Florida Panhandle - Pensacola area

[Margaret]

I was there first week in April and the birding was nothing like the great birding I've experienced on the Sarasota/Fort Myers coast previously. No waders seen on lakes - only 6 GB herons and 2 snowy egrets seen in flight. (And half a dozen cattle egrets in a field.) At the beaches (like icing sugar!): Pelicans, Laughing and Bonaparte gulls but not one tern seen.
Best sightings: multiple pairs of nesting osprey. (Great to see after Katrina in 2005 wiped out 40% of the canopy in the Panhandle area.)
Pair of eastern bluebirds
Prothonotary warbler (first for me)
Orchard oriole (first again for me)
Cedar waxwing and Cardinals
WB nuthatch (I searched for the brown-headed variety but no luck)
Brown creeper
Carolina chickadee
Mockers galore
Red bellied woodpecker (first for me)
Eastern towhee (only my second one)
Blue gray gnatcatcher
RWBB
Eastern kingbird
RS hawk
Common loons in the bay
DC cormorants
Anhingas
Nesting areas for snowy and piping plovers were out of bounds
I visited 12 State Parks from border of Alabama east along the coast to Seaside and everywhere I was told "the migrants haven't come in yet". Too bad.

[Moira]

It's too bad you were disappointed ... a number of the birds on your list would be firsts for me.  I was ecstatic with my sightings in Bradenton/Sarasota (mostly thanks to the advice provided by you!)

[Margaret]

Moira, Glad to hear you had great birding on the Sarasota coast - I've never been disappointed there. So many different  waders, terns etc. I bet you have a slew of fantastic pics.  I'm keen to know if you saw any burrowing owls.
I guess it seems churlish of me to complain of lack of birds in the Panhandle area and then give a list of sightings BUT it was so weird NOT to see one wader or duck on any lake, large or small in all the State parks we visited.
I was certainly happy to see an E. bluebird and doubly so when his mate showed up - now if only I'd got a pic it would have been a perfect day!

[Moira]

Margaret:  I saw burrowing owls in Punta Gorda by the golf course (on someone's lawn!)  One of my favourite experiences.

[Margaret]

WOW, Moira, lucky you. I mst pay more attention to Punta Gorda next time I'm in Florida. (Won't be this year!)