A Jewel and an OMG!

Sandhill Crane Family Out for a Stroll

Yesterday was an incredible day from a birder's perspective.  The skies were clear, the temperatures started in the 50s and peaked in the mid 70s, and the humidity was low.  It was perfect for birding.  I decided to try a place I've never visited, so I consulted my handy-dandy Florida State Parks app and found a reference to Fort Cooper State Park in Inverness.

The Red Van arrived just as the park opened at 8:00 AM.  We birded along the entrance road for a bit.  The best bird was a Yellow-billed Cuckoo.  Then we went down to Lake Holathlikaha.  The first sight that we saw was delightful - a pair of Sandhill Cranes walking along the edge of the lake with their two kids trailing behind.  Beyond them, a Purple Gallinule walked across the vegetation finding tasty morsels for breakfast.  Further out, Common Gallinules and American Coots seemed to be taking a lazy swim around the lake.  Meanwhile, a Northern Bobwhite was calling from the tall grass along one edge of the lake.   We moved over there and it soon walked out onto the beach for just a moment, giving us a great look.  Overall it was a very peaceful and beautiful sight.

Fort Cooper State Park

Next we decided to walk along the hiking trail near the lake.  It's a 1.3 mile loop, and it's gorgeous.  Once again the warbler fallout we were hoping for eluded us, but we still had some great birds.  We had a Blackpoll Warbler, an American Redstart, and numerous Northern Parulas.  A Barred Owl landed in a nearby tree, causing a ruckus among the other birds.  We had a three-vireo day (White-eyed, Red-eyed, and Yellow-throated).  Both Red-tailed and Red-shouldered Hawks patrolled the forest and the lake's edge.  By the end of the walk we had tallied 35 species for the day.

Fort Cooper

Near the end of the trail we came across the ruins of Fort Cooper.  The Fort was built in 1836 and was used as a refuge for 380 soldiers from the First Georgia Battalion Volunteers during the Second Seminole War.   Major Mark Anthony Cooper and his men defended the fort against constant attacks from the warriors of Chief Osceola for 16 days while they awaited a relief column.  Major Cooper's command successfully defended the fort, even repelling one Seminole attempt to scale the walls.  The soldiers suffered 20 casualties but lost only one man.  Afterward, the fort was named for Major Cooper and was used as a reconnaissance post until 1849.  It was a privilege to walk those grounds and remember the brave men on both sides of that conflict.  The remaining portion of the fort walls is shown in the photo above, left. 

We had an excellent lunch at Stumpknockers in downtown Inverness and were heading home when we got "The Call."  It was one I never expected to get but, as a birder, one I had often dreamed about.  "There's a Kirtland's Warbler at San Felasco Millhopper ... I'm looking at it right now ... Hurry!"  I covered the distance from Ocala to Gainesville as quickly as possible given the speed limits and a law-abiding driver.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Kirtland's Warbler at San Felasco Hammock SP

We reached the park and saw several local birders in the parking lot.  They told us where to go and we hurried as fast as our retiree's legs could carry us.  A large group of local birders were gathered on the trail, but the bird hadn't been seen for a few minutes.  We started searching and I found it at eye level not more than 15 feet away.  Oh My God!! A Kirtland's Warbler!!  I mean ... a Kirtland's Warbler!!  This is one of the rarest birds in North America.  I expected to have to make a trip to Michigan's Upper Peninsula to see one, and there it was right in front of me.  After my jaw returned to its upright and locked position, I tried to snap a few photos.  What I got weren't very good, but they're good enough to provide evidence that I SAW A KIRTLAND'S WARBLER!!  OMG!!

Fort Cooper

Fort Cooper