By Pat Bazany
Ten Citrus Audubon members met at the Lutz Road entrance to the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive at 8:00 a.m. January 17 and spent the next 4 hours enjoying the wonderful birds this Southwest Florida Water Management property has to offer. Beautiful looks at a Wilson’s Snipe and Merlin were highlights of the day along with four Fulvous Whistling Ducks which we managed to locate among a lot of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks.
Forty-nine species was my final count but there were birds that I missed that were seen by others in the group (Black-crowned Night Heron for one) so the total for the day was more like fifty plus species. My eBird list follows. The Sandhill Cranes on the list were a flyover as we waited for everyone to arrive. The Northern Harriers really put on a show for us and the Merlin was equally cooperative posing nicely on a wire along the road. The snipe was easy to spot (once you found ‘the spot’) and remained in the open so that everyone got a good look eventually.
American Coots and Blue-winged Teal were seen in great numbers all along the drive. My ‘estimates’ are definitely low. We did find some Ring-necked Ducks and two Northern Shovelers and of course the whistling ducks. I was the only one who actually saw the Gadwall. The number of Gray-headed Swamphens and how unafraid of people and cars really floored me. I remember the first few years when finding one was challenging and uncertain.
On the way back to Citrus County eight of us stopped at Oakwood Smokehouse & Grill in Leesburg for some tasty barbeque and a chance to visit while not being (totally) distracted by birds.