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Tree Tops Park
BirdBlogBytes
Yesterday morning, the air was crisp and cool after the passage of a second cold front the night before. As it turned out, the temperature never rose above a bone-chilling 69 degrees, a record low for April 15th. Mary Lou and I had some business to conduct in Fort Lauderdale, so we arranged our route to include a visit to Tree Tops Park in Davie.
We had not been to Tree Tops Park since just after Hurricane Wilma, when we found the area closed to visitors because of many felled trees and branches. We worried about damage to the park’s most interesting feature, a canopy platform that brings a visitor up to the level of the upper branches of the old Live Oaks. During migration this can be a great place to watch warblers, vireos and orioles at eye level as they move through. This morning it was not very birdy, but the quiet beauty of the place is impressive.
Wild Honeybee hive, high in a Live Oak tree.
Native Wild Coffee, with inconspicuous white flowers, thrived in the shade of the oaks. It is an important food source for birds and butterflies, but not related to the Starbucks kind.
Beautyberry also enjoys the shade. While not favored by wildlife, its fruits persist long into the dry season, and may become an emergency source of nutrition. Its leaves have insecticide properties.
A Tricolored Heron stalked near the boardwalk.
Tricolored Heron head closeup.
Anhinga nestlings, visible from the boardwalk.
Another view of the Anhinga nestlings.
Spider lily or Swamp Lily, near the boardwalk.
Mary Lou at entrance of ramp to the canopy platform.
A Green Heron sat quietly at the edge of the pond near the parking lot.
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BirdBlogBytes |
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| Save Our Boreal Birds | The Boreal Forest is a vitally important breeding ground that supports more than half of the North American populations of over 100 bird species, and it is steadily being carved up by unchecked development. |
| The BirdFreak | Video of song variations in Song Sparrow |
| Hawk Owls Nest | Participate in a Binocular Strap Poll |
| Bird Cinema | Richard Attenborough’s fascinating clip on nestling anatomy and behavior |
| Aimophila Adventures | Rick Wright goes “birding in the buff” (sans binos) |