats the minimum number of birds that can constitute a kettle? Well, here's some Wood Storks in flight over the Everglades, at any rate.