GLC and Kirtland's (30Mar2015)

Yesterday was a good day.  In the morning I walked Calypso hoping for one of my three remaining target birds (Great Lizard Cuckoo, Key West Quail Dove and Kirtland's Warbler).  It took a while but I finally found one of them.

Black-necked Stilt - two for one.  Calypso pond.

Clapper Rail - very vocal individual.

Black-faced Grassquit

Then finally......

Great Lizard Cuckoo!!!  I followed this bird around the property for over an hour.  He did not mind a bit.

Look at that tail! I was trying to get an underrated shot with him perched but I never got an opportunity.

Here he is attacking an unsuspecting lizard or maybe a moth.  In the hour that i watched him, he found and devoured 2 huge moths and 2 lizards.

Has to me one of my favorite birds.

In the afternoon after some calls, I drove my family to look for shells on a beach near Tarpum Bay.  On the way I swing by the lakes at Double Bay and scored with 5 White-cheeked Pintails.

White-cheeked Pintails.

After dropping off my family, I made a short drive to a side road that looked really good for Kirtland's Warbler.  The Kirtland's Warbler is the most endangered of the North American warblers and just so happens to call Eleuthera home for the winters.  It likes successional habitat and more specifically loves White Lantana.  Well this little road I could see from the Queen's Highway looked perfect.  I pulled over and tried a couple chip notes and right away Bingo!!!

Kirtland's Warbler

Actually when I first saw her, I thought it was a palm warbler because she was flipping her tail up and down.  However, once I got a good look it was obviously not a palm and obviously was a Kirtland's.  Yellow belly with fine streaking and broken eye-ring.

I say her because she did not have the dark lores of a male and was not a very bright yellow.

Then if that was not enough I saw my 2nd and 3rd GLC of the day.

Great Lizard Cuckoo

I went to go pick up the family on the beach and just as I met up with them we witnessed a huge shark chasing something in the shallows.  It had to have been at least 14 feet.  The dorsal fin was sticking out about 1.5 feet out.

What a day!