Hi All! I have been busy visiting and birding! Husband left at the end of January and Bestie and her sister Dee Dee came to stay with me for the first half of February. This January was the grayest month in Florida’s weather history since WWII (of COURSE) but it is much nicer for birding in and near Port St. Lucie now. I did more birdwatching in my neighborhood in Vitalia but started traveling to some hotspots I discovered last year too. You can check out my eBird lists to see all the birds I reported so far. My eBird profile link is on my Robin’s Nest page.
All the usual suspects are in my Florida neighborhood, but my birds never get old or less beautiful! Lots of herons, Ibis, Wood Storks, and Limpkins still visit daily. Some smaller shorebirds have arrived also. I have seen Spotted Sandpipers and heard Least Sandpipers and lots of Killdeer recently. I still love watching and listening to my Common Gallinule couple. They were so upset when a Red-shouldered Hawk tried to get to their nest. Luckily, he got caught in the reeds and had to get lunch elsewhere! While I was missing my husband, lots of other bird-couples were also enjoying each other’s company. The Mottled Ducks, American Coots and Pied-billed Grebes are all swimming around in pairs now. Back home in Mass, my birds are pairing up too. This Mallard pair is from Fannie Stebbins Wildlife Refuge in Longmeadow on February 2, 2023.
Many Songbirds are pairing up just in time for Valentine’s Day too, and are upping their game now. I love listening to the Northern Mockingbirds singing to each other and a very vocal Brown Thrasher is here now too. The trees are full of Northern Cardinals, Loggerhead Shrikes, and Grackles calling to each other. Who needs a radio when The White-winged, Common Ground, Mourning and Eurasian Collared-doves are constantly serenading each other! Bestie and I birded the Community Boulevard Lake near Vitalia. Lots of wading birds still but the diving ducks that were there in abundance have all but disappeared now, along with the Muscovy Duck. The loving Sandhill Crane families are always nearby.
I also enjoy birding in Fort Pierce. The North Pier never disappoints. I saw lots of Brown Pelicans up close as well as many herons hunting by the shores. The sweet little Bonaparte’s Gulls were there again mixed with Laughing and other gull species. Husband and I saw a beautiful, white pigeon was walking around and it was wearing a tag. I saw my first Magnificent Frigatebird along with a group of Willets at Shuckers on the Beach! Bestie and I saw the famous Peacocks in their Orange Street nesting area. There were some White Ibis and a rooster there too! The Peacocks are SO beautiful. I got another lifer in Fort Pierce Inlet State Park- the Black Skimmer! There were so many of them near the surf with some Semipalmated Plovers, Willets, Royal Terns and mixed gulls!
I went back to Pelican Island with Husband on January 27th. We heard a VERY strange noise that was possibly a bobcat but did not see any new birds there. We walked 7 miles and saw no Painted Buntings. We did see lots of waterfowl and some wading birds, including a few American White Pelicans, Wood Storks, and herons. I did get some good shots of an immature Little Blue Heron, which is actually white, and had a close encounter with a Yellow-crowned Night Heron! The Ruby-crowned Kinglets and Northern Parulas were flitting around in the River Park Marina in Port St Lucie and the nesting Ospreys returned there too. I also walked around downtown Stuart and saw my first Red-breasted Merganser!
Currently, I am flying solo so will be teaching, birding, and doing taxes! Send positive vibes for my Painted Bunting quest! That is all for now! I am so grateful to anyone who shares my sites so more people can learn about birds! Try eBird if you haven’t so you can be part of the solution and help our waning bird populations. As always, a huge shout out to my followers! Check out my social media sites to see videos of the birds I see! Take care, Robin.
Robin's Birds 