The first big trip of the fall is underway with a route that will traverse 17 states from Florida to Colorado.  With a day to spend in Port Orange, FL, we made a stop at the Smyrna Dunes Park.  Happily, we picked up three new species to raise the year-to-date total to 429.  

Snowy Plovers, about the size of newborn chickens...

The aptly named, Common Tern...

And, Red Knots sporting their not so red fall plumage.

We also found some Black Skimmers that were eager to pose for close range photos.

Next up is a quick stop in Charlotte to visit the dentist and then on to Cincinnati to celebrate my mom's 93rd birthday.  From there, we immediately head west to Boulder, CO to perform babysitting duty with Henry and Owen for a few days.   As I have noted before, there are no days off when you are retired.

We made a quick dash to Charlotte last week and loaded the entire household on a 26' U-Haul truck.  Then made the 900 mile drive back to Key West.  It was only 90 degrees when we unloaded in Key West... much cooler than 94 degrees when we loaded the truck in Charlotte.  

We held up for one day just north of Miami to allow last week's rain storm to pass the keys.  So, what do you do with a free day?  Well, you go birding and shelling.

We found species #426 for the year and another life bird, a Brown Noddy, at Sebastian Inlet. 

After a terrific lunch at Captain Charlies, we hit the beach at John D. MacArthur park near West Palm Beach in search of bittersweets (below) and scotch bonnets.  

While shelling, we observed one newly-hatched green sea turtle making its way down the beach to the surf... always a great sight to see.

The water was a beautiful milky blue through the keys as a result of the storm including this view from the famous 7-mile bridge.  As you can see from the picture, most drivers did a great job of staying out of my way.

All-in-all, the move was as easy as could be.  Whomever was responsible for the planning, logistics and execution is someone who knows how to get things done.

Henry quickly reattached himself upon our arrival to his best most-favorite walking buddy... Grandpa.

A couple of days later, Henry gave Boca Chica beach a thorough investigation, looking for sea beans, hamburger beans and shells.  We ordered new shoes for Henry the next day.

We celebrated Henry's 2nd birthday on Sunday.  After taking Mater for a spin across the top of the cake, skipping the fork and eating handfuls of icing validated Henry's favorable opinion of grandma's cake.

   

You know you've had cake when you need to take a bath to get it all off.

For sure, Henry liked the cake but, the new cars were clearly his top priority.  To Chip the cat's dismay, Henry turned the dining room table into a traffic jam.

  

Little brother Owen was generally pleased with the goings-on.

But, it was all very exhausting for Chip.   He was watching weeks of productive man cub coaching unravel quickly.  Finally, he decided there was nothing left to do but have a tall, cold drink.

Per usual, the man cubs were happy to share some peaceful repose from Chip's constant coaching.

We did manage a couple of days of birding around Miami and Fort Myers, picking up these Scaly-breasted Munias.

It's also very helpful when the bird you are looking for lands on the roof of your hotel.  In this case, a Mitred Parakeet.  The YTD count has edged up to 425.  I'm counting on trips to Texas and California this fall to push us to 500.

At Sanibel we managed a quick 3-hour shelling frenzy after locating and digging through one nice vein of shells on the beach. While digging, a storm blew in so we were shelling in a light rain with thunder several miles away.  Happily, the wind blew away the biting no-see-ums so, we had that going for us.  Most folks were walking around an empty beach picking up nothing or digging for slim pickings in the water.  But, if you know what you're looking for, the shells are literally just beneath the beach surface. It's almost as much fun watching folks scavenge through our digging rejects as it is to find the shells.  And, it's fun to make a kid's day by giving them some of the shells we find.  

Meanwhile, the incompetence of our contractor knows no bounds.  However, we're loading the first truck from Charlotte to Key West on August 1st.  Ready or not... here it comes!

With Henry's approval, we made the 50 mile trek to No Name Key in search of yet another life bird... the La Sagra's Flycatcher.  This species is typically found in Cuba or the Bahamas but a few make their way to South Florida each year.  Driving that distance and locating the one individual is no small feat.  I heard this one call as we were driving down a street on our way back to Key West.  I got a few quick shots from the car window and it was gone.

And, in spite of the mosquitos and a 23-month old tugging at my belt, I managed to get some better photos of the Black-whiskered Vireo, including this in-flight shot.

Without Henry's approval I spent a day in Miami this week looking for some of the exotic  species that have established themselves as residents.  Among my sightings were Red-masked Parakeets and Blue-and-Yellow Macaws.

My favorite find of the day was the Red-whiskered Bulbul.  This species is native to tropical Asia.  But several escaped captivity in the 1960s and found the Miami climate to be quite suitable.

Other recent South Florida finds include the  elusive Least Bittern  and the fairly common Gray Kingbird.  I picked up  the bittern a couple of weeks ago during our  most recent trip  to Key West.  We stopped near Fort Lauderdale which gave me time the next morning to make a quick visit to Green Cay in search of  the bittern.  These birds are  tough to  spot as they tend to sulk stealthily  through reeds  and grasses.  I  came upon  a woman who  was  birding and asked if she had seen any bitterns.  She said she had briefly seen one on the other side of the marsh. 

