Red-shouldered Hawk - by Deb Peterson
Blog Dec 04, 2019

Field Trip Report 12/3/2019 Seaboard Grade

Trip Report – Seaboard Grade 12/03/2019
By Phyllis Cady

Tree Swallows fly over the march - by Deb Peterson
Tree Swallows fly over the march – by Deb Peterson
Red-shouldered Hawk - by Deb Peterson
Red-shouldered Hawk – by Deb Peterson

It turned out to be a beautiful day, cool but sunny.  Twelve hardy birders showed up dressed warmly with jackets and hats, but we shed our coats as the day warmed up.  Seaboard Grade is in the Babcock-Webb Wildlife Management Area and intersects with Tucker’s Grade road.  As we started out down the road it was very quiet and we only saw a few Blue Jays, a berry eating Flicker, and a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.  As it warmed up the pines and oaks along the road were filled with Warblers, Robins, Woodpeckers, Gnat-catchers, Swamp sparrows, and Wrens.  The canals along the road had Anhingas, Night-herons, Common Yellowthroats and a watchful alligator.  By the time we got to the marsh area there were hundreds of Tree Swallows flying low over the marsh grasses.  There were Sandhill Cranes nesting and a Northern Harrier was gliding low over the marsh in the sunshine.

Little Blue Herons flew over, a Boat-tailed Grackle showed his iridescent colors in the sunlight, and it was hard to tear ourselves away from that scene and head back to the cars.  Several continued on down the road and added a Hairy Woodpecker and a Carolina Wren to our list but the rest of us turned back.  We added a Limpkin and a Red-shouldered Hawk on the drive back to the pay station and had a total of 47 species!  This was the highest count I have had on a PRAS Walkabout anywhere… it must have been the excellent birders that joined us today.  Thanks to everyone who came out for this walk.  Photos by Deb Peterson.

Bird list follows:

  • Anhinga
  • Blackbird, Red-winged
  • Cardinal, Northern
  • Catbird, Gray
  • Cormorant, Double Crested
  • Crane, Sandhill
  • Eagle, Bald
  • Egret, Great
  • Flicker, Northern
  • Gallinule, Common
  • Gnatcatcher, Blue-gray
  • Grackle, Boat-tailed
  • Grackle, Common
  • Grebe, Pied-billed
  • Harrier, Northern
  • Hawk, Red-shouldered
  • Heron, Great-blue
  • Heron, Green
  • Heron, Little Blue
  • Heron, Tricolored
  • Jay, Blue
  • Ibis, White
  • Killdeer
  • Kingfisher, Belted
  • Limpkin
  • Mockingbird, Northern
  • Night-heron, Black Crowned
  • Phoebe, Eastern
  • Robin, American
  • Sapsucker, Yellow bellied
  • Shrike, Loggerhead
  • Sparrow, Swamp
  • Stork, Wood
  • Swallow, Tree
  • Vireo, Blue-headed
  • Vulture, Turkey
  • Warbler, Palm
  • Warbler, Pine
  • Warbler,Yellow-rumped
  • Warbler, Yellow-throated
  • Woodpecker, Downy
  • Woodpecker, Hairy
  • Woodpecker, Red-bellied
  • Woodpecker, Pileated
  • Wren, Carolina
  • Wren, House
  • Yellow-throat, Common