Code Breaking at Babcock Webb
Punta Gorda: home of my best friend Loren, Babcock Webb Wildlife Management Area, and red cockade woodpeckers. I woke up before sunrise and drove across the state to meet up with Lo at Babcock for a day of birding. We studied the maps that had a very convenient marking of where the red cockade woodpecker nesting sites were and decided to start there. As we drove a little ways into the area, we saw a small wooded sign with the letters “RCW” carved into it. I still kept driving wondering why there were white lines marked around the base of certain trees when Loren said “RCW… isn’t that your woodpecker?” Good thing I brought a code breaker with me because it still took me about 30 more seconds to understand the sign. We pulled the car over and started our search laughing at how easy it is when there is an actual sign showing you where the birds are. Guess what? We were WRONG! The trail was pretty flooded so we mostly looked from the road. We stayed at the first nesting site for almost two hours as we got psyched out by countless red-bellied woodpeckers, northern flickers, and a downy or two until we decided to venture to the other sites. I had warned Loren that I get a little pissy at times when I can’t find what I’m looking for and she got to experience it first hand as I huffed and puffed about why a downy couldn’t just transform into a cockade for me. (If you are a scientist I would love an answer.) It only took a couple of minutes for me to reset myself as we watched eastern bluebirds flutter back and forth among tree branches. I watched as the sunlight hit them in different directions making their rufous bellies glow as the flew one way and then the blues on their back shimmer as they flew in the opposite direction, I get why these birds are so beloved by so many. As we continued on, we saw a belted kingfisher who stayed in front of us flying one branch at a time almost teasing us to keep following him staying just out of focus of my lens. After the kingfisher flew off we realized we were by another nesting site, hoping maybe this was a sign, but after observing for a while, it seemed like no one was home. Near the last marked nesting site we checked out, we saw a tri-colored heron who had found a nice little run-off filled with fish and water bugs. He was the king of this little area and he knew it, unbothered by us as he continued to dance around erratically in the water hunting fish and water bugs. While we were out, we saw quite a few species including a red headed woodpecker that was so brilliant I could identify him without my camera. We called it a day due to the heat and finished by picking up her eldest from school to get some ice cream(I have to stay the favorite aunt somehow). Zero new species, but an incredible day spent talking, laughing, and immersing ourselves in the beauty of Florida.
