Matt O’Sullivan, back from a summer internship in Texas, hit the ground running with a Blackburnian Warbler at Bolen Bluff that tied the early-arrival record for Alachua County: https://www.flickr.com/photos/74215662@N04/29019003131/in/dateposted-public/
Felicia Lee reported a Short-tailed Hawk at La Chua on the 13th: “Dark morph bird, seen gliding low over the Prairie near the start of Sparrow Alley before flying north toward Sweetwater Wetlands Park. Relatively small size, hooked bill, wing shape and color pattern and white banded tail with a dark tip distinguished it from a Turkey Vulture or Black Vulture; solid dark undersides and wing pattern distinguished it from a Red-shouldered Hawk.” It was seen again on the 14th; on the 15th Danny Rohan spotted it over Sweetwater Wetlands Park; and on the 19th it was back at Sparrow Alley, where Dalcio Dacol got a photo: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31151378
Dalcio also got a nice photo of an American Avocet forced down by rainy weather at La Chua’s Gator Point on the 8th: https://www.flickr.com/photos/74215662@N04/28477718483/in/dateposted-public/
Adam Kent and Mike Manetz found a male Painted Bunting just beyond the La Chua boardwalk on the 10th. Jeff Graham relocated it and photographed it four days later: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31092286
You may have noticed that your old eBird checklists have replaced “American Coot” with “American Coot (Red-shielded),” and as you enter new checklists you’ll find that you’re given a choice between “American Coot” and “American Coot (Red-shielded).” This is fallout from the latest AOU checklist revision, which lumped American Coot and Caribbean Coot. They are now considered a single species, known as American Coot, but those in continental North America generally have a deep burgundy frontal shield while those in the Caribbean show a white frontal shield (David Sibley illustration and discussion here). When you’re entering them on your checklist, you can simply call them “American Coot,” or if you’re certain that all of those you see have burgundy frontal shields you can enter them as “American Coot (Red-shielded).” If you happen across one that has a white frontal shield – and they’ve been seen in Florida several times – you’ll have to click on “Add species” to enter it as “American Coot (White-shielded).” You can read all about the new eBird taxonomy here: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/news/taxonomy-update-for-2016/
It’s time to go birding! Golden-winged and Blue-winged Warblers, Cerulean Warblers, Canada Warblers, and Swainson’s Warblers have all been recorded earlier than August 20th!