UK 2019 Day 7: Birding Day at Chew Valley Lake

Posted July 5, 2019

May 15, 2019

My first proper “birding day” was about 1/2 the day spent at a reservoir called Chew Valley Lake [map]. I had a chance to scout it out briefly on the way back from one of our previous day’s adventures, and it looked promising.

View of a lake with a tree covered island in the middle ground. — *Chew Valley Lake.*

Chew Valley Lake is named as a premiere birding spot in several places online, and it did not disappoint. The species diversity was high and added a sizable amount to my life list, as you might imagine.

The lake fills part of Chew Valley, forming a reservoir that provides much of the drinking water for Bristol and nearby locales.

View looking down a low dam with lake to the left and roadway to the right. — *The dam along Wally Lane demarks the northern edge of the lake.*

The morning started off cold, with temperatures around 40 degrees Fahrenheit (4.5 Celsius), but the sun warmed things up nicely as the day progressed. I walked along the dam first, but there was no public access around the west side of the lake from there.

White-Wagtail_01 — *One of several White Wagtails around the lake.*

There are well defined trails and paths around the lake and adjacent woodland, some with boardwalks, and a couple of wildlife blinds to make access to some of the shier birds a little easier. Unfortunately, this did not keep the Tufted Ducks from being skittish. I was unable to get any photographs even though I had targeted this species before leaving for the trip.

Chew-Valley-Lake_03 — *Much of the path around the north side of the lake has a high bank separating the path from the nearby road.*

Although the Tufted Ducks may have been skittish, other water birds were not. I saw several Great Crested Grebes, a few Common Shelducks, and several dozen Eurasian Coots. There were also plenty of Mallards, Canada Geese, and a pair of Mute Swans.

close up of grebe swimming on surface of the water — *Great Crested Grebe*

The southern eastern and southern edges of the lake have areas of thick reeds and some scrub vegetation. There areas had active and vocal birds, like Reed Warblers, Eurasian Wrens, and Reed Buntings.

Small songbird perched in a bush. — *A Reed Bunting making a brief appearance out of the reed bed.*

The Eurasian Wrens have a loud song, for their size. The song is very reminiscent of a Song Sparrow here in North America, so it was confusing at times to orient my ears to what kind of bird I should be looking at.

Tiny wren perched among foliage. — *A Eurasian Wren pausing between songs. Tiny body, mighty sound!*

Similarly, the Eurasian Blackcaps and European Robins have some sounds in common and have thrush-like calls, which was confusing as there were typically Eurasian Blackbirds nearby.

Songbird singing within shaded branches. — *Eurasian Blackcap male. The females and young have brown caps.*

Eurasian coots were scattered out all over the lake close to the shore. I wondered if they form large rafts during the winter, like American coots do. Eurasian Coots are smaller and a bit more streamlined.

Close-up of a coot swimming on water's surface — *Eurasian Coot.*

Near one of the wildlife blinds, I heard a prolonged and rollicking song in the understory, and spent many minutes trying to get eyes on the bird. I managed a sound recording to use later for identification, but soon after the bird finally did pop into view. Many of the various warblers that live in these habitats are similar looking, and as they are all new to me, I thought having that recording along with my visual would help me nail it down.

According to descriptions of Melodious Warbler songs, “my” bird fit the bill (haha). It is said to have a prolonged song with many doublets and repeated phrases, similar to a Northern Mockingbird. Its song also has elements that sound like House Sparrows. To my ear, this is what I heard and recorded. I duly noted the (rare) bird on my eBird app and continued on.

I reached the end of the trail on the east side of the lake, where the woods abutted some agricultural land. I spooked a large raptor that I couldn’t identify, and then watched as a Eurasian Treecreeper worked its way up a few trees. All the while, more wrens, blackcaps, blackbirds, and robins were singing. I doubled back along the east side of the lake on a more wooded path running parallel to the way I came, which kept me out of the sun. Even 18 degrees Celsius (65 Fahrenheit) can feel hot after a few hours of hiking.

Dirt path with taller trees to the left and some grass and brush to the right. — *Woodland path around Chew Valley Lake.*

I made my way back around to the north side of the lake. My intention was to relocate the Tufted Ducks and perhaps catch a Common Merganser or two near the dam. I did manage to flush out a couple of Common Sandpipers and Shelducks as I approached the spillway.

Common-Shelduck_01 — *This Common Shelduck headed off the spillway outlet towards the middle of the lake like he was on a mission.*

A few finch-like birds were singing and flying among the small trees alongside it. It took some sleuthing and confirming later that evening, but managed to identify both as immature males, one a Eurasian Linnet and the other a Black Redstart.

Eurasian-Linnet_01 — *Although not in bright breeding plumage, I think this Eurasian Linnet was a male because it was singing its heart out.*

Another small songbird perched on a young tree's branch. — *Black Redstarts are common birds in the UK, but it took me quite a while, and in some cases outside expertise to identify them. Local knowledge and experience are invaluable in birding.*

By this point I was nearing the end of my morning and ready to meet up with my wife and Ruth who had been visiting shops and sites back in Bristol. By the trail head near the dam, I waited at a higher, wooded spot and watched a few European Goldfinches dart in and out of the trees, nearby.

European-Goldfinch_01 — *This European Goldfinch was last bird of the adventure at Chew Valley Lake.*

I walked a total of about 9 km (about 5.5 miles) and had nearly run out of water as my ride showed up and we rode back to Bristol. My species count was 37, and you can see my eBird list below.

https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S56302558

View of a lake with tree reflections on the far shore. — Good bye, Chew Valley Lake.

Addendum

Astute readers will see that my eBird list has only 36 species. After arriving back home in the States, I received an email from an eBird reviewer in the UK, asking about my Melodious Warbler identification. I had posted my sound recording as supporting material. He said my recording was a Reed Warbler and would I please change my list. I have done so, but solely on the idea that a local birder would/should know more and have more experience with the birds I saw and heard. But I’ll link to the sound file below, and if any experienced UK birders can confirm or question the current identification as a Reed Warbler, I’d love to hear from you.

UK 2019 Day 6: Wales

One of the great things about being in and around Bristol is its proximity to Wales. A relatively easy trip over the Bristol Channel and there you are. We were quite looking forward to seeing some of Wales in part due to the TV show Doctor Who. Many of the “new” series (since 2005) has been filmed in Wales, and the show’s spin-off, Torchwood, was based in Cardiff.

