Tropical Audubon Society

South Florida’s Voice of Conservation

Hi everyone!:

Last year, the Miami Birding Wave (spear headed by Alex Harper, Rangel Diaz, and myself) set out to get the birding community in Miami-Dade to reconnect with each other and the birds in our area. One of the results was the Miami Winter Bird Count. It was such a great success last year that it was a feature article on the American Birding Association's (ABA) blog due to the massive, coordinated community effort. We impressed.

Tropical Audubon has now adopted it as a standard event, and I hope it will be a tradition we uphold for many years.

Last year, we documented 186 ABA-countable species. Can we make an even 200 this year?

Here is the description off the Tropical Audubon calendar:

The second annual Miami Winter Bird Count will be held from Friday, February 12th to Monday, February 15th, using the platform offered by the Great Backyard Bird Count on eBird. We hope that such regular, annual counts will lead to a better understanding as to the status, diversity, and distribution of late winter birds in Miami-Dade.

How it works: Email Carlos Sanchez with the area(s) you will be covering at tsunamicarlos@gmail.com to ensure minimal overlap. Survey your assigned area anywhere from February 12 through February 15, recording both total species and actual numbers of what you observe. Submit eBird list(s) via the Great Backyard Bird Count portal (http://gbbc.birdcount.org/) and email Carlos your totals. That’s it! At the end of the entire event, Carlos will provide a synopsis of the county-wide results. So get ready to get out there and see some great birds! We look forward to hearing all about it.

Here's the fun part -- areas to cover. Email me with what you want to do:

A.D. Barnes Park
Arch Creek Park
Bill Sadowski Park
Black Point Park and Marina
Brewer Park
Castellow Hammock Park
Chapman Field Park
Coral Reef Park
"Cortadito Cowbirds" on SW 87th and 40th St
Cutler Wetlands
C-111E Canal
C-357 Sparrow Fields
Dante Fascell Park
Doc Thomas House
Enchanted Forest Park
Everglades NP -- Anhinga Trail & Gumbo Limbo Trail
Everglades NP -- East Everglades
Everglades NP -- Long Pine Key
Everglades NP -- Mahogany Hammock
Everglades NP -- Pahayokee
Everglades NP -- Paurotis Pond
Everglades NP -- Research Road
Everglades NP -- Shark Valley
Everglades NP -- West Lake
Fairchild Botanic Gardens
Greynold's Park
Horse Country
Kendallwood Neighborhood
Kendall-Baptist Hospital
Kendall-Tamiami Airport
Kings Creek Neighborhood
Lucky Hammock and the Annex
L31W Canal
Miami-Dade CC Environmental Center
Merrie Christmas Park
R. Hardy Matheson Preserve
South Pointe Park
Tropical Park
University of Miami
Zoo Miami

Areas with coverage:

Bill Baggs State Park (Robin Diaz, Miriam Avello, Nico Salino)
Charles Deering Estate (Rangel Diaz)
Crandon Park (Robin Diaz, Miriam Avello, Nico Salino)
Dolphin Mall+Doral Area (Mario Porcelli)
FIU Nature Preserve (Stephen Paez)
Hainlin Mill Sparrow Drive (Carlos Sanchez)
Kendale Lakes+The Hammocks Circuit (Carlos Sanchez)
Kendall Indian Hammocks (Stephen Paez)
Deering Canoe Launch (Roxanne Featherly, Troy Henderson)
Dump Marsh (Raul Urgelles)
Matheson Hammock County Park (Carlos Sanchez)
Palmetto Bay Village Center (Judd Patterson)
Virginia Key (Robin Diaz, Miriam Avello, Nico Salino)

...if you have any ideas of where you would like to cover (a hotspot I missed, your yard, your neighborhood, go out on a boat and scour the pelagic waters of Miami-Dade...), just let me know. Let's keep this flexible and simple. Participate all four days or just a morning. Every little bit counts. Bird together if you wish. Make friends. Just make sure to get out there and bird! This is a big team effort.

Carlos