I went out to Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary yesterday. They open at 7:00. I arrived at 7:30, and was the first visitor on the boardwalk. I believe that the water is still lower than normal for late January, but definitely higher than the past two drought years. That was reassuring. Went straight to the lettuce lakes, where I have the most success. It was very quiet. After 90 minutes at the lettuce lakes, I walked the big loop. Then stopped at the feeders for 30 minutes, to see if I might catch some shots of the Painted Buntings. No luck. I saw only one other person before 9:30, then it got crowded fairly quickly--typical. Saw one young GBH, a few little blue herons, a few ibis in the trees, a couple of great egrets, one black-crowned night heron, a few hawks flew by. No alligators. LOTS of song birds. There are at least 60 wood stork nest with eggs, and more nests being built (there were no storks hatched in the prior two years--the first time that has ever happened two years in a row). But the stork nest are WAY too distant to photograph.
Bottom line, the water level has not dropped enough to concentrate the birds at the lettuce lakes, and I suspect that it may take a while to rebuild the food supply in the lettuce lakes after going completely dry the past two summers. I love the variety that Corkscrew provides to the photographer, but it is best when there are lots of birds present, as it is a difficult place to get clean shots (you are, after all, in the middle of a swamp). It is a wonderful place anytime for serious birders. And, I would highly recommend a visit to any bird photographers staying in the area for several days. But, if you are down here for a short time, and trying to maximize your bird photography opportunities, I suspect that there are better places to go right now.
I thought of a couple of comments I should have included in the prior report on Corkscrew.
1) Conditions can vary considerably day-to-day, just a they do at most south Florida photography locations,
2) There were a number of anhingas in the trees yesterday, and
3) Typically, as the water levels recede, the birds get more concentrated at the lettuce lakes, and Corkscrew becomes a better destination for the bird photographer. Based on past experience, I would guess that conditions will gradually improve through February, and be quite a bit better in March.
Thanks for the great report Mike! It's been a couple years since I've been to Corkscrew and it's been on my list of places to revisit. I think I'll hold off another month or so to see how things change. That is good news on the Wood Stork nesting...let's hope they are successful this year.
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Corkscrew Report (continued)