Our first stop in Wales that day was Southerndown Beach. Doctor Who fans might know it as the beach by “Bad Wolf Bay”, where Rose and The Doctor part (at least in term of Rose as a regular companion) after “Doomsday” at the end of series 2. The beach is beautiful, surrounded by cliffs and long stretches of sand at low tide.

a broad rocky beach with sand toward the surf — *Rocks and sand at low tide.*

Southerndown-Beach_02 — *Dramatic cliffs of Southerndown Beach.*

Southerndown-Beach_03 — *Rockfall from the cliffs covers much of the beach and makes for interesting tidal pools.*

After hanging out at the beach for a bit, we headed over to Cardiff. [map], and the now iconic Roald Dahl Plass and the Wales Millenium Centre.

The Wales Millennium Centre with the Water Tower in the foreground. — *The Wales Millennium Centre with its iconic Water Tower, beneath which the last remaining Torchwood Institute team had their headquarters. Due to construction, the water features were not operating.*

The Millennium Centre is a beautiful structure, with materials chosen to reflect the history and heritage of the people of Wales. It’s steel clad dome pay homage to the steel industry, and other local materials like slate figure into the design. The words across the front of the dome are from Welsh poet Gwyneth Lewis. The Welsh portion says, “Creu Gwir fel gwydr o ffwrnais awen”, which means “Creating Truth Like Glass From Inspiration’s Furnace.” The English words are “In These Stones Horizons Sing”.

The front of the Wales Millennium Centre dome. — *Poetic words on the dome at the Wales Millennium Centre. The steel has been treated with copper oxide to protect the metal from the seaside air.*

Nearby to Roald Dahl Plass is the Senedd, or the Wales National Assembly. The political relationship among the countries in the United Kingdom isn’t always clear to Americans. Wales is a separate nation from England (as is Scotland and Northern Ireland), but for various reasons, Wales has traditionally enjoyed less self-rule than other parts of the UK. Without delving into politics of which I am a hopeless novice, I’ll just say that a degree of autonomy was attained in 1997 and the creation of a National Assembly for Wales (Cynulliad Cenedlaetho Cymru). While the modern Senedd building is where the Assembly meets and does its business, they acquired the nearby neo-Gothic Pierhead Building for use as an exhibit space and community center.

The Pierhead building in Cardiff — *The Pierhead from Roald Dahl Plass.*

Originally built for the Bute Docks Company, it was later used by the Cardiff Railway Company. The building is rather stunning in its setting, uncluttered by other architecture. The edifice is imposing, as befitting a 19th Century capitalist endeavor, of which both the docks and the railroads were.

It was a beautiful day to walk a bit around Mermaid Quay, the main shopping area at Cardiff Bay, looking out over the water.

*A couple of sailboats out in Cardiff Bay.*

As a bay-side city, the area was well represented by gulls, Lesser Black-backed and Herring Gulls, in about equal measure.

*A Lesser Black-backed Gull looking for an easy chip (french fry) to scavenge…*

While looking for a place to eat lunch, we walked away from the waterfront and I saw this sign, which did make me laugh. I’m no beer drinker, but how can you not love a brewery named Brains (even with the provocatively missing apostrophe)?

Brains Dragon.

After lunch at a place called Eli Jenkins, we made our way out of Cardiff and north to the city of Caerphilly and the medieval castle there [map]. Caerphilly Castle is a magnificent ruin in the center of the city, surrounded by a moat and green spaces.

Medieval castle overlooking a lake — *Caerphilly Castle on a glorious day.*

The castle was built in the 13th Century, and was an impressive stronghold for a couple of hundred years. Its concentric design was influential in many subsequent castles throughout Britain.

Welsh flags flying over part of Caerphilly Castle — *Welsh flags flying over the restored eastern gatehouse.*

Leaning, ruined castle tower — *Robbed of stones and a victim of subsidence, the “Leaning Tower” tilts at over ten degrees from vertical.*

Wooden statue seemingly holding up a leaning castle tower — *The 4th Marquess of Bute, holding up the tower.*

The castle site is quite large, and the towers have many worn and narrow steps. Most of the rooms are barren, with missing wall sections and closed-off staircases. Some parts of the parapets have been restored and can be walked along.

Castle parapet — *Northern parapet, with motion activated battle sounds!*

The interior of the castle has been preserved in some state of ruin or left empty and unadorned, except for the Great Hall.

Large room with shields along the wall and vaulted wooden ceiling. — *The Great Hall. Many of the simple tables and benches were not in place due to continuing renovation. But it is an impressive space.*

The whole site is amazing and expansive. Here’s a little slide show with a few more photos.

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The moat and surrounding lakes are full of ducks and geese, some feral domestic stock and some wild or at least established in the wild. Many of the geese had goslings of various ages, too.

Adult goose with goslings in the grass — *Canada Geese are and established introduced species breeding in the wild in the UK.*

Greylag Goose swimming — *Greylag Goose on one of the lakes.*

There were also Common Swifts and Barn Swallows swooping around the castle grounds grabbing insects. There was one attendant Common Raven, suffering from some sort of dermatological problem or other health issue. It was missing much of its neck feathers.

Raven with missing neck feathers — *This poor raven was watching over the castle.*

Songbird on wall over the water. — *A Grey Wagtail resting on the castle wall over the moat.*

It was getting to late afternoon and so we made out way back out from the castle to head home. Somewhat like at Stonehenge, I had a feeling of deep appreciation of the skills and pressures of the people of the past. Caerphilly Castle was built in just 3 years – an incredible feat no matter what the motivation or means. It’s impressive but relatable, and such encounters can only be enriching and enlightening.

I’ll leave you with one parting shot, emblematic of the state of affairs on both sides of the Atlantic.

Bollocks to Brexit — *God save us all, not just the Queen.*

UK 2019 Day 5: Bath

Posted June 21, 2019

May 13, 2019

Well into our first week, we decided to check our the ancient city of Bath [map]. Known to the Romans as Aquae Sulis, it was probably a sacred site to the local Celts before that.

The central fixture for the crowds and activity in Bath these days is the parish church, Bath Abbey. The abbeys and monasteries run by the Catholic Church in the 16th century were mostly destroyed and abandoned under orders of Henry VIII after he split the Church and declared himself the head of the Church of England. Some of the structures survived and were repaired or rebuilt afterwards, and then used by the Church of England. In this case Bath Abbey retains its moniker though it is no longer used as an abbey. The pinnacles, flying buttresses, and much of the interior were completed in the 19th Century based on Victorian ideals of Gothic architecture. It’s a well blended masterpiece.

