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Join us this April for a birding and photography tour exploring the Dry Tortugas, the keys, we'll even be doing some urban birding in the Miami area. The Florida keys and the Dry Tortugas can be excellent migratory destinations for birds coming back from the Caribbean and Central America. When the conditions are ideal, there can even be a chance of seeing fallout in these areas. Here is a breakdown of our tour itinerary.4/16- Arrive at the Fort Lauderdale airport no later than 1pm. We'll begin our adventure by driving south to Miami to search for multiple species of established parakeets and Spot-breasted Oriole before having dinner and driving south to Florida City to check into our hotel for the evening.
4/17- We'll bird down the keys beginning with a stop at the Dagny Johnson State Botanical Park and Carysfort Circle in order to find Black-whiskered Vireo, Gray Kingbird, warblers and buntings. Continue south through the keys and stop at the government building in Marathon to see Roseate and Least Terns that nest on the rooftop. Then check for key deer, or any other unusual sightings. Check into our hotel in the lower keys for the night.
4/18- Dry Tortugas Day! We'll have to get up early and board the Yankee Freedom for our day trip to the island where we're going to see plenty of migratory species on their way to the mainland for the spring breeding season. We'll see several species of warbler, hummingbirds, and falcons, not to mention Masked and Brown Booby, Magnificent Frigatebird, Brown Noddy (pictured), Sooty, Royal, and Sandwich Tern. There's also possibility for very rare sightings like the Black Noddy, Bridled Tern, and Antillean Nighthawk.
4/19- In the morning we'll make a stop at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park in search of the additional migratory songbirds, Great White and Wurdemann's Heron, and Short-tailed Hawk. Drive back up through the keys to make a stop for any birds we may have missed on the way down. Lodging will be in Homestead/Florida City again.
4/20- A trip to Blackpoint Marina first thing in the morning to try and locate a Mangrove Cuckoo. We'll spend the morning driving in a loop around Miami metro area and Kendall to pick up some species we won't be able to see anywhere else including Red-whiskered Bulbul, Scaly-breasted Munia, Cave Swallow, Blue-and-yellow Macaw, and Mitred, Yellow-chevroned, and Red-masked Parakeets. Flights home in the afternoon no earlier than 1pm. Optional stop at Belle Glade for the Tricolored Munia for anyone not taking a flight and driving north on their way home.
The tour fee will be $2275 per person with a $550 singles supplement fee. That price includes transportation, hotels, the Yankee Freedom ferry, water/snacks, park entry fees, and a checklist of species seen at each location. It does not include meals, tips, or your flight to Fort Lauderdale.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Dry Tortugas National Park, Key West, United States
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups - all the happenings, one place.
