Birds love the same things about the Sunshine State that people do: beautiful beaches, tropical settings, unusual native plants, warm weather and -- who knows -- maybe even some people-watching. In Southwest Florida, beginners are as likely as experienced birders to sight rare species.

Along the Boardwalk

As an amateur birder, always looking and listening, I have observed dozens of interesting species of Florida birds, from the tall and stately sandhill crane to the tiny yellow-rumped warbler and downy woodpecker. But after reading birding brochures and web sites and seeing photos of the painted bunting and crested caracara, I talk my husband and two birder friends into a field trip to Naples' Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, the Great Florida Birding Trail gateway site.

Even before we get to the visitor's center, we figure by the Indiana, Wisconsin, Virginia, Ontario, New Jersey and Arizona license plates that people from all over have learned about this sanctuary. They've come to see the plants, wildlife and birds that can be found only in Southwest Florida. Once inside, we pay the $10 admission and head for the boardwalk. Loaner binoculars are available for $3.

Passing a sign for a walk of about a mile, we opt for the longer 2.25-mile trek through bald cypress stands, oak hammocks, salt marshes, swamp and prairie. This must be the Florida that greeted early explorers. Pausing to appreciate the tall cypress trees, their "knees" nourished by the swamp below and Spanish moss hanging from oak tree branches above, we hear in the distance the cries of hawks from a nest we manage to spot high up in a nearby tree.

A guide stationed on the boardwalk to answer questions and point out wildlife tells us the dark gray ones calling "mew-mew" are catbirds. The brownish ones with speckled yellow undersides are pine warblers -- or "neck breakers" as the guide calls them because you have to look directly overhead to see them. Tiny blue-gray gnatcatchers flit by, and in the distance a Carolina wren sings.

At a prairie overlook, we see a wood stork colony through a telescope set up by sanctuary staff. Above, turkey vultures and black vultures circle as does the occasional wood stork. Scanning the grassy prairie, we look for wild turkey or the vulture-sized crested caracara with its red face, black crest and white chest. Neither makes an appearance, but farther along the boardwalk, guides have focused a telescope on a barred owl. He is huge!

As the terrain under the boardwalk becomes swamp, we spot white ibis, anhingas, herons, egrets, a black-crowned night heron and several alligators. Photographers have set up their tripods and cameras in hopes of capturing raccoons that regularly forage at the water's edge.

As the terrain under the boardwalk becomes swamp, we spot white ibis, anhingas, herons, egrets, a black-crowned night heron and several alligators.


We never saw the painted bunting or the crested caracara at Corkscrew. But no matter: Southwest Florida offers plenty more venues to explore. Here are four where you should plan on spending several hours or (depending on your endurance) possibly a whole day. Listed with each are nearby sites you can visit that are located within an hour's drive.

The Big "O"

The Glades-Hendry counties area just west of Lake Okeechobee boasts sightings of more than 300 bird species throughout the year. Burrowing owls, sandhill cranes and wild turkey hang out here, and crested caracara ply the sky over Dinner Island Ranch, one of five Great Florida Birding Trail sites within these counties' borders. Lucky birders might also spot the rare Everglades snail kite.

Expect to see glossy and white ibis, wood storks, herons of all kinds and egrets in the diverse habitats of Okaloacoochee Slough, where warblers and woodpeckers also make their homes in the pine flatwoods and wild turkeys and sandhill cranes cross the open prairies. Migratory buntings (indigo and painted) stop here in spring and fall. Check out the Big "O" Birding Extravaganza each spring for workshops, tours and evening programs.

Birds Abound in Charlotte Harbor Preserve

Primitive wilderness awaits the adventurous in Charlotte Harbor Preserve State Park, a 43,000-acre preserve with three trails for bird watching. Oak/palm hammocks, pine flatwoods, wetland sloughs and fresh and saltwater marshes attract thousands of birds, both permanent and migratory. You can spot white-eyed vireos, red-shouldered hawks, green herons, wood storks, white and glossy ibis and chuck-will's-widow along the trails, and overhead swallow-tailed kites soar.

Keep your eyes open for Wilson's, black-bellied and semipalmated plovers and marbled godwits. High marsh, salt flats, mangrove marshes and wetlands attract nighthawks, bald eagles, roseate spoonbills and, of course, birdwatchers.

While you're there, stop by Charlotte Harbor Environmental Center at Alligator Creek, located within the state park and about two miles down the road, for more birding trails, guided hikes and environmental education programs.

