Date of Survey:
022616
Official Low Tide:
4:36pm Survey
start time: 3:36pm Survey end
time: 5:00pm
Tide heights:
-.02 feet/ -6 cm
Mudflats exposed?
Y
Temperature: 70°
F / 21° c
Cloud cover: 20%
Common Name
|
Counts of birds foraging on mud flats
|
Behavior
Forage-F
Rest/roost-R
Fly
over -FO
|
Disturbance
(Flushing-F,
displaced-D, agitated-A)
|
Feeding location
*Primary
flat (P)
Mangrove flat (M)
|
Great egret
|
1
|
FO
|
M
|
|
Snowy egret
|
2
|
F
|
M
|
|
Great blue heron
|
5
|
F,R,FO
|
P-1, M-4
|
|
Little blue heron
|
1
|
F
|
M
|
|
Roseate spoonbill
|
2
|
F
|
M
|
|
white ibis
|
8
|
F
|
P, M
|
|
Total
|
19
|
Notes: 2 kayakers today, but no disturbance was
recorded during the survey time. Slightly higher count today than previous
surveys. NO action on the main mudflat inside the Lake Worth Cove Park
boundary. Minimal action on the main intracoastal mudflat. As per usual, the
majority of activity is with the exposed flats associated with the mangrove
lines and tree islands. The main flats remain parking lots for resting
seagulls. This is not a bad thing, at least someone is utilizing the intertidal
water flow. The ducks from last week were here again.
Side notes: Maybe
someone should attempt an overall species survey at some point. It would be
difficult—due to the size of the estuary. Recounts would be hard to avoid without
large numbers of surveyors. The intern suggested we strap a camera onto his drone
so we can survey the entire site. Good idea, but we would have to get a new
permit—investigate how much disturbance that would cause to the birds. Also I
do believe The Friends of John D. MacArthur Park have citizen bird watchers that
take all animal counts on any given day.
Here are some white ibis. We did take photos, but left the
camera at home, so this is a Wikipedia photo. By Hans Stieglitz - Own work, CC
BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11059636
No comments:
Post a Comment