As we left Columbia, Missouri, this morning, on our way to Longboat Key, Florida, I decided to count the number of bird species that I observed along the highways; after all, one needs something to make a long drive through familiar terrain more interesting. Cloudy weather, with intermittent fog and drizzle, didn't help nor did a massive traffic jam in Nashville, Tennessee; the latter assured that the remaining portion of today's journey (ending in Chattanooga) would occur in darkness.
As one might expect, open-country species accounted for most of the observations; these included Canada geese, American crows, mourning doves, red-tailed hawks, American kestrels, ring-billed gulls and turkey vultures, among others. Two bald eagles were observed (in eastern Missouri and western Illinois) and two flocks of American white pelicans were unexpectedly encountered; these tardy migrants were on Rend Lake, in southern Illinois, and on Lake Barkley, in northwestern Kentucky.
After a night in Chattanooga, we should complete our trip to Longboat Key by tomorrow evening (weather and traffic permitting). Hopefully, bird sightings will increase as we travel through more southern latitudes and I will include the total species count (for the entire journey) on my next post.
As one might expect, open-country species accounted for most of the observations; these included Canada geese, American crows, mourning doves, red-tailed hawks, American kestrels, ring-billed gulls and turkey vultures, among others. Two bald eagles were observed (in eastern Missouri and western Illinois) and two flocks of American white pelicans were unexpectedly encountered; these tardy migrants were on Rend Lake, in southern Illinois, and on Lake Barkley, in northwestern Kentucky.
After a night in Chattanooga, we should complete our trip to Longboat Key by tomorrow evening (weather and traffic permitting). Hopefully, bird sightings will increase as we travel through more southern latitudes and I will include the total species count (for the entire journey) on my next post.