Bath-Abbey_01 — *Bath Abbey’s western end dates from the early 16th Century.*

I think we sometimes tend to think of “old” buildings and design as either ephemerally lofty or stoic and practical. But many of the forms and expressions in Gothic design are almost whimsical or contain an inside joke. Although rooted in scripture (Jacob’s Ladder), there’s a undeniable whimsy in the climbing angels on the abbey’s west side.

Bath-Abbey_13 — *On either side of the west facade, angels are climbing the church. I wonder if Whovians have checked to see if any of them have ever changed position…*

The church is made from locally quarried stone that has a golden yellow tint. Many of the older structures are made from this stone. The darker stone from the flying buttresses and the differential weathering of the stonework adds contrast and makes the structure even more dramatic.

The interior is splendid, as well. The fan vaulting over the west end of the nave is centuries newer than that of the east end, but the differences are subtle. The design isn’t just decorative, but helps distribute the weight of the roof via columns and buttresses.

Bath-Abbey_04 — *Fan vaulting above the main organ in the north transept. This organ is a culmination of almost 300 years of modernization, expansion, and repair.*

Bath-Abbey_05 — *A closer look at the fan vaulting, including various coat-of-arms.*

Bath-Abbey_03 — *The church is airy, light, and open*

Like most large churches, Bath Abbey has continued to have art commissioned and commemorated throughout the centuries. From the 18th through early 20th centuries, it was common to have elaborately carved memorial plaques made to honor a dead patron or their families. People continue to be inspired to make art for worship, reflection, and activism to this day.

Quire-Angels_02 — *Some of the carved lime wood choir angels, made and donated in 2007. Note the butterfly mobiles in the background, above.*

Bath-Abbey_08 — *Intricate stone ceiling, one of the abbey’s claims to fame.*

Bath-Abbey_09 — *The light fixtures are converted gas lamps from the 19th Century renovation and repair.*

It was mid to late morning when we finished our tour of the abbey, so we made our way to Sally Lunn’s Eating House to try their famous “Sally Lunn Bunns”. Sally Lunn was a woman who came to Bath from France with a recipe for a brioche-like bun that she perfected and has been passed down through the centuries. The house she ran a an eatery was already 200 years old when she lived there.

My wife, Ruth, and I each tried a different sweet bunn – mine was covered in chocolate butter. They looked so good and we were so hungry, it didn’t occur to us to take photos of them until we were done!

There’s a small museum and some artifacts that were found on a dig at the site, which has been occupied and adapted over the years. Many of the lower levels of buildings in Bath that are basements now were ground level floors hundreds of years ago.

Sally-Lund_02 — *The house, like much of old Bath, is made of the same local yellow stone as the abbey.*

After our brunch, we walked down to Pulteney Bridge, a stone bridge over the Rive Avon with shops all along the bridge itself. In fact, if you didn’t know you were on a bridge, it would just look like another quaint, if slightly narrow, street.

Pulteney_Bridge_01 — *Pulteney Bridge is one of a handful world-wide to have shops across it’s whole length.*

Bath is so named because the Romans took advantage of the local hot springs to build spas and bath houses. Although in ruins by the 5th Century, the springs were “rediscovered” and back in use as early as the 12th Century. The springs and the Roman ruins have preserved and are now housed in 18th century neoclassical buildings.

Roman_Baths_01 — *The baths of Bath are located here. Entrance for a fee.*

Roman_Baths_02 — *Neoclassical building made from local stone.*

We spent a bit more time walking the city, browsing the shops and enjoying some green spaces. As I mentioned before, many of the buildings in the older section of the city are made of the local stone (called Bath stone, as you might imagine). It does make for a warm, unified look.

I noticed tall walls extending past the roof-lines of some of the building rows, topped with chimneys. Ruth told us these are designed to prevent fires from spreading along the rows of flats. A lesson learned from a history of devastating city fires, typified by the Great London Fire of 1666. Catastrophic fires were known in most cities until safety and building codes, as well as firefighting practices and equipment developed enough to prevent and combat them.

Bath_stone — *Note the multiple chimneys, showing how many fireplaces and living spaces these buildings originally had.*

On a high point overlooking the city is a long, curved row of apartments called The Royal Crescent, partly enclosing a lawn on which many people were catching the sun or reading books.

Bath_The-Crescent — *The Royal Crescent, posh apartments.*

Bath is a lovely city and we had a good sampling of its history and geography.

UK 2019 Day 4: Owl Be Home For Christmas

Posted June 20, 2019

May 12, 2019

We kept our schedule as flexible as possible for this trip, making many decisions on where to go and what to see the evening beforehand. We tried to make the trip a mix of tourist destinations and “local” living, with varying degrees of success.

One event we did schedule in advance was an owl encounter at the North Somerset Bird of Prey Centre [map]. This facility rescues animals in need or abandoned with a focus (as its name suggests) on birds of prey. They also have a selection of mammals and other animals.

Our encounter included close-up looks and interaction with five different owl species, some local to the area, some not. I’ve loved owls since I was a young child, and my wife and I both have a soft spot for raptors in general.

All the owls loved having their breast feathers stroked and were generally well behaved and in excellent health. These birds were rescued or rehabilitated and certainly have found a happy home at the Centre. Here are the owls we met, with lots of bonus shots of yours truly (a rare enough thing for this blog)!

Dottie_01 — *Little Owls are Britain’s smallest owl. I was surprised to find out they are an introduced species (19th century).*

Cherish_01 — *Cherish is a Eurasian/North American Barn Owl. These lineages are considered conspecific, so she is not a genetic hybrid in the usual sense.*

Cerberus_01 — *Cerberus is a Tawny Owl.*

Cerberus_05 — *Close up of Cerberus, showing his facial disk and dark eyes, both adaptations for night hunting.*

Pedro_01 — *This is Pedro, a Mexican Tawny Owl. He also liked having the back of his head scratched.*

Hercules_01 — *Hercules, the aptly named Eurasian Eagle-Owl.*

Hercules_03 — *There is something almost magical about holding an owl on your arm.*

Hercules_04 — *Hercules’ orange eyes are adapted for crepuscular (dawn and dusk) hunting.*

Hercules_05 — *Hercules’ talons are about the span of a person’s hand.*

After we all got to hold and interact with the owls, we each took part in a flight/hunt demonstration. Cherish was held by a volunteer on a perch a few dozen yards away, and we each held a piece of chicken in one hand and our other, gloved hand out as a perch. Cherish would then quickly fly and swoop up to take the chicken. This happened so fast that neither of us had an opportunity to get our cameras or phones out for a shot! Darn…

Bonus: Christmas Dinner at the Thomas’

When we returned home we had a lovely Christmas dinner with Ruth’s parents, Paula and Eric, in their downstairs flat. We had turkey (smoked on Darrens’ Kamado grill), roasted potatoes, Brussels sprouts and more. We finished with Christmas Pudding for desert and pulled open Christmas Crackers. It was festive and fun, and I can’t say enough how generous, sweet, and kind Eric and Paula are to have done this for us. They had also decorated the entrance to the house with the Union Flag and American Flag to welcome us.

