We birded in four areas of the refuge. Some of the birds we saw along Beach Road were herring gull, great egret, tricolored heron, bald eagle, belted kingfisher, osprey, Forster’s tern, glossy ibis, white ibis, and Canada goose. Next, we went to the Tom’s Cove Visitor’s Center area. Birds we saw here included willet, royal tern, little blue heron, snowy egret, black skimmer, sandwich tern, common tern, Forster’s tern, and red-winged blackbird. The Little Tom’s Cove area was still roped off at the end due to nesting birds but it was supposed to be removed in a few days. Some of the birds we saw here included brown pelican, American oystercatcher, black-bellied plover, sanderling, ruddy turnstone, great black-backed gull, and double-crested cormorant. The last area we covered was Wildlife Loop. Except for the channels on both sides of the road at the beginning, the loop was totally dry. We managed to identify some birds here including downy woodpecker, great egret, tricolored heron, Carolina wren, royal tern, and mallard.
MY PHOTOS: royal tern, tricolored heron, great egret, snowy egret, little blue heron, brown pelican, downy woodpecker, herring gull
