Point Ybel Lighthouse Park 12/10

Shari & friends

 We went back to Sanibel and decided to just walk along the beach by the fishing pier at Point Ybel Lighthouse, on the westernmost tip of the island. The birds along the beach are ludicrously tame. They don't mind sharing the beach with humans. I was happy to see that the humans didn't harass the birds and I was also glad to see that no one was giving handouts, despite the persistence of some of the birds.

Photos here & below: Shari Zirlin

It was fun to just watch birds without worrying about if any of them were FOY. We did, however, add one trip list species: Red-breasted Mergansers in a feeding frenzy with gulls, terns, and pelicans. Interesting factoid: all the Red-breasted Mergansers this time of year are hens. I don't know where the drakes go.

Brown Pelican

Royal Tern

Snowy Egret

12 species
Red-breasted Merganser  9
Double-crested Cormorant  2
Brown Pelican  20
Great Egret  2
Snowy Egret  15
Osprey  3
Willet  1
Sanderling  3
Laughing Gull  5
Ring-billed Gull  5
Royal Tern  2
Sandwich Tern  10