Christmas_in_May — *Christmas in May (photo courtesy of Paula Thomas)*

Flags — *A warm welcome (photo courtesy of Paula Thomas).*

A full stomach and a full spirit, what more can one ask for?

UK 2019 Day 3: Redcatch Park, SS Great Britain, Clifton Observatory

Posted June 17, 2019

May 11, 2019

I had forgotten how much longer higher latitude days are in Spring. Even before the March Equinox arrives, the long twilights running up to dawn and lingering after sunset make for extended daylight. I was up early on our third day to checkout the local park.

Redcatch Park [map] is just a quick walk away from our flat (I’ve always wanted to say that! A flat!) amid proper football fields, a community center, a community garden, some tennis courts, and a playground. It’s a lovely patch of open space with copses of trees here and there, with nearby houses and gardens (what we’d call back yards, sort of, here in the USA).

As I walked to the park, Bristol’s urban dawn chorus was in full swing, with wood-pigeons, robins, blackbirds, chiffchaffs, and tits all singing and calling. I was happy to encounter most of these species in my walk through the park.

eurasian-blackbird — *Eurasian Blackbirds are in the thrush family – similar to our American Robins. They have a melodious, flute like song. This male was singing and defending territory from other males.*

It didn’t take long after I arrived for people to start entering the park to walk or play with their dogs. Most were on leashes, and those that were not seemed to ignore the birds and the birds, no doubt used to the canine interruptions, gave the canines a slightly wide berth but generally went about their business.

Dunnock_01 — *This tiny brown bird is a Dunnock. It was hard to get one framed up and standing still for any length of time.*

As the sun grew stronger and the temperature rose up from 4 Celsius (40 degrees Fahrenheit) more of the smaller birds became active, including Great, Blue, and Long-tailed Tits, and House Sparrows. Robins were already singing their beautiful thrush-like songs. Common Chaffinches started singing from treetops, the males’ rosy-chestnut plumage brilliant in the sun.

Common-Chaffinch_01 — *A male Common Chaffinch atop an evergreen tree. His song dominated the park for a while.*

I got some looks at birds I couldn’t immediately identify, but determined later to be Black Redstarts (a bird in the same taxonomic family as the European Robin). There were also Eurasian Jays, Common Starlings, and Carrion Crows flying or walking about the park.

european-robin — *Another European Robin, watching me as I watched him.*

It seemed to me most of the birds were foraging – probably for nestlings or fledglings – or defending territory. This makes sense, given the time of year. The only courtship behavior I saw was between two Common Wood-Pigeons.

common-wood-pigeon-couple — *A Common Wood-Pigeon couple, nuzzling and grooming each other.*

I made my exit and walked back to the flat to get ready for the day’s further adventures in and around Bristol.

The eBird list for Redcatch Park: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S56112419

I went back to the flat to meet with the others for our next day around Bristol. This time our focus was at the harbor and in particular to see an important piece of maritime and engineering history: The SS Great Britain.

It’s hard to underestimate the importance of this ship. It was the first large ocean liner and the first to be powered by a propeller (or ‘screw’) as opposed to paddles, as had been the case before. This ship performed many functions over the years after it’s luxury cruising days were over. Perhaps one of its most important was to help lay the first transatlantic telegraph cables.

ss-Great-Britain_01

Designed by engineering genius (and by many accounts, jerk boss) I. K. Brunel, the ship is a linchpin in the design history of maritime transportation and the turning point for how ocean travel would progress from that point. You can read about her history at the official SS Great Britain website.

The ship, abandoned and scuttled on the Falkland Islands was recovered, towed back to Bristol, and restored and rebuilt more or less to its days as an ocean liner. Important original pieces of the ship – including hull plates, rivets, railings, and masts – are cataloged and stored in the adjacent museum.

ss-Great-Britain_06 — *SS Great Britain sits in a dry dock originally built in the 1830s.*

A clever bit of engineering makes the ship seem to float in water up to its waterline, but this is an illusion. Several centimeters of water is sandwiched between two layers of glass plate. This boundary is actually part of the preservation method for the ship’s hull.

On the outside, the ship’s detail are exquisitely recreated, including the stern decorations, and even the English coat of arms with unicorn and lion. “God And My Right” had been the English monarch’s motto since probably the 12th century. It signified the King (or Queen’s) divine right to govern.

ss-Great-Britain_02 — *Windows and decorations a the top of the stern, just above the nameplate.*

ss-Great-Britain_03 — *A goose (I think) over a cornucopia and some curtain effects.*

ss-Great-Britain_04 — *Lion, with the first half of the English coat of arms motto, “God And…”*

ss-Great-Britain_05 — *Close up of the lion. Those are some serious canine teeth!*

ss-Great-Britain_08 — *Second half of the motto, “…My Right”. I think it’s ironic that “My Right” is on the port, or left, side of the ship’s prow.*

Above decks, the ship is colorful has several access points to the cabins and stateroom below. I didn’t get any photos belowdecks, though. I think I was too busy experiencing the ship and kind of forgot about my camera! Sorry!

ss-Great-Britain_17 — *Even though the ss Great Britain is a steamship, like most early vessels of the type, it had supplemental sails. The rigging is simpler than that found in earlier sailing vessels.*

ss-Great-Britain_19 — *The masts were collapsible and could fold up flat on deck.*

Great Britain is a long ship, and quite narrow in its cross-section. This was done on purpose to reduce drag and increase efficiency of the propeller drive.

ss-Great-Britain_16 — *View from inside the dry dock looking at the front of the ship. The silver cylinders along the keel are air blowers that put warm, dry air into the space to stop the iron hull from further corrosion.*

Inside the dry dock, the environment is controlled to stem corrosion of the mostly original iron hull plating. In addition to “natural” rust and corrosion, there are a series of holes along the hull that were made to sink the ship in the 1930s.

ss-Great-Britain_10 — *Corrosion on the original hull plating.*

The ship was eventually returned to Bristol in 1970 for conservation and restoration. The dry dock dehumidifier chamber is a marvel itself, both functional below and aesthetic above.

ss-Great-Britain_14 — *Looking up at the glass plate with the water rippling along the ship’s waterline.*

The ship was eventually converted to use sails as well, and a winch system was developed to raise and lower the propeller, rudder, and part of the shaft out of the water. That assembly is in the museum building were it is slowly losing a battle against corrosion (the air is not optimal for either the iron fittings or the wooden rudder).

ss-Great-Britain_12 — *Replica propeller to Brunel’s original design.*

The ship and museum are a definite “don’t miss” if you ever come to Bristol or SW England. The exhibits were top notch, and the ship itself is so accessible and present. It seems right at home in Bristol Harbour.

