Written by Margaret England Monday, 02 November 2009 19:00

Check out birds sightings being reported in Glades County on Cornell's free eBird website at www.ebird.org. This website is great for keeping your life lists for you to view or share with other birders.

In Glades County the summer birds, including the swallow-tailed kites, common nighthawks and chimney swifts have returned to their home grounds. Ruby-throated hummingbirds were reported in September. Wintering raptors, swallows, sparrows, ducks and the feisty belted kingfisher have returned. Start watching feeders for retuning buntings and songbirds. Please share stories and photos of birds you observe in our area and other birding adventures.

Download a map of birding hot spots (PDF)

Birding hotspots in Glades County

Birding in Glades County is great year round. Trails, roadways and parks provide public access to the area birding hotspots. Some birds to watch for during the fall and winter months are limpkins, purple gallinules, herons, wrens, sparrows, crested caracara, sandhill cranes, eagles, swallows, roseate spoonbills and various duck species including the fulvous and black-bellied whistling ducks.

Trails, public roadways and parks are alive with birds. The Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail (L.O.S.T) around Lake Okeechobee offers public access to some of the best birding in inland Florida.. Trailheads are located on CR 78 north of Lake Okeechobee and in Moore haven. Fisheating Creek Wildlife Area in Palmdale and the Fisheating Creek Ft. Center trail are alive with warblers, raptors during the fall and winter. On a trip on Fisheating Creek is a great birding trip. If you are searching for Florida Scrub-jays a small patch is was seen on the power lines during the September North American Migration Count on the east end of CR 74 south of Palmdale (Pranty’s “A Birder’s Guide to Florida, p. 165). The south end of Fernwood Road in Muse is another location reporting scrub-jays. Caracara and sandhill cranes are often seen along SR29 north of LaBelle and CR78 near Ortona.

During visits to the Ortona Locks or Larry Luckey Ortona Indian Mound Park you will find a variety of wintering birds and raptors. Witherspoon Wetlands, the restored wetland east of Florida Rock Mine on 78 is one site you won’t want to miss. There are no signs marking this restored wetland area which attracts large numbers of wading birds, waterfowl and shorebirds. A trip on Wayman Road south of Palmdale which connects SR27 and CR 78 is worth visting. American robins frequent the area during migration and a variety of herons and egrets are often close to the roadway.

Please e-mail or share your Glades County birding lists or photos. “Birds the word in Glades County”.