January 28 - Viera Wetlands

I was awake at 5:30, so got up to a cloudy 49° morning.  It was no longer raining, but was still moderately windy, with about 15-knot winds from the northwest.   The seas off Port Canaveral were 10-12 feet and up to 15 feet, with a 4 foot swell and wind chop on top of that, so I’m kind of relieved that the pelagic trip was cancelled.  It would have been a nasty boat ride, even with a larger boat than those used by the Westport Charter fleet.  One thing I’ve long since learned was that “if the skipper doesn’t think it’s a good idea to go out, he’s absolutely correct!”

At 10 a.m., I decided to walk down the road toward the Viera Wetlands, which are wastewater settling and recharge ponds for the local water and sewer folks.  The wind was still blowing a bit as I headed out of the neighborhood, supervised by one of the local Black Vultures.

 
The Folks in Florida have different yard birds than we do in the Puget Sound region.

Glossy Ibis as a Yard Bird

En route, there was a bit of a breeze, but I had good views of the local warblers,

"Western" Palm Warbler

as well as the water birds in the ponds along the way.

I did see my first Blue Jays of the trip . . .  I’m surprised that I had spent several days in Florida without seeing the species, although I’d heard several prior to this.  Red-bellied Woodpeckers are really common in the 'burbs

They're called Red-bellied 'cause they have red bellies

Mockingbirds checked me out, and didn’t seem too concerned that I was in their neighborhood,

Northern Mockingbirds - Common in Florida; Very Much Not So in Washington

although the Loggerhead Shrikes were less confiding.

Unsafe at any speed . . .

At one vacant lot, there were hundreds of Tree Swallows descending on the wax myrtle bushes.  I couldn’t tell if they were eating the berries or foraging for insects in the foliage, but they would weigh down the branches, take off, and swirl down to another bush. 

All Tree Swallows, so far as I could tell . . .

Swirling lower and lower . . .

 . . . and landing in the Wax Myrtle by the hundreds!

I got to the wetlands, named for Ritch Grissom.

After yesterday’s 3 ½ inches of rain, vehicles were prohibited until the road dried out a bit longer.  There are several acres of ponds, with cattails, grasses and reeds to absorb the nitrogen from the treated effluent water.

The treatment plant is adjacent to the wetlands

"Clean" water goes into the wetlands

The wetlands provide habitat for the wildlife, and opportunities for birders, joggers, and nature lovers.  The water management folks have provided roads & trails with observation decks

There are lots of interpretive signs for birds and bugs

Of course, there were no butterflies out while I was there . . .

But I learned about them in spite of myself

and the local vegetation
The site has rules.  There are always rules.  One is “Don’t feed the ‘gators!”
I got some nice views of the water birds

The immature-plumaged Little Blue Heron is neither

But, the adult fits the bill . . .

Common Gallinules are, well, common here

White Ibis

Wood Storks have these cool pink feet . . .

Headless Limpkin comes in for a landing

Pied-billed Grebe

There were a few alligators who wished that the ambient temperature was a bit higher.

This is a cool alligator . . .

Being cold-blooded, they didn’t move fast, unless one approached a little too close or too quickly.  Fortunately, these 5-footers were solely interested in getting back to the safety of their marsh.

My, what big teeth you have, Grandmother!

Besides alligators, there were other reptiles about, including this softshell turtle.  It appears, from its 20-inch size, to be a female.  Males are smaller, about 10-12".

Apalone ferox - the softshell turtle

I stayed on the dike, although some nice habitat along the perimeter seemed to beckon.  But, the area was closed to the public.  ¿Quien lo sabe?

Bridge to Nowhere, Florida style

You may get bored looking at someone else’s shots of birds, but I can never get enough of seeing these species.

I don't see many Palm Warblers in the Pacific Northwest, so I enjoy them while I'm here

And, the same with the Boat-tailed Grackles

These two Caspian Terns caused a traffic jam.
They were apparently adult and mostly-grown child, altho' I suppose it could be a female begging from a male in a courtship behavior thingy.  The one with the submissive posture kept uttering the juvenile begging calls, which the adult seemed to not quite ignore.  It seemed more like, “yes, young man, you are hungry.  I suggest that you go out and get your own dinner…”

The Roseate Spoonbills also caused a bit of a Viera traffic jam,
although there were plenty flying overhead and feeding in the marsh

Who doesn't like big, pink birds?

At about 3 p.m., Marty called, and I was pretty close to the parking lot, so I told her to come pick me up. We packed to leave the Sunshine State tomorrow to return to the gray skies of the Pacific Northwest.

Viera Wetlands eBird Checklist is Here