The Flatwoods Park Bluebird Trail 2020 nesting season is officially over! It was another successful year with a total of 172 fledglings (161 BB, 7CC, 4 TM). See attached spreadsheet for details.
I saw very few bluebirds today, but did see a lot of other birds and wildlife. At the native garden, I saw our resident ruby-throated hummingbird and also a Hummingbird Clearwing moth, commonly called a hummer moth because it flies and feeds like a hummingbird. It was feeding on the ironweed (Vernonia gigantea) in our butterfly garden (picture attached). Other birds seen were a red-shouldered hawk, little blue, tri-colored, and great blue herons, 5 wood ducks, a red-bellied woodpecker, an American crow, an eastern towhee, and mourning and ground doves. Standing right near one of our bluebird boxes was this white-tailed deer, munching away on the grass. Farther along the trail I spotted a gopher tortoise, also eating the grass and when I tried to get his picture, he quickly ran into his burrow. Attached is a great picture of a gopher tortoise resting in his burrow taken by Sally Recchi.
Attached is a picture of a Fragrant Eryngium (Eryngium aromaticum), which is very similar to the Rattlesnake Master picture (Eryngium aquaticum) that I sent a few weeks ago. Another beautiful plant that I spotted near water is this species of St. John's Wort (Hypericum cistifolium).
I hope you have enjoyed this bluebird nesting season journey with me, because I have certainly enjoyed sharing it with you. Your sponsorship has enabled Tampa Audubon Society to have ample funds to make this bluebird trail a safe and friendly environment for the adult birds to raise their young. I also want to thank Scott Radford, and Joe and Sharon Miller for their very generous donations to ensure that our bluebird trail would not go without funding. I'm also extremely grateful to Sherry Keller for her wonderful assistance on the trail this year and also for her great wildlife photos. Other great photographers that shared their pictures with me were George Veazey, Sally Recchia, Lloyd Goodman, Irwin Schuster, John Miller, and Ranger Clint Perigard. Thanks to all of you!
So I hope you will join us again next year when I send out the notice in January that we are needing sponsors for our 2021 Bluebird Trail Nesting Season!