After lunch and a quick drive to the nearby Clifton section of the city to view the Avon Gorge and the suspension bridge that Brunel designed in the 1830s (but wasn’t completed until over 30 years later, with some changes).

Avon-Gorge_01 — Part of the Clifton Suspension Bridge over the River Avon. The Avon is part of the Bristol Channel which has the 2nd highest tidal range in the world. You can see the expansive mudflats along the banks when the tide is out.

Clifton-Suspension-Bridge — *A full view of the bridge.*

The gorge is beautiful, with dramatic cliffs and forested hillsides. There is evidence of old landslides, and the cars and roads below are dwarfed in scale.

Avon-Gorge_02 — *Old landslide scours, likely from hundreds of years ago.*

The area atop the cliffs has a large green-space and people were sitting and laying in the relatively warm sunlight. Birds were happily mingling with the people, mostly Eurasian Jackdaws. A few of the more shy Eurasian Magpies stayed closer to the trees.

eurasian-magpie — *The slight fluffiness on the side of this Eurasian Magpie probably means this is a recent fledgling.*

A short drive and a walk away is the Clifton Observatory [map]. This building houses a camera obscura that renders a 360 degree view of the surrounding landscape onto a central viewing table.

Beneath the observatory is a long stairway down part of a cave system that opens up on the side of the cliff, about mid-way. A balcony has been constructed to give brave souls an amazing view of the bridge and gorge.

Giants-Cave — *Dubbed the Giants’ Cave (nominally St. Vincent’s Cave), the open-grate floor can be intimidating for some.*

Clifton-Suspension-Bridge_closer — *A closer view of the Clifton Suspension Bridge from the Giants’ Cave balcony.*

After the observatory and cave we drove around Bristol a little and then made our way back to the flat and settled in for the evening, ready for more adventures.

UK 2019 Day 2: Around Bristol

Posted June 16, 2019

May 10, 2019

Our first full day in England started with slightly better weather – only a few sprinkles and some Sun amid the clouds. It made for a good walking day around the center of Bristol.

ruth-and-darrens-flat — *Ruth and Darren’s (upstairs) and Ruth’s parents’ (downstairs) home in the Knowle section of Bristol.*

Darren dropped Ruth, my wife, and I off not too far from Cabot Tower, which sits at the top of Brandon Hill Park [map]. Completed in 1898 to commemorate John Cabot’s expedition to North America in 1497, the tower has over 100 narrow steps. For long-time Florida residents like us, the steep walk to the tower up Brandon Hill and then the steps was quite a trial by fire to the type of walking we’d be doing for much of our visit.

Cabot-Tower_01 — *Cabot Tower is the centerpiece of a lovely formal garden atop Brandon Hill.*

The view from the top level of the tower afforded lovely views of Bristol, including some places we’d visit either later that day or later in our visit.

Bristol-Cathedral_from_Cabot-Tower — *Bristol Cathedral*

Wills-Memorial-Tower_from_Cabot-Tower — *Wills Memorial Tower, University of Bristol*

Christ-Church_Clifton_from_Cabot-Tower — *Christ Church, Clifton*

The garden provides some good habitat for area wildlife, so it was not surprise to see and hear Eurasian Blackbirds and European Robins singing, and see a number of Common Wood-Pigeons and Carrion Crows flying around the tower.

European-Robin_01 — *European Robins were found just about everywhere we went, urban or rural. City birds, like this one, are more approachable than their shier, country cousins.*

Carrion-Crow — *One of several Carrion Crows in the park. These are most similar to our American and Fish Crows.*

Cabot-Tower_02 — *Another view of Cabot Tower and the beautiful gardens.*

We made our way down into the city below, including the storefronts along Park Street and surrounding areas. The University of Bristol is near this area, and there were many students walking, biking, and even skateboarding. The make up of that part of Bristol paints a dynamic scene, with old and new elements blended together.

Wills-Memorial-Tower_University-of-Bristol — *Impressive Wills Memorial Tower is part of the University of Bristol.*

Bristol is the home to street artist Bansky, and his art is found in several places in the city. One work was being shown by a guide to a group of Spanish language tourists who were overjoyed to be seeing and taking photographs of it. You can see it’s been “commented” upon a few times, too.

Banksy_01 — *Original Banksy, vandalized! Tribute or sacrilege; you decide!*

Eventually we walked up to Bristol Cathedral, one of many Gothic church buildings we saw on this trip. Also like many large Gothic buildings, it was built over many years, with the bulk of the church constructed in the 14th and 15th centuries. Here’s a selection of photos from this lovely church.

Bristol-Cathedral_01 — *Bristol Cathedral across College Green.*

Bristol-Cathedral_02 — *Bristol Cathedral interior.*

Bristol-Cathedral_03 — *Most of the original stained glass was destroyed either during the Reformation or much later from bombing during the second world war.*

Bristol-Cathedral_04 — *Ribbed vaults inside Bristol Cathedral.*

Bristol-Cathedral_05 — *The interior was comfortably lit, with windows taking up a large percentage of the wall area.*

Bristol-Cathedral_06

Bristol-Cathedral_07_composite — This composite of the inside of Bristol Cathedral shows the immense – and deliberate – scale of Medieval architecture and the Church’s expectation of making you feel the majesty of God (and the Church).

Bristol-Cathedral_08 — *The exterior of Bristol Cathedral with simple buttresses.*

There is so much to see in the cathedral, the above is just a small sample. Feel free to explore more about it, perhaps starting with these sites:

Opposite from the cathedral, on the other side of College Green is the Bristol City Council building which had these spectacular golden 18th century unicorns adorning each roof end.

Walking east, we passed a statue of Queen Victoria on our way to the northern end of the waterfront of Bristol Harbor on our way toward Queen Square.