Birding and Botany

Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park's 85,000 acres of slowly moving fresh water make it the largest strand swamp in Florida. Try the 11 unpaved miles of Janes Memorial Scenic Drive through the territories of herons, egrets, swallow-tailed kites, snail kites and bald eagles. Sharp-eyed birders may catch a glimpse of the white-crowned pigeon; Fakahatchee is home to one of the northernmost populations.

The half-mile Big Cypress Bend Boardwalk takes you into the old-growth tract for a close-up look at dozens of wading birds, sandhill cranes, roseate spoonbills, ospreys and shorebirds.

And don't miss the flora: Here you'll find 38 fern, 14 bromeliad and 44 native orchid species.

Barrier Island Birding

Access to remote Cayo Costa State Park -- surrounded by Pine Island Sound and the Gulf of Mexico -- is by private boat or commercial ferry only, so bring a picnic, plenty of water, sunscreen and binoculars. Plan to spend the whole day watching American oystercatchers, black skimmers, snowy plovers and least terns feed and fly along 9 miles of coastline.

Magnificent frigate birds come in when it's windy, and ospreys and bald eagles fly overhead and dive for fish.

Painted and indigo buntings, least and royal terns, fish crows, ring-billed gulls, ruddy turnstones and sanderlings have been spotted on this island that also features pine forests, oak/palm hammocks and mangrove swamps. Mangrove and yellow-billed cuckoos are on the bird list. If you want to catch the early birds by dawn's first light, you can make arrangements to camp or stay in a cabin overnight.

The Great Florida Birding Trail

The Great Florida Birding Trail is a 2,000-mile self-guided tour of 489 birding sites, including state and county parks and state-managed water and wildlife recreation areas. The trail divides Florida into four sections, each with a separate brochure that includes directions to numbered birding sites, maps, terrain, species, hours, facilities and the amount of time you could plan to spend there. Copies of guides with bird-watching tips can be ordered or downloaded at www.floridabirdingtrail.com.

If You Go

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in Naples,
239-348-9151, www.corkscrew.audubon.org

Caloosahatchee Regional Park in Alva, 239-694-0398, www.leeparks.org

CREW Marsh Hiking Trails in Estero, 239-657-2253, www.crewtrust.org

Big "O" Birding Extravaganza in Clewiston, 863-612-4783,
www.bigobirdingfestival.com

Hendry Glades Audubon Society in LaBelle, 863-674-0695,
www.orgsites.com/fl/hgaudubon

Dinner Island Ranch Wildlife Management Area near Clewiston, 863-902-3349, myfwc.com/
Recreation/WMASites_DinnerIslandRanch_index.htm

Fisheating Creek Wildlife Management Areas -- East and West, both near Palmdale, 863-946-1194, myfwc.com/Recreation/WMASites_FisheatingCreek_index.htm

Okaloacochee Slough State Forest and Wildlife Management Area near Fort Myers, 863-612-0776, www.fl-dof.com/state_forests/okaloacoochee.html

Stormwater Treatment Area 5 near Immokolee, 866-433-6312, my.sfwmd.gov

Charlotte Harbor Environmental Center at Alligator Creek Preserve, 941-575-5435, www.checflorida.org

Charlotte Harbor Preserve State Park in Punta Gorda, 941-575-5861, www.floridastateparks.org/charlotteharbor

Guided Kayak Nature Tours in Fort Myers, 866-256-6388, www.gaeaguides.com

J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge in Sanibel, 239-472-1100, www.fws.gov/dingdarling

Tarpon Bay Explorers guided tours inside J.N. "Ding" Darling NWR, 239-472-8900, www.tarponbayexplorers.com
 
Fakahatchee Strand Preserve and Janes Memorial Scenic Drive in Copeland, 239-695-4593, www.floridastateparks.org/fakahatcheestrand

Everglades Area Tours in Everglades City, 239-695-9107, evergladesareatours.com

Lovers Key State Park in Fort Myers Beach, 239-463-4588, www.floridastateparks.org/loverskey

Cayo Costa State Park in Boca Grande, 941-964-0375, www.floridastateparks.org/cayocosta

Tropic Star of Pine Island ferry camping and cabin reservations, 239-283-0015

Matanzas Pass Preserve in Fort Myers Beach, 239-461-7400, www.leeparks.org/pdf/matanzas_brochure_for_web.pdf

Little Estero Island Critical Wildlife Area in Estero Island, 239-533-7453, www.ecotrail.com/little_estero_island.htm