Florida Suggestions January or February Trip

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CoyoteCreationsNW

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I live in the Pacific Northwest and have only visited Florida a few times and those were for work conferences in a hotel. I plan to have several days available this winter (January and February) and would appreciate some suggestions on where I should visit for bird photography. I can visit just about anywhere but won't have time to drive all the way from Miami to Jacksonville. Any suggestions for which airport to fly into and some spots I should pull out the cameras?
 
I live in the Pacific Northwest and have only visited Florida a few times and those were for work conferences in a hotel. I plan to have several days available this winter (January and February) and would appreciate some suggestions on where I should visit for bird photography. I can visit just about anywhere but won't have time to drive all the way from Miami to Jacksonville. Any suggestions for which airport to fly into and some spots I should pull out the cameras?
The thread below has several great locations for Florida wildlife for which Orlando is the base on operations. (mostly migrating birds, but other species, too).


The Tampa/St. Pete area has abundant options. I prefer Ft. DeSoto Park, south of St. Pete. Palm Beach County is another option: Wakodahatchee Wetlands, Green Cay Nature Center, and Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge offer great photo opportunities. There are other locations north along the coast up to and around Vero Beach.

If birds are your focus, Mark Smith has a Florida Birding guide which provides some detail on these locations (and quite a few others).

I'm sure others will post their favorite locations, too. Have fun! I'll be visiting Florida in February (Ft. DeSoto/Anna Maria Island), March (Orlando/Merritt Island), and April (South Florida), as usual.
 
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I forgot, if you head to Ft. Desoto, take the Sunshine Skyway and photo the dozens and dozens of Ospreys eating their meals on the lamp posts..Lots of places to pull over and snap away...

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It might be helpful to share what types of birds you’re most interested in or if you have a preferred portion of the state. There are a lot of excellent places but the species can vary by location. For example, burrowing owls are primarily in South Florida, Roseate Spoonbills tend to be closer to the coasts, while Ospreys tend to be all over. This will help you get a more narrowed list of recommendations.
 
I live just south of St. Augustine and in January or February, I like to explore the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, including Blackpoint Wildlife Drive and all of the back roads out there. The Orlando Wetlands is a great hike and it can be very active, just remember it is closed on Mondays. (And it ain't in Orlando, it's in the small town of Christmas.) Ft. DeSoto is usually pretty good as is Circle B. The American White Pelicans are down here during that time of year as well, at many places. The Viera wetlands was closed to the public for several months until recently, when half of it was reopened to foot traffic, and just a few weeks ago the whole wetlands was all opened, still no vehicles are allowed. Then there's my backyard for Painted buntings...........😉
 
It might be helpful to share what types of birds you’re most interested in or if you have a preferred portion of the state. There are a lot of excellent places but the species can vary by location. For example, burrowing owls are primarily in South Florida, Roseate Spoonbills tend to be closer to the coasts, while Ospreys tend to be all over. This will help you get a more narrowed list of recommendations.
Since I have not had an opportunity to visit Florida for photography, I don't haave a species list I am looking for. Raptors are not high on my list. We have bald eagles, hawks and kestrels all winter in Washington State. Ospreys are common here also but difficult to photograph in their nests. I am most interested in species that I don't see on the west coast, spoonbills, flamingos, some egrets. Thanks for the input from everyone.
 
Since I have not had an opportunity to visit Florida for photography, I don't haave a species list I am looking for. Raptors are not high on my list. We have bald eagles, hawks and kestrels all winter in Washington State. Ospreys are common here also but difficult to photograph in their nests. I am most interested in species that I don't see on the west coast, spoonbills, flamingos, some egrets. Thanks for the input from everyone.
I recommend Ft. DeSoto Park (St. Pete), Circle B-Bar Nature Reserve (Lakeland), Orlando Wetlands, Blackpoint Drive (Merritt Island), Wakodahatchee Wetlands (Delray Beach). There are other locations, too, but you'll be sure to see a variety of wading birds (Spoonbills, Herons, Egrets, Ibis, Wood Storks), Pelicans, Red Winged Blackbirds, Gators, etc. at these locations. After a hurricane in 2023, Flamingos were scattered to unusual places in Florida: Merritt Island (although I didn't see any when I was there in March), Pine Island Aquatic Reserve (near Ft. Myers), and Florida Bay (between the Everglades and the Keys). I heard that some were spotted as far north as Jacksonville, but I can't verify that. They may or may not be in these areas any longer. A check on the eBird app might be helpful.

Other members will have recommended locations, too.
 
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