After she moved on, I took three steps and this Least Bittern flew over my head and landed 40 feet away.  Like the La Sagra's... I'll take dumb luck all day long.

This pair of Gray Kingbirds spent the spring nesting in a pile of plant debris at Fort Zachary Taylor.

With the house in Key West still not ready to move into, we may get more birding done in July than previously anticipated.  That's good and bad.  Probably more bad than good.  

The YTD count now stands at 421 while the life list has grown to 526.

As June comes to a close, the pursuit of 500 bird species is effectively on hold at 414.  The month has been spent mostly watching Chip the cat whip the man cubs into shape.  He does much of his coaching from the dining room table.

Like a battle-hardened drill sergeant, Chip makes sure Henry pushes Owen safely around the house.  Chip fancies himself as the 'law and order' cat.

Chip has been teaching Henry how to play with cat toys.  Here, Henry demonstrates his ability to play with his truck and fish for cats at the same time.  Chip is a big believer in multi-tasking.

And, Chip has been sharing the finer points of enjoying a good catnip high with Henry.

One of Chip's favorite exercises is to soak up the Florida sunshine while taking his turn at keeping a watchful eye on the man cubs.

Henry enjoys his opportunities to slip away from Chip's heavy hand to spend time at the pool.  Here, he was able to talk three young ladies into letting him borrow their 'boat'.  I don't know who taught Henry that skill.

At the end of another busy day, the man cubs are thankful for some peace and quiet...

... as Chip takes a break to do what cats do best.

A two-day whirlwind tour of southern Michigan bumped the year-to-date count by eleven to 412. 

Blackburnian, Chestnut-sided, Blue-winged and Cerulean warblers, all new to the 2024 list, were observed but without great photo opportunities.  We saw 95 total species during the two days.

Nearly extinct 50 years ago, the Kirtland's Warbler offered great looks after some patience.  I met another birder who currently stands at #5 on eBird for most species observed in the U.S. this year.  He got a good picture from about 50 yards away and suggested that might be the best picture to be had given the challenge of not being able to leave the road.  The warblers' nesting areas are protected.  Happily, this one decided to explore a tree right in front me.  So, I don't have his count but I do have a much better picture.

The Black Terns I first observed in Texas a month ago have arrived in the north country for summer.  This time I got good looks at one of the local sewage lagoons.  Yes, sewage lagoons can be excellent spots for birding.

Baltimore Orioles were among the many species tending to nests.  This oriole's nest is like a small, woven hanging basket.  Both the male and female were hustling to bring caterpillars to the nest.

Tomorrow begins the dash back to Key West.  Apparently, baby-sitting duty resumes on Tuesday.  The best approach seems to be that we take care of Henry and Henry takes care of little brother Owen.

400

Upon learning about more delays with moving into our new house last Thursday, we did the only thing we could do... we headed to Cincinnati on Friday to visit my mom.  And, to continue the pursuit of 500 species in 2024.

Saturday morning found us in the Sandhills Wildlife Refuge of South Carolina with three target birds.  I have been waiting for a chance to photograph a Bob White quail for four years.  I finally got my chance.  Not a great chance.  But a chance.

Next, the diminutive Acadian Flycatcher.

 

And, the endangered Red-Cockaded Woodpecker.  This is another species that has declined as a result of habitat loss.  Its white cheeks distinguish it from similar species such as Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers.  So, we were 3 for 3 at this stop.

Later that afternoon, I picked up #400 at Seven Islands Park near Knoxville, TN.  The Field Sparrow isn't anything to get excited about but, every one counts.

Today, it's on to Michigan in search of nesting warblers.  One thing I am realizing about being retired is there are no days off.  You have to be retired every day.  Frankly, it's exhausting.  More soon from Michigan.

The past couple of weeks have been all about babies, bottles and diapers.  Henry and I have been taking walks, going to the pool, and wearing out the movie "Cars."  I have also concluded there isn't a pop song that cannot be turned into a Sesame Street jingle.  Chip the cat has taken it upon himself to raise the man-cub Owen.

This weekend marks the beginning of the move into the new house.  It looks like that process will consume most of June. 

I have also been working through the remaining photos from the Arizona trip.  Here a few more looks from the trip.

True to its name, this Hermit Warbler made a brief appearance on the final morning of the trip.

Painted Redstart is another one of my favorite birds to photograph.  

Do hummingbirds take baths?  Why yes, they certainly do.  This female Broad-tailed Hummingbird took a dip in the stream while I was working on the Grace's Warbler below.

On the final morning, I walked with a couple of staffers from the Ash Canyon Preserve in search of Northern Pygmy Owls.  We didn't see the owls but, they did point out several nests including this Plumbeous Vireo sitting on her nest.  We also observed Rivoli's and Beryline Hummingbird nests.

Finally, another of my western favorites is the Mountain Chickadee.

More soon provided we survive the move into the new house.  Doing that kind of work with the heat index at +100 degrees is not my idea of a healthy past-time.