What annual event can improve brain function, lift spirits, and increase physical activity while providing an immersive experience in some of Florida’s most fabulous natural environments? Here at Audubon, it is definitely Birdathon!
Audubon Florida has hosted a Birdathon event many times, but in 2022 the event soared to new heights, engaging 121 individuals in the fun of looking for birds for a great cause. Between April 8 and 14, Audubon staff and members fanned out across the state to see who could see the most, or most interesting, species.
Participants could look near or far, birding by eye or ear. While some traveled, many members took advantage of the views close to home, making lists of birds sighted during their morning commute, on lunch break, while walking the dog, or while conducting a work survey by kayak!
Some folks set out for known birding hotspots, such as Celery Field in Venice, which is a restored wetland. Audubon staffer Kylie Wilson not only got a lifer (Virginia Rail) but also several other sought-after species such as Least Bittern and Sora. Even the nature center feeders there provided some great sightings, including Yellow-headed Blackbird, White-crowned Sparrow, and a Painted Bunting pair.
Holley Short, another Audubon biologist typically at home along the coast where she can readily tell a Least from a Western Sandpiper, left the comfort of her beach and drove a few miles inland to find different species. One of her chosen birding spots was Circle B Bar Reserve, a former cattle ranch on the shore of Lake Hancock that today boasts a wide variety of plants and animals.
“I had four life birds: Blue-headed Vireo, Northern Flicker, Great Crested Flycatcher, and a Cerulean Warbler, in my backyard, of all places,” said Short, Tampa Bay Shorebird Program Manager. “I had such an amazing time!”
Meanwhile, in the Florida Panhandle, a trip to St. George Island resulted in the sighting of an Upland Sandpiper, which migrates through Florida on the way to its breeding grounds farther north. Communications Director Erika Zambello had just left the state park when she happened to see on a Facebook group that a woman had spotted this species there hours earlier. Making a u-turn, she returned to the park and the grassy shoreline.
“Lucky me - the bird was still there, foraging along the edge of the water next to a Willet,” said Zambello. “It's a beautiful bird, and I feel so grateful that I could take a few quick photographs,” she added.
In all, Birdathon participants reported seeing more than 220 species including many “life” species, like a Barn Owl for Everglades Science Center’s Peter Aronson.
“What a fitting way to end my first ever Big Day, although retrospectively, I could've planned differently and maybe added a few more birds to my list,” said Aronson. “I saw lots of different species including unique ones for our team's effort – I am proud of myself and Team Everglades Science Center,” he added.
For most, the experience was beautiful, the birding was good, and the event concluded with the feeling of being grateful for the conservation lands in our region that support these amazing species.
