By Steve Hemmingsen
As a recovering snowbird, a full-time Floridian for several years, after years of snow birding, I still marvel at the variety of wildlife; gators in your canal, lizards in your house, those slimy little frogs, iguanas raining from trees, etc. It’s almost like living in Jurassic Park, at times.
Recently, while tri-cycling along Winchester Boulevard, I caught what is apparently a somewhat rare display.
The canal, we call them ditches up north, was being dredged. That triggered a feeding frenzy among several bird types, pecking through the fresh muck for fresh avian delicacies, whatever they are.
However, what caught my eye was a trio of spoonbills.
The only place I have seen them until now was at the Ding Darling Wildlife Sanctuary on Sanibel Island. It is my understanding that spoonbills are protected, but are occasionally seen around Englewood.
From here, I get speculative. My research shows these are either young Roseates or a different variety. In any event, I wanted to share this rare sighting, for me, with Englewood REVIEW readers.
