Parting shots….
Indian River Lagoon from Lot 5 - Canaveral National Seashore
As we prepare to join the other birds and snowbirds on our annual spring migration north, I took a short journey down A-1-A to Canaveral National Seashore. Every April, I head to the end of the drive down the seashore to Parking Lot 5 in the hopes of finding my reliable Eastern towhees. They never seem to disappoint, but as my wife Sharon is quick to remind me, “Never say ALWAYS” when referring to the chances of finding birds in what we believe to be “sure thing” locations.
First things first, however. I make a quick stop behind the National Seashore Visitors Center in the hopes of finding some ducks or other water birds like a Common loon. And a Common loon it is! This adult is well on his way to breeding plumage and should be heading north with me in short order. Although distant, his striking plumage makes him stand out well enough for a satisfactory image. Let’s go Mr. Loon. Time for us both to be moving on!
Common Loon - Canaveral Seashore Visitors Center Dock - 4/19/26
Next short stop to look for any migrating warblers is ElDora Road. Sadly, my Merlin app is picking up the ever-so-faint whisper of the Cape May warbler, but I cannot locate the bird in the thick foliage. Guess I’ll have to wait til I get back to New York for this bird. No more birds, but I did find a good birding buddy, Don. Don and I have been birding together in Florida for more than 25 years now and it was only fitting to meet him by chance while taking one last trip through the seashore for 2026. We’ll look forward to many more birding adventures when we return next year.
And so, even though Sharon told me never to use that term “always”, my target towhee was indeed down at Lot 5 just as he “always” is at this time of year. In fact, there were at least 4 of these handsome members of the Passerellidae family on site as I drove up to my favorite towhee patch.
Eastern towhee - Canaveral National Seashore - 4/19/26
One of their number flew in close to inspect my RAV which was again serving as my blind. An already handsome bird, the species here in Florida kicks it up a notch by sporting a white to yellow iris while birds to the north have red irises. These birds also have big white corners in the tail which this individual obviously did not want me to miss. Since he was being so cooperative, I could not resist the temptation to grab a short video clip of him while I had the chance.
Always a pleasure to drive down to this beautiful location which is only 5 minutes away from our home base. We will miss Canaveral as parting is always bitter-sweet.
