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| Bird Tour |
There were only two seats left on the weekly bird tour in Cedar Key. JC and Bev graciously let us take the trip. Our guide and captain for the day took us out to a couple of barrier islands and several large sand bars to view shorebirds of all types. It was a very chilly trip and trying to identify shorebirds was a challenge.
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| Our captain was certainly dressed for the occasion |
There are all kinds of shorebirds on this pier. Our guide named off about ten. Really...this will certainly take some time to sort out. I can now see why our birding friend, Randy, suggested to not worry about them for awhile.
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| Dunlins |
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| North Key Island |
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| Marbled Godwit |
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| Royal Terns in flight |
We stopped at a small island and got off the boat to view some of the birds hanging out. Don't all the brown birds below look the same to you? We sent a couple of photos to our guide, Michelle, after the trip and she identified six different types in this group. Really? If you enlarge the photo's below Michelle has circled and identified the different types.
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| Royal Terns |
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| Palm Warbler (look carefully...camouflaged) |
It was an interesting tour but somewhat overwhelming. Shorebirds certainly have a learning curve.
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| Oyster beds |
The next day we rented kayaks with JC and Bev at the pier (Kayak Cedar Key). There are lots of very sharp oyster beds in this area and it didn't seem prudent to go out in an inflatable kayak. The owner, Tom, is a great guy and we made reservations for two tandems one day prior to our kayak.
Launch and take out: First and A Streets next to the downtown City Marina
We paddled out to Atsena Otie Key, a barrier island managed by U.S. Fish and Wildlife. At one time it was the city of Cedar Key until a hurricane in the late 1800's destroyed most it and the few remaining homes relocated to where the town is today. We paddled around it and then "parked" our kayaks at the pier and followed a pretty trail out to a cemetery and remnants of the Faber Pencil Factory.
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| JC & Bev (paddling around Atsena Otie Key) |
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| Redhead Duck |
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| Royal Terns and maybe a Willet in the background |
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| Trail out to cemetery |
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| Cemetery |
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| Royal Terns all in a row |
Afterwards we paddled along the shore of Cedar Key and around one of the most photographed disappearing structures. I'm not sure what it was in a previous life but its interesting to look at now. In the gift shops you often see pictures of it painted by local artists. How much longer do you think it will last?
Length of paddle: approximately three miles
Difficulty: easy, recommend going just before high tide
On the way home we stopped at a fishing pier and just as we were leaving John spotted this bird way up high in a pine tree. He is amazing!
This fluffy baby is a Great Horned Owlet. His mother was nearby but was only seen briefly. Fish and Wildlife later told us the owlet was very interested in an osprey nest. We went back to see him several times. He was one BIG baby.
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| Egret hiding out in the bushes |
The island life was really enjoyable. Cedar Key has a lot to offer. Thanks for stopping by and happy trails!
Great pictures!! Sound like a good tour to take, you certainly saw a great variety of shorebirds. How very nice of your friends to defer to you. A very wise move not to take inflatables out there. We kayaked to Atsena Otie Key as well and took the trail to the graveyard and it was a dash in and dash out the mosquitos were so bad. Glad your trip was better. That owlet picture is just fabulous! What fun!!
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing tour and great photos of all those birds!
ReplyDeletegreat day tours you went on! thanks for sharing all the lovely photos! Hard to say which is my favourite!
ReplyDeleteGreat photos and blog, Ms. Herr! I've been able to identify some of the birds in the other photos, and will send them to you. Have fun in your travels!
ReplyDelete