October 20, 1994
Cloudy, 70° – 75°F
Elaine and Chris, whom I met the previous week at Loxahatchee, took me air boating into the Everglades. What a fabulous way to get out there and see what the glades really are like! I suppose it’s the only way to really see parts of the Everglades that just can’t be accessed by land. This report is missing several species, because I didn’t write it up right away, but it was wonderful to have the opportunity to experience the splendor of the Everglades from the inside.
While airboating through the Phase 3 Area (northern section), we saw two ☆Merlin☆ (ID’d by Chris). A ☆Northern Harrier☆ flew past, and we also spotted a Peregrine Falcon over the glades. To round out a good day for raptors, we also saw Western Osprey.
We also saw a ☆Yellow-crowned Night Heron☆, although I didn’t get a very good look at the bird. I also had my first sightings of a couple of eastern subspecies: Snowy Egret and Red-winged Blackbird. Unsurprisingly, we also saw LOTS of American Alligator during this excursion.
Species List
Merlin (Falco columbarius), Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Nyctanassa violacea violacea), Northern Harrier (Circus hudsonius), Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus floridanus), Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias wardi), Great Egret (Ardea alba egretta), Snowy Egret (Egretta thula thula), Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura septentrionalis), Boat-tailed Grackle (Quiscalus major westoni), Western Osprey (Pandion haliaetus carolinensis), Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus anatum), American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)
Let me know what you think!