Just about anywhere you look in the center of Bristol, there is spectacular architecture. Walking toward Queen Square I caught a glimpse of this ornate tower, which it turns out belongs to St. Stephen’s, the Church of England parish for Bristol

unknown-tower — *The ornate tower of St. Stephen’s Church is from the 15th Century. In an oft repeated history of churches in England, it was built on the site of an 11th Century church.*

The streets around Bristol (and many English cities) are narrow, but this close spacing seems endearing to many American eyes. Almost quaint.

Bristol-streets_02 — *A typical Bristol street scene. That orange building (third in from the right) is the pub where our host friends met each other on their first date!*

Ruth told us that Queen Square is the only square square in a major city in Europe. I don’t know if that’s strictly true, but you can look on the map and see how square this square compares to other squares.

I thought it was ironic that the statue at the center of Queen Square is actually of King William III, mounted on his horse. The history of Queen Square is quite telling, in that it was all but abandoned after the 1831 Bristol Riots as the more affluent Bristolians moved to Clifton. The square was nearly obliterated, with rail and road traffic crossing right through its heart. It was eventually restored in the 1990s and is now a beautiful and well used park.

Queens-Square — *A wide gravel path among the trees at Queen Square.*

We wound down the afternoon walking past the Old Vic Theatre and some other historic buildings near the River Avon.

It was a fun and exhausting day, and my knees and feet tried to complain, but there was so much to see and I was too busy having an amazing time.

After dinner is was off to bed and dreams for day 3.

UK 2019 Day 1: Stonehenge, White Horse

Posted June 15, 2019

May 9, 2019

My wife and I, after a couple of years of saving and a lot of planning, made a trip to Bristol, England to stay with friends for a couple of weeks. They took vacation (“holiday”) too, and we spent a lovely, if hard paced time, around southwestern England and Wales.

Staying at their flat and having them drive us around (2000 miles!) saved us money, allowing us to make this trip of a lifetime. Thank you Ruth and Darren, we can’t say enough about your generosity and kindness.

After flying to Gatwick, and feeling only a little bit jet-lagged, we stopped at Stonehenge [map] on our way to Bristol. It was almost surreal after reading and seeing so much about this ancient site, to actually be there. Buses take groups of visitors to the site from the nearby visitor center every few minutes. Even though one can no longer walk among the stones, the footpath allows for close views, and one can walk around the ditch that encloses the site on all sides.

stonehenge01 — *Face to face with an icon of history. Stonehenge at last!*

The weather was cold, windy, and rainy – a proper English welcome – but the awe and delight at being there did not dampen our spirits. It’s hard to put into words, but the site is impressive yet somehow appropriately scaled. One can tell it took a monumental effort to move these stones in place, but somehow it seems easy to imagine humans building and using the site.

stonehenge04 — The stones at Stonehenge are weathered and lichen covered. There is evidence of some vandalism, going back hundreds of years. That the site remains so intact after over 4000 years is a testament to the toughness of the stone and the skill with which is was created.

Although it is severely weathered and aged, one can still marvel at the skill evident in crafting these giant stones and the engineering that went into the design. The lintel stones don’t just lie on top of the uprights, but are fitted using a mortise and tenon design.

stonehenge03 — *The top of an upright sarsen stone showing a tenon that would have fitted into a mortise hole in a lintel stone.*

This trip was primarily for seeing the England our friends live in. While I had some bird outings planned, almost every bird I would see even incidentally would be a life bird for me. Three of the five resident corvid species were evident at Stonehenge: Rooks, Eurasian Jackdaws, and Carrion Crows.

rooks01 — *Rooks have distinctive bills and facial skin, but are otherwise similar to most corvid (crow) species – conspicuous, gregarious, and intelligent.*

I was also pleasantly surprised as a boldly patterned black and white bird landing right among the feet of a group of Japanese tourists. The White Wagtail is fairly common in Britain (I saw them in many places on this trip), but was a delight to see. This particular bird is probably used to handouts or getting food that people drop while marveling at Stonehenge.

As we rounded the henge and faced into the wind and rain, it did become a bit uncomfortable, so we made our way to where the bus would take us back to the visitor center. There are additional historical exhibits there and (of course) a gift shop. But it was all very respectful of this ancient site. We saw a few barrows in the surrounding fields and nearby fields of bright yellow rapeseed.

We then drove through the countryside, in and out of rain showers, to Westbury – about mid way to Bristol – to see another large landmark. The Westbury White Horse [map].

This large cliff-side carving dates from the 1600s. Several monuments of this type are known throughout Britain, at least one from late Bronze Age. We first went to the top of the cliff to see it from that vantage point. From above, I watched a Eurasian Hobby (a falcon) hunting below and a Skylark try to fly against the wind. The wind howling up the cliff face was biting and incessant, but the views were spectacular!

white-horse01 — *The horse from the cliff top.*

white-horse02 — *The view from beside the horse looking down on the countryside.*

The horse is easily visible from the valley floor for miles. At one lower vantage-point I did get my first Great Tits and European Robin, but the horse was the star of the show, for sure.

white-horse03 — *I don’t know who was living in the valley at the time, but imagine coming through for the first time or after some time away, and seeing this!*

From this vantage-point we got back on the road and on to Bristol, where we unpacked and settled in for the next two weeks. I’ll post more of our trip through the weekend and next week.

Catching Up Is Hard To Do: Part 2

June 8, 2019

The title of this and the previous blog proved to be much more prophetic than I dreamed! It’s been a long hiatus, brought on by a conspiracy of circumstances. Let’s close out the previous year before we delve into some new and exciting adventures!

Toward the end of last year, as I was planning to meet with Annie and getting ready for another holiday season, I got an invitation from Mitchell Harris to help lead a team for the Cocoa Christmas Bird Count! This was exciting for me, and it felt good that someone with the birding caliber of Mitchell Harris wanted me to help out.

I assembled a team – Camille, Sarah, and Bella – and got my maps and lists organized. The dry run Camille and I did with Mitchell beforehand helped hone our plans and we were more than ready for the CBC day.

A shopping mall seen across a still pond. — *The Cocoa CBC circle includes some build up areas, like the Merritt Square Mall, but park space is still often close by.*

Our section of the CBC circle was mainly urban and high-density suburban, with a few parks. Getting the timing right for the birds we wanted to “get” was a little tricky, but we managed to work out a reasonable route with time enough to spend at high-probability sites like Rotary Park, Veteran’s Park, and a roadside rookery. The Merritt Island Rookery had so many hundreds of birds streaming in as the sun set, it was one part comical and one part awe inspiring. Bella was cracking herself up trying to call in the flocks upon flocks of species coming in, as I struggled to keep up the count on eBird!

