Dr. Jerry Jackson

The Swallow-tailed Kite is a hawk that only spends the summer with us, but its arrival from a winter home in the American tropics in late February or early March has long been heralded as a signal of the arrival of spring. It arrives in small numbers with piercing high-pitched notes and aerial acrobatics that captivate those who spot them. Courtship and nest-building quickly get underway. Nests are typically placed high in a tree near wetland areas, but foraging kites can sometimes be seen flying low over city streets. This is a species that suffered greatly from clearing of forests, draining of wetlands, pesticides, and other pollutants. Northern populations long ago disappeared. Florida breeding populations have suffered, but Swallow-tailed Kites still return each year – no doubt influenced by our climate and the vastness of the Everglades ecosystem.

While most of us know a dragonfly when we see one – a large insect, often flying over water, always with four out-stretched wings – most of us have little knowledge of their diversity in Florida – and around the world. We have over 80 species of dragonflies living in Florida, and, like birds, they are often colorful. Each species, and often each age and sex group, has a unique color pattern. Our dragonfly species also vary in size, the darners being the largest, sometimes exceeding four inches long, and the Eastern Amberwing being one of the smallest at about an inch long.

Shorebirds are easy – they are found at the shore. Well, not quite so easy. Some such as Killdeer can be found in your yard. Others can be found in or at the edge of almost any body of water. Gulls, terns, sandpipers, and plovers are the major groups of shorebirds introduced this week. Each of these four represent a different group of birds but the groups often mingle on or near our beaches – and each species has unique physical and behavioral characteristics. Gulls are typically big, with short, stout bills – they are scavengers that often float on the surface or just stand around on land.

Red-bellied Woodpeckers are the most commonly seen woodpeckers in Florida in part because they are generalists that forage for insects, spiders, small lizards, and fruit in trees and on the ground in our yards and parks. Unfortunately, they are about the size of European Starlings and Starlings often usurp their cavities.

As their names imply, Black-crowned and Yellow-crowned Night-Herons are creatures of the darkness – but they can often be seen hunting for food during the day in early spring as they begin to nest and later in summer as their young leave the nest to strike out on their own. These species are similar in size and shape: short, stocky birds with a pointed bill, short neck and legs, and extra-large red eyes. Black-crowned Night-Herons do indeed have a black crown – as adults. And Yellow-crowned Night-Herons have a white to yellow (or dirty white) crown. The Black-crowned Night-Heron is a generalist -- it eats whatever fish or other small animal it can capture. It is also fairly cosmopolitan, found in wetland areas on every continent except Australia and Antarctica. The Yellow-crowned Night-Heron is more selective in its food, much preferring crabs and crayfish. It is primarily a bird of coastal areas and dense vegetation of wooded wetlands. Local places where both might be seen are Six-mile Cypress Slough and Corkscrew Sanctuary.

River Otters are social animals that seem to enjoy life – as evidenced by three recently independent young otters that I observed for several days in June 2021. They traveled, hunted, and seemed to “play” together. They created (and used repeatedly) an “otter slide“ by removing vegetation from the steep slope of a canal bank. They then repeatedly slid down into the water. Repeated slides with wet fur quickly made the slide slick with mud. Their antics seemed carefree and playful, reminding us of young children. Indeed, otters have inspired children’s books with their behavior. The truth is they are members of the weasel family, are consummate predators, and much of their behavior and anatomy are clearly linked to their life style and needs. Young learn from their parents and from one another. They are hunters that often travel several miles in a day. They have jaws strong enough to crush a clam or a turtle – and all that “play” may just be honing their skills for survival.

Coontie is usually a 3-foot tall shrub that looks somewhat like a miniature palm. But it’s not a palm – it’s a cycad – distantly- but most-closely related to the exotic gingko tree of China. It is also distantly related to pines. Coontie is a plant that almost disappeared by the late 1800s as a result of habitat destruction and losses due to its use in producing a starchy product called “Florida Arrowroot”. As Coontie disappeared, so too did the tiny black, orange, and blue Atala Butterfly and its orange-red caterpillar with two rows of yellow spots along its back and scattered short black hairs covering its body. Atala Butterfly caterpillars adapted to feed on the stiff Coontie leaves and store the toxins from the plant in its body.

The American Bittern is known to science as Botaurus lentiginosus – a name that tells us a bit about it. Botaurus is derived from an old English word that refers to a bull – because this bird’s unique deep-throated call reminded people of the bellowing of a bull. The species name “lentiginosus” means freckled – a reference to the tiny black spots on this bittern’s back.

Armadillos are mammals with no close relatives and a fossil record that dates back millions of years. All are well-protected above by stout plates and scale-like structures but with narrow bands on the back that allow them to quickly curl up to protect their underside. They have many peg-like teeth that are continuously growing, and no teeth at the front of the mouth. Thus you don’t need to worry about being bitten. An armadillo’s legs are very strong and they are master diggers -- especially in sandy soils. They dig to find food and also to make shallow burrows where they shelter during hot days. They are somewhat gregarious and active mostly at night. Yes, they may dig holes in your yard, but the holes tend to be shallow and a cheap price to pay for an evening of watching them greatly reduce harmful insect populations -- and then they are likely to move on.

Spring is a busy time for both birds and humans. The cycle of life begins anew for both. Birds begin nest-building, then lay eggs in their nest, and tend to hatchlings; humans plant gardens, flowers, and begin the annual routine of yard care. When young birds leave the nest, their parents still must tend to the young – either providing them with food or leading them to good foraging areas and protecting them from potential predators. To birds, humans are potential predators. Birds scold, dive at, and sometimes even strike humans that come close to their nest or young. Such attacks can be indication that a nest or young is near – and attacks are a good cue to not prune a nest tree or shrub or to not mow over a ground nest. Attacks are also an opportunity to show youngsters the adults, their nest, eggs, and young… but from a distance.