April 15, 1999 - Winged wonders of Lake Kissimmee6A • The Suffolk Times • April 15, 1999
Winged wonders of Lake Kissimmee
On our last day at Lake Kissimmee
State Park in Florida we splurged on a
birding trip around the lake. It was
aboard one of those pontoon boats
that are so popular down here. They
are great for inland lakes and rivers,
but I wouldn't want to be caught out in
the bay or on the Sound in one on a
windy day. Our
captain was a FOCUS
knowledgeable
fellow and he ON
knew all the good NATURE
birding spots.
Much of the lake by Paul
has great masses Stoutenburgh
of floating vege-
tation that make excellent habitat for
birds of all sorts.
Probably the biggest attraction for
most of us aboard was the snail kite, a
bird that is on the endangered list
because of its unusual eating habits. As
the name implies, it eats snails, and
only freshwater snails. So exclusive an
eater of snails is this kite that it can be
found only in limited areas where these
"apple" snails live. It's a large, black,
broad - winged hawk with a white patch
in its tail. It has a special hooked bill
that enables it to extract the meat of
the snail by cutting under the cover
(operculum) of the snail. With delight
we watched the kite hunting and pick-
ing up one of these golfball -sized
snails; then while in flight it transferred
the snail to its bill. It flew to a perch
where it held the snail with one foot
and commenced eating. These snail
kites are relatively tame and allowed
our boat, bulging with binoculars, to
approach within 30 feet.
An interesting side event came
about as we all watched the kite eat its
meal. Someone spotted a limpkin's
head below in the greenery. (A limpkin
is a large wading bird with a long
curved bill.) Upon closer examination
by all binoculars, it was determined the
limpkin was on its nest. Sure enough,
we could see three big, buff - colored
eggs beneath the half- crouched bird.
What a find: an endangered snail kite
right in front of us eating its legendary
apple snail and below it the elusive
their nest out on one of the floating
islands. The hordes of mosquitoes
would surely keep them busy. Both the
glossy and white ibis were searching
for worms, snails, and insects of all
sorts. We found a colony of boat - tailed
grackles that had built their sloppy
nests of sticks and grasses in the low
bushes over the water. We even saw
our national symbol, the bald eagle,
devils. As soon as
we got out into the
open again, most
would leave or be
blown away.
Lake Kissim-
mee was a won-
derful place to
reacquaint our-
selves with many
of the birds Flo-
rida has to offer. Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh
Egrets and herons At a uick glance you might think this southern anhinga is a common cormorant.
of all sorts flew up 4
Both are expert divers. The cormorant catches its fish in its I
before us, only to ga actually spears
its prey and then flips It into its mouth and
settle again as we
tree. How
passed. Ospreys glided overhead and
perched high at the top of a
we even passed one late nester on
handsome it looked with its white head
Channel Buoy No. 7 on our way out. It
in that late- afternoon sun.
reminded me of the many osprey plat-
Another one of the highlights of our
forms Bob Gloria in Orient, Tim Gray
stay at Lake Kissimmee was finding
in Peconic, my son Peter and I and oth-
the threatened scrub jay. This relative
ers have put up through the years.
of our common blue jay and member
We saw mottled ducks and blue-
of the crow family is confined to the
winged teal and we even saw a pair of
low scrub area that is fast disappearing
familiar black ducks that don't usually
here in Florida. Like so many birds
get this far south. We saw a pair of king
that cannot adjust from one habitat to
birds (a type of flycatcher) building
another, the scrub jay is losing out. As
LET'S LOOK MACK
75 years ago
April 4, 1924
Mills elected: William J. Mills of Greenport was elect-
ed Republican state committeeman by nearly a 300
majority vote over his opponent; Robert Macintosh of
Brookhaven Town, in one of the most exciting primary
elections ever held in the First Assembly District.
Southold news: It is in the air that an up -to -date ladies'
furnishing store will be added to the 16 or more stores we
already have, on the Howell property, recently bought by
George Smith.
Classified: Wanted — Reliable man for general work at
Benesta Lodge, North Road, Greenport. Good wages.
Apply to Emile Conklin.
50 years ago
April 8, 1949
Gull Island awarded to museum: Great Gull Island, 17
rocky acres set in the eastern entrance to Long Island
Sound, was given last Friday by the War Assets
Administration to the American Museum of Natural
History. The island was the site of Fort Michie, built to
guard the Sound and now considered outmoded.
Notified at the museum, Richard Pough, head of the
conservation department, enthusiastically rattled off
plans for use of the property, including research on the
population trends of the common tern and a study of the
extinct Great Gull mouse.
A `charming child': Genevieve Smith, age 4, of Green -
port won 500 dollars, third prize, in the New York Daily
Mirror's Charming Child Contest. Genevieve is a winsome
little lady with smiling blue -green eyes and soft brown hair.
She is the only child of Sidney and Genevieve Smith.
25 years ago
March 28, 1974
Theater review: Where is love? "Oliver" has it. Love
— it was all there — last weekend, on stage in the
Greenport auditorium. More than 200 people made it
possible and 1,200 shared it.
Behind the scenes, in the orchestration, and sewn into
the costumes, there was love. "Oliver" never had it bet-
ter, and Oliver was never better than in the "three- star"
portrayal by young Chris Rowsom and his friends Nancy
(Nancy Zehner) and Fagin (played by Gary Fuccillo).
Standing ovations were given both evenings by the
capacity audiences to all the young actors and actresses
who stayed perfectly "in character" during the perfor-
mances. Pat Wall's outstanding direction had the young
actors so well schooled that they seemed professional ...
There is a whole community and a lot of love which has
gone into "Oliver." From behind the scenes to the very
last person in the audience. And never have we seen a
young cast that deserves it more.
so equipped went
to the designated
spot to find our
scrub jays. At first
we had little luck.
We went about
with our hands
outstretched
looking like pau-
pers asking for
alms. But then it
worked. A brazen
fellow arrived and
in no time we had
the whole troop
clamoring for
peanuts. They
alighted on Bar-
bara's hat and on
to bill; the anhin- my camera; all
swallows it. were anxious for a
tidbit. What fun
we had photographing them. If you
teased them without any peanuts they
would nip your hand in retaliation. So
ended that special event offered by
Lake Kissimmee State Park. Soon
we'll be heading north, for our next
campsite will be our last in Florida. I
think it is O'Leno, upstate near the
border of Georgia.
Days later — and so we arrived at our
new campsite. We left the tropical look
of Florida with its palms and palmetto
and are now in a hardwood, softwood
forest that has just burst out of its winter
dormancy. Spring is in the air. All about
are new green leaves that only the touch
of spring can create. Through the woods
and along the raodsides, the dogwoods
have blossomed and add their charm.
Yellow and black swallowtail butterflies
dance around in the warm sunshine,
glad to be out of their winter cocoons. A
herd of deer (10) wandered up to our
campsite looking for tidbits that the
campers offer. How alert they are, ears
twitching to catch any sound that might
alert them to danger. They blend in so
well with the surroundings, it reminds
you of one of those cartoons that ask
you to find the 10 faces in the picture.
It's remarkable how nature has provid-
ed the deer with such camouflage. Two
move up to within 20 feet of us and stop
and methodically stomp one foot, a sig-
nal to the others. They are so close we
can see ticks on their ears. It must be
frustrating for them not to be able to
pick them off. Spring warblers and vire-
os and thrushes are in the trees and on
the ground.
As some of you might remember
from my last article, I'd spoken about a
See Focus, next page