A Savannah Sparrow perching among sparse Mangrove leaves. — *I didn’t have a lot of opportunities to take photos, but I thought this Savannah Sparrow posed nicely!*

I’ll post the checklists below. Feel free to map out where we went and how we did.

Rotary Park at Merritt Island (at dawn):
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50673168

Courtenay Pkwy including vacant lots:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50674223
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50674280
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50674354
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50674560

Merritt Square Mall:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50674624

Veterans’ Park:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50677314

Merritt Island Airport:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50678160

Merritt Island Causeway:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50678299

Crooked Mile Road:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50680287

Georgiana Cemetery:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50681013

Rotary Park at Merritt Island (afternoon):
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50683421

Osteen Park:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50683421

Waterway Park:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50686162

Kenzel Court:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50686421

Sawyer Avenue:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50687824

Abandoned Development, Tropical Trail:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50688634

Lewis Carroll Avenue:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50690381

Merritt Island Rookery:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50691754

Our final count was 78 species for our section. The final circle count was 145 species. Not bad. It was an exhausting day, but we managed to work well together, help out with a long running (119 years!) bird census, and see parts of the county I’d not had an opportunity to visit.

Catching Up Is Hard To Do: Part 1

December 13, 2018

Hello friends! It’s been a while since my last post, so I’ll try to catch us up! Perhaps the most interesting happening (at least in my birding world) was the sighting of an American Flamingo in Brevard County in late October . The overall status of the American Flamingo in Florida is still being debated, but whatever fruits that argument bears doesn’t alter how rare a wild flamingo is for the Space Coast. But of course, that’s the real question, isn’t it? Where did this bird come from? It was non banded, but that’s hardly a foolproof indication of a wild bird. It’s possible it was stirred up from our southern neighbors by Hurricane Harvey and was taking an extended tour, or maybe someone had it as a “pet’ and “lost” it. There’s no way to know.

This severely cropped photo was the best shot I could get of the distant bird (it was seen much closer by others, but seemed to prefer to feed well away from the road to Playalinda in the afternoons it was with us).

An American Flamingo stands far away against a distant backdrop of mangrove trees in shallow water. — *Not a lawn ornament.*

In any case, it was a good reason to get out with Sarah and Bella Muro again and find this bird, as well as checking out part of the Buck Lake Conservation Area [map] with them. The birding was a little light, but we had a few good looks at the recently arrived Eastern Phoebes and a few warblers sprinkled in for good measure.

An Eastern Phoebe perched on a branch surrounded by spare foliage. — *Eastern Phoebes started arriving in October and will be our guests until Spring.*

Here’s our Buck Lake eBird list (I’ll spare you the Merritt Island lists – the American Flamingo was the star of that show):
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S49694824

There was little time to rest before the Fall Florida Ornithological Society (FOS) meeting in Davie, FL the first weekend in November. I’d been looking forward to the weekend for months.

The sessions and keynotes were good, and it is always great to catch up with birding friends I haven’t seen in a while. I didn’t take too many photos, but the field trips were pretty good. Dave Goodwin, Jim Eager, Charlie Fisher, and I went out on our own on Saturday to Evergreen Cemetery in Fort Lauderdale [map]. We were hoping for some late migrants, but those were few and far between.

Wide shot of a cemetery with a large tree on the right side. There are a few Muscovy ducks wandering among the graves. — *Evergreen Cemetery has some mature trees and is an important green space in the middle of urban south Florida.*

You can see our eBird list below:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S49640385

From there we went to Markham Park [map], which borders the Everglades. We were hoping for Spot-breasted Orioles, but after getting distracted at the canal overlooking the Everglades, we spent most of our time there, scanning the grasses for Grey-headed Swamphens and Purple Gallinules. We got a distant but long look at a White-tailed Kite, too.

The golden and green grasses of the Everglades, with some patches of open water, stretch out to the horizon under mostly overcast skies. Powerlines cross the foreground between the horizon and top of the photo. — *The vast expanse of the Everglades never ceases to impress, even with the closeness of the power lines and a major highway (off to the left).*

The next day, I went to the soon-to-open Fran Reich Preserve [map], in Palm Beach County. It borders the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge. They are separated by a canal and levee system, preventing any meaningful ecological continuity, however. Primarily scrub and open habitat, the main draw was the hope of some early wintering sparrows. It took some careful stalking, but eventually we managed to flush some Lincoln’s Sparrows, of which I got a good look at one!

Perhaps the bigger stars of the show were the non-avian friends we came across! First was a magnificent Green Lynx Spider, staking out her claim on a goldenrod plant (Solidago stricta, according to botanophiles).

A Green Lynx Spider sits, head pointing down, on a yellow flowering plant. A person's lower leg and athletic shoe are slightly out of focus in the background. — *Lynx spiders are good at insect control and seldom bite people. She probably has spent her whole life on this one plant.*

The biggest oohs and aahs, particularly from the students we had along with us, were directed at a praying mantis. It was comfortable enough with being handled, that it even stopped to groom it’s legs, relatively unperturbed by all the humans crowding around.

praying-mantis-cleaning — *Some of the students speculated that this was a female praying mantis, given it’s slightly distended abdomen, possibly indicating eggs developing inside.*

The remainder of the FOS meeting was informative and entertaining, but it was good to get back home after a weekend away.

Later in November, I finally got to meet up with my friend Annie Otto and hike and bird one of her favorite places, Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve (GTMNERR, or “Guana”) [map]. It was a beautiful day, if a bit windy (although the trees protected us from the brunt of the gusts).

Wooded trail in the foreground curving to the left with some mixed deciduous and coniferous trees in the middle and background. — *The climate and land cover at Guana is just sufficiently different from east-central Florida to make for a good change of scenery.*

The bird of the day had to be the Yellow-rumped Warblers, which had arrived with succeeding cold front in the previous weeks. Dozens of them would seemingly fall out of the sky into the trees, along with Ruby-crowned Kinglets, some Eastern Phoebes and even some late season migrants, like Blackburnian, Black-throated Blue, and Cape May Warblers.

Annie is the manager of the Tomoka Marsh Aquatic Preserve, and was fun to talk to about the area and some of her personal history as a conservationist and outdoors enthusiast.

Here’s our e-bird list:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S49867781

Just before my adventure with Annie, I did get an e-mail from Mitchell Harris, and that will be the focus of the start of Part 2!

