Florida Birding And Nature Pre-Festival

Four days of field and boat trips, expert seminars, keynote speakers, and a free nature expo!

Schedule:

Pre-Festival Bus Trip

Seeking Florida's Special Birds - Bus Trip
Saddle Creek Park and Circle B Bar Reserve Bus Trip (includes lunch). The bus will leave FWC’s Suncoast Youth Conservation Center at 7:30 and arrive at Saddle Creek Park, a well-known leading site for fall migratory warblers and songbirds in the mixed hardwood and cypress forest habitats. During migration, over 30 species have been recorded including Bay-breasted, Canada, Cerulean, Golden-winged and Wilson’s warblers. Rarities such as Black-throated Gray Warbler and Philadelphia Vireo have also been seen. The next stop is the Circle B Bar Reserve, a highlight of the Great Florida Birding Trail. We’ll look for alligators, eagles, Osprey, Red-shouldered Hawks, Wild Turkey, Barred Owls, Wood Storks, White Ibis, Sandhill Cranes, moorhens, Pied-billed Grebes, Black-necked Stilts, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Bobwhite, Eastern Meadowlarks, Savannah Sparrows, American Kestrels, Great Blue Herons, American White Pelicans, sandpipers, spoonbills, Great Egrets, ducks and other waterfowl, and wading birds. We might also see otters, bobcats, grey fox, armadillos, squirrels (gray and fox varieties), frogs, turtles, black racer snakes, five-lined racerunner lizards, and other reptiles. Many migratory birds can be found here. Walk about 2 miles at each site.

This trip is by bus-only. All registrants must meet at the Festival site at 7:00 am to begin boarding. Be sure to bring insect repellant, water, snacks, and a hat, and to wear walking shoes. This tour includes a box lunch.

Tickets are $100

1:00 pm: Birds of America
"John James Audubon's Birds of America" at the St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts
Once the docent-led portion is over, all attendees may view the rest of the Museum's exhibits.

Tickets are $25

6:30 - 8:00 pm: Coffeepot Bayou
Coffeepot Bayou Bird Island, Pinellas County - Boat Trip
We have reserved Tampa Bay Watch’s Discovery Eco-Tour boat leaving from the St. Petersburg Pier for an evening field trip to Coffeepot Bayou. Board the boat at the pier area at 6-6:15. We leave the dock at 6:30 and return by 8 at dusk. We travel across Old Tampa Bay to Coffeepot Bayou Bird Island and watch colonial waterbirds up close. Although the birds are not nesting, we will see Brown Pelicans, Anhingas, cormorants, and all the herons and egrets, including state-listed “threatened” Little Blue Herons, Tricolored Herons, and Reddish Egrets, plus Roseate Spoonbills. Audubon Florida’s Coastal Islands Sanctuary staff will provide commentary. Photo credit: Tom Bell

Tickets are $60

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