Yesterday was my last birding day in Florida -- this morning I left Florida under cover of darkness. As of 3am this morning I was #45 on the Florida Top 100 for 2023 by 3pm I had already sunk to #47. I suspect I will stay in the top 100 for @1 week -- I share the #47 ranking with two others and right now #100 is at 173. We'll see. It was nice to be able to crack the top 100 and make it to over #50, now there is nothing to do but watch it fall. That being said I had a great time and a lot of good birding.
In Gainesville I started at Sweetwater Wetlands Park at the insistence of Matt Schenck -- and he was right. My feet were very tired for 3+ weeks of birding but I strapped on my sneakers and went for a walk. In retrospect I should have walked out to all three cells, instead of taking the boardwalk path. The boardwalk was fairly unproductive with the exception of a Yellow Warbler, which is rare in Florida but being seen at Sweetwater lately.
Limpkin
Sandhill Cranes
The most dramatic moment of the day was when the Alligators decided to cross the path when I was about to turn back to the car. The ones with the photographer in them (yes, he's crazy) give you some idea how big these creatures are -- BTW the second one was about 75% bigger than the first one but I was too far away to get the Photographer in the shot. It decided to take a rest in the middle of the path.
Next up was Paynes Prairie, but my feet were not willing to walk, so I drove -- got to heard (which is more than a little unsettling) and briefly saw a Barn Owl (life bird) -- that was an odd time to see/hear one, but there was a prescribed burn going on in the park and perhaps it was unsettled by that.
I drove @10 hours today leaving at 4:30 and had smooth driving. Tomorrow I hope to leave @4am and be home before noon -- but I am traveling into traffic and it is the first day of President's weekend. I am hoping for the best from the traffic gods. Will start back on the recaps when I get back. Thanks for traveling with me.
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