BIRDING FROM LAND

All of the birds mentioned in the preceding pages can be seen from land but usually with less frequency and at greater distances.  A spotting scope is extremely beneficial while birding from land.

During low tides, the marsh area often consists of oyster beds and exposed mud flats.  During this period, most of the birds are scattered over wide areas.  There are a number of areas along Highway 24 where one can park his/her car along the right of way.  Sometimes the birds are close enough to the roadway to view with binoculars.

As tides begin to rise, the birds begin to gather on top of the shell bars.  The higher the tide the more they concentrate.  Unfortunately, most of the best sites are too far from the roadway for good identification without the use of a scope.

Tides vary greatly.  Sometimes optimum viewing times begin about 1 to 1 1/2 hours before high tide.  If the tide for a given day is forecast to be especially high, good viewing can begin 2 to  2 1/2  hours before high tide.  The East side of Bridge #3 offers excellent viewing with a scope and proper timing. Note, often times the tide will eventually cover the gathering site. When this happens most of the birds along highway 24 go to the Corrigan's Reef area while the birds at Shell Mound go to McClamery Key and Derrick Key.

The same principle applies to the Shell Mound area.  If you arrive at very low tide, a few good birds may be visible.  If you can time your visit so that only a few inches of the shell bars are above the water line on a rising tide, you can be richly rewarded with hundreds of birds.  Again, most of these gathering sites are just out of easy binocular range.

Good shorebirds are often found around the Cedar Key Public Beach and our sand spit area.

            BIRDING IN CEDAR KEY, CONTINUED