I got down to St. Marks NWR dark and early Monday morning to do a late season duck survey. A fox scurried along the edge of Lighthouse Road as I drove into the refuge on a moonless night with stars showing through breaks in the low cloud cover. It was still and quiet as I slowly drove out to Stony Bayou II. Nothing was calling.
I left the car and walked down the levee, listening.. The clouds made amorphous patterns against the pale blue morning sky. Near first light, birds began to call; Wilson’s Snipe, Sora, Wood Duck, Barred Owl. There was little to the morning flight, just a few dozen White Ibis and the Wood Ducks. I walked back to the car to begin my duck survey by logging in the six Wood Ducks.
Stony Bayou II had both Green-winged and Blue-winged Teal, Hooded Mergansers and a surprise showing by the American Flamingo. Most of the ducks continue to be on Mounds Pool III where I found both teal and mergansers, but additionally had Mallard, Redhead, Northern Shoveler and seven American Black Ducks. Picnic Pond had seventy-four American Wigeon.
Duck numbers on the February survey were down about fifty percent from the January survey. I tallied 886 ducks of 14 species. That’s a pretty typical result for a late February survey. Green-winged Teal numbers are down markedly and represented half of the decrease. Mallard and Hooded Merganser numbers are down by half. The duck season is coming to a close.
February is a transitional month and marks the real beginning of Spring migration. The refuge’s winter ducks begin to clear out and other wintering birds like Osprey, Flicker and Song Sparrow begin to move. Swallow-tailed Kites are being reported around the state and one was seen at the refuge last Friday. During today’s survey I had flocks of Tree Swallows swirling low over the marshes. They’re diurnal migrants and will continue to move through for the next few months.
There are storms moving into the area for the next few days and, then, good weather for the weekend. A good time to go down to St. Marks NWR to see the last of the winter birds and a few newly-arrived Spring migrants.
Don Morrow, Tallahassee, FL