Flashback 1 Fulvous Whistling-ducks and a Gator

     Since this blog is new, I will occasionally look back at previous adventures and share some of those highlights here.  My first flashback is from August 2021 that featured a new life bird and an interesting wildlife encounter.  

My wife, oldest daughter and I went to Florida to visit family in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area, during which we took a side trip to Disney World for a couple of days.  One of those days, my wife and daughter set out for a magical day at one of the theme parks while I took the car to Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive.  Wildlife drive is a central Florida hotspot about 25 miles from Disney that hosts nearly 300 known bird species.  It is basically a nine-plus mile drive through central Florida marshes and wetlands.  I had two targeted birds I wanted to find there that I likely wasn’t going to see in New Jersey:  fulvous whistling-duck and purple gallinule.  The only purple gallinule I had seen was the previous month in Palm Beach County, FL.  I had never seen a fulvous whistling-duck before, and there is just a single accepted record of one in NJ, from August 2004.  My only concern while heading out to the refuge was that it is only open to vehicles on Fridays through Sundays.  It was Wednesday, my only chance to go.  Somehow, I was going to make it work.

I arrived at the Lust Road gate parking lot around 12:30 and the temperature was already in the upper 80s.  The vehicle access gate was closed and locked.  However, next to it was a much smaller opening I assumed was for bicycles and pedestrians.  I grabbed my ball cap, water bottle, binoculars and camera and headed in, locking the car doors behind me.  My hike lasted about two and a half hours over seven miles round trip.  The trail is a dirt road flanked by marshes and wetlands, and no shaded areas.  On the way out I saw many common gallinules, coots and ducks, but no purple gallinules or fulvous whistling-ducks.  It was while walking back I realized that some of the ducks that flew over my head earlier were actually what I was seeking.  Now aware, I was able to get some photos of the ducks flying past me.  Soon after, I came upon a water spot along the edge of the road that, on my earlier pass had coots and common gallinules, now had a couple purple gallinules walking in the open on top of the thick vegetation.  Their long toes make them very adept at walking on vegetation.  Hot, sweaty and out of water, I still had a way to go to get back to the car.

 

Fulvous whistling-ducks, Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, August 2021.  © S. Weiss

Juvenile purple gallinule, Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, August 2021.  © S. Weiss

Adult purple gallinule, Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, August 2021.  © S. Weiss

On the way out, there was a posted sign near the beginning of the hike basically warning of alligators and reminding people to not feed them.  Really?  You need to be reminded not to offer food to a large, prehistoric reptile with a mouth full of bone-crushing, flesh-ripping teeth?  If you’re that ignorant, well, I guess you get what you deserve.  Anyway, I did see a couple of alligators along the way.  They were in the water with only their eyes, snout and partial backside sticking above the water.  They stayed in the water, and I kept walking on the far side of the road, no problem.  But on the way back, with the gate and parking lot just a few hundred yards away, I came upon a behemoth on the side of the road.  It had to be 12 to 15 feet long, easily.  I don't know how wide the road is, maybe enough for two vehicles to squeeze past each other?  I had two options:  try to make myself comfortable and wait it out until the beast went back to the water or make a run past it.  I can boast about being a tough guy from Jersey, but I'm not stupid either.  Well, after a little bit of waiting I decided to go for it.  Adult alligators have slow metabolisms and can go about a week or so between meals.  It was my hope that this one very recently had a satisfying meal.  I started walking slowly as far to the other side of the road as possible.  I don't know how fast a big gator can move, and I was, well, praying not to find out.  I thought starting off slow would be the best way to start off, then abruptly shedding all unnecessary extra weight (bins, camera, etc.) and fleeing would be the go-to move.

Huge alligator along edge of road, Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, August 2021.  © S. Weiss

Not one of my most prudent photographs.  © S. Weiss

I guess I am somewhat stupid, because halfway past the gator (meaning directly in front of it) I paused to take a picture.  As soon as I made it past, I hurriedly continued on to the car.  Bravery is what I did for 27 years as a career north Jersey firefighter, but in hindsight, the alligator thing was really stupid.

Needless to say, I made it back to Disney's Coronado Springs and spent some magical time with my wife and daughter.