Headed Back Down South

September 28, 2018

The month of September is waning, and the best chance for songbird migration is ramping up. During this continuing lull (it has still been HOT), it seemed like a good opportunity to scamper to Miami and try to get a few species that are endemic or established there that we generally can’t find elsewhere.

I met up with Camille and we set out before sunrise to get to our targets. We were hoping for two species, both that have become sort of “nemesis birds” for both of us: the Mangrove Cuckoo and White-crowned Pigeon.

Our first destination was Black Point Park and Marina [map], where some Mangrove Cuckoos had been seen recently. This species is notoriously secretive, and though this time of year isn’t necessarily the best time, having a recent sighting in an accessible hotspot made it irresistible to attempt.

a row of fishing and pleasure boats in a marina on calm water with a blue sky. — *It was a clear and beautiful morning at the marina.*

Unfortunately for our information regarding the birds’ location was a bit sketchy, and being unfamiliar with the area, we wandered a bit before finding the right spot. That meant the morning had worn on quite a bit. While we did see other birds, we never got so much as a hint of Mangrove Cuckoos.

A Loggerhead Shrike sits perched, facing left, among the leaves of a mangrove tree. — *Not a cuckoo, but it’s always nice to see Loggerhead Shrikes.*

In our wanderings around the marina, we took a paved path, closed to vehicles, that paralleled a canal. There were several heron and egret species, including several young Yellow-crowned Night Herons, like the one below. Like their cousins, the Black-crowned Night Herons, this species’ young are brown and streaked, which helps keep them camoflagued in the grasses and other vegetation near their nests. These birds were fledged, and will soon molt into their gray and black adult plumage.

An immature Yellow-crowned Night Heron stands, facing right, on top of a wooden post (only the very top of which is in view) with an out-of-focus background of green leaves. — *Yellow-crowned Night Herons are less stocky than the Black-crowned, with a yellowish or orange eye, instead of red.*

Our first migrant of the day was a lone American Redstart in some trees near a small bridge, by a flood control structure. The same area had a huge amount of Black Vultures both on the ground and swirling above in a large kettle, probably due in part to the row of nearby dumpsters.

An adult male American Restart, perched in a mangrove tree, facing left. It is partly obscured by branches. — *American Redstarts should become more numerous across the region in the coming weeks.*

By the time we found the (likely) actual spot the cuckoos had been seen, the morning had well worn on, and it was getting hot. We hung around for a few minutes but to no avail.

We broke for lunch before making our way to the Baptist Hospital of Miami [map] and cruised around its grounds for any parrots – there were none – before heading into the Kendall area neighborhoods to find White-crowned Pigeons.

Predictably, bird activity was low in the heat of the day, but we did get a few pockets of birds as we worked westward through and past some parks and ball fields. We finally ended up at Indian Hammocks Park [map].

As we drove through the entrance and into the park, a female Scarlet Tanager flew into a tree on the right side of the car, and some small birds could be seen and heard in the tree tops. Camille pulled us over and we got out and scanned the vicinity, taking note of some Blue-grey Gnatcatchers and Red-bellied Woodpeckers. After a few more minutes, Camille drove to park the car while I stayed to investigate (this turned out to be somewhat unfortunate, as I left my camera in the car).

I tracked down a Yellow-throated Warbler and some more gnatcatchers before checking out the family of Red-bellied Woodpeckers, further from the entry road. Some movement high in a tree, under some dense canopy caught my eye: a White-crowned Pigeon! Happily, it stuck around (and another joined it in the same tree) until Camille made it back from the parking lot. This species has given us both fits over the past few years. It’s not uncommon, and any eBird search for it results in hotspots and personal spots peppered all across the Miami area with sightings, but until then the bird had eluded us.

After some high-fives, a couple of lifer dances, and a quick look at a Baltimore Oriole, we made our way further west to see if we could find the Zenaida Dove (and some shorebirds) reported over the previous week in some agricultural fields (known as the “West Kendall Agricultural Area” [map]).

Zenaida Doves are Caribbean endemics; they are rare vagrants to south Florida (though their similarity to Mourning Doves might cause some to have been missed in suburban settings). The bird hadn’t been reported for a couple of days, but it was worth our while to check it out. The only shorebirds in attendance were a great many Killdeer and several Least Sandpipers probing some muddy puddles for whatever morsels they could find.

Two Least Sandpipers, probing their bills in dirty water as they wade through water a couple of inches deep. — *Some birds are quite flexible in finding food. These Least Sandpipers were feeding in a dirty puddle in very disturbed sand and dirt near a small airport, adjacent to some agricultural land.*

There were a few Mourning Doves present, but as we walked over to the farthest “puddle” in the immediate area, a slightly redder dove, with white in its wings, was flushed up and quickly flew to the west – a Zenaida Dove! I was able to follow it a ways in my binoculars, getting a very good look. Unfortunately, Camille’s attention had been elsewhere and she never got a good look. We scanned for a while longer, and even after a Killdeer-filled ride further into the agricultural land and back, the dove was never relocated.

From there, it was off to the last stop of the day: the “Tamarac Exotic Duck Pond” in Palm Beach County [map].

For some reason, most of the ducks, geese, and swans found on this urban pond are countable on eBird, though not for ABA lists. It fairly obvious these birds were introduced, but they are still beautiful and were a treat for the end of the day. Here are a few of the birds we saw.

A male Mandarin Duck, on the water swimming, facing right. — *There was one male Mandarin Duck that seemed to be paired up with a female Wood Duck (who was largely ignoring the male Wood Duck).*

A Red-crested Pochard swims alongside a Redhead on the water, both facing left. The pochard is in the foreground. — *A Red-crested Pochard (foreground) with a more mundane Redhead (background) it was seemingly paired up with.*

A White-cheeked pintail, facing left, swims on the water in full sun. — *White-cheeked Pintail*

A Ruddy Shelduck, standing in grass with some tree roots behind it. The bird is facing right. — *A Ruddy Shelduck on the bank of an urban water retention pond. It was hanging out with some Egyptian Geese.*

With the sun starting to sink low, we decided to end the day and head home. Getting several lifers (including the ducks) made for an exciting day.

Here are the eBird lists for our adventure:

Black Point Marina and Park (2 lists):
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S48690065
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S48691763

Kendall-Baptist Hospital Area:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S48694878

K-Land Park:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S48695139

Kendall Indian Hammocks Park:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S48696682

West Kendall Agricultural Area:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S48698554

Tamarac Exotic Duck Pond:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S48702014

Hopefully this coming weekend will see some local areas “heat up” with migrants as the days cool down (again, hopefully)!

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