30 Days in June: Day 3, Barr Hammock

Educational Bike Rack at Barr Hammock

After all the reports of Phalarope activity on Tuesday, I seriously considered going to the La Chua Trail, yet again. But after thinking about it, I decided that 1) I probably wouldn't find it, 2) I had lots of other parks to hit in my month, and 3) I never have as much fun when I'm searching for something specific, anyway. So I broke with the pack and went to Barr Hammock. This turned out to be a good decision for many reasons, not the least of which was that it appears that the Phalarope has moved on. Along the highway through the Prairie, I picked up the Bald Eagle that I had missed on Monday. It was being mobbed by crows as it flew over. I got a good look at the  white tail, but had to remind myself that birdwatching and driving don't mix well. I also saw a pair of Sandhill Cranes, as well as some ducks that I couldn't identify from the car. They will merit another drive with a brief stop on the shoulder to figure out what they are, maybe on my way to Bolen's Bluff.

Red Shouldered Hawk

It was sunny and hot and humid after several days with afternoon rain and the Barr Hammock parking lot was almost empty. As I unloaded from the car a cyclist came in off the trail, leaving me with the park all to myself. I headed off on the right hand side of the loop. The plan was to walk to my usual turn around spot at the covered bench. I rarely walk the entire loop because it is 6 miles and I get tired, especially in the heat of the day. And there are no bathrooms. My target bird at Barr Hammock was the Common Yellowthroat, which I heard and then saw minutes into the trail, and all along the trail for the entire 4 hours I was out there. Such reliable little dears! After that I was free to see or not see anything I wanted and it felt great. I started thinking that over the years I have developed a pretty good idea where I could go if I wanted to visit certain plants, animals or insects around Gainesville. I wonder how long it will take me to figure that out in Athens?

Giant Swallowtail on Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)

I walked slowly, watching for bugs and butterflies and listening for anything interesting. There were huge numbers of Swallowtail Butterflies. I saw Palamedes, Spicebush, Black, Giant and Tiger Swallowtails, as well as dozens of Viceroys. There are Button Bushes blooming on the sides of the dike and they are a terrific nectar plant. There are also Water Hemlock plants growing alongside and they are a host plant for Black Swallowtails, and Willows that are host plants for the Viceroys. I had good photo ops on several occasions when butterflies landed on the wet sand to "puddle"--ingest essential salts and other minerals.

Black Swallowtail Caterpillars on Water Hemlock (Cicuta maculata)

Viceroy Puddling

Palamedes Swallowtail Puddling

Not too far down the trail I came across a wing and feathers from a Red Shouldered Hawk. I have no idea what ate it, but it was gruesomely fascinating to look at. Something had just yanked the wing off. It was pretty fresh, too, but the ants and flies were making good work of it. A little further down the trail I found a dead turtle. I couldn't tell if it had been run over or stepped on. Even with the small amount of traffic on that trail, if an animal is in the wrong place at the wrong time, it can mean disaster. Like the hawk wing, the ants were busy cleaning off any meat from the turtle. I could see white bones inside through the hole in its shell.

Hawk Wing

Crushed Turtle

I kept walking, enjoying the solitude. The sky was a beautiful blue with big, fluffy clouds. A Snowy Egret and Little Blue Heron flew over, adding 2 more birds to the list. Then around the bend I bumped into a family of Sandhill Cranes out for a stroll. I am pretty sure I saw this family a month or so ago and they had 2 colts (crane chicks), so something must have happened to the other. But this colt looked healthy and tall and was well protected by its parents. They were not too concerned with my presence and let me take photos. But they kept an eye on me, nonetheless, as they moved along. There was another, lone, adult crane further down the trail. I don't know if this was a 2nd year juvenile hanging around its family group, or just a lonely crane. But it moved away before I could get a good look.

Blue Skies

Crane Family Feeding

I looked over the bushes for Blue Grosbeaks, but didn't have any luck. I'll have to keep hunting. And I heard a Yellow Billed Cuckoo, but couldn't see it in the bushes. I did see 3 Least Bitterns! They're everywhere! At the turn around spot, I looked up and caught a Hummingbird sitting on a branch, and then heard a flock of common grackles. I think a Red Shouldered Hawk that was flying over had made them nervous. A Green Heron landed on a snag, then flew into the bushes. A Great Egret soared overhead and I saw the sun shining through the layers of its feathers. Red-winged Blackbirds gurgled and chucked from bushes all along the road.

Hummingbird 

Soaring Egret

At the trailhead, I decided to take a short walk the other direction on the loop to see if I could find a snake or a turtle or a Blue Gray Gnatcatcher. There were Northern Parulas everywhere. I'm always hoping to see an otter at Barr Hammock. I've heard them splash and have seen the places where they slide down the banks. No otters or Gnatcatchers this time, but I did see a Raccoon climbing through the greenery, and found some fox or coyote tracks. I saw 2 alligators, too. One was stretched out on a log and another on the path. I was ready to turn around and give up the path to the gator, but it spooked first and I walked on a bit. I scared a Black Racer and caught glimpses of turtles just as they ducked into the water. They are very wary, and understandably so. Everything eats turtles, and turtle eggs. I found a clutch of eaten eggs on the bank of the canal.

Rummaging Raccoon

Green Anole on Cattail

Turtle Eggs

Walking back to the car I considered taking a quick stop at Lake Wauberg to try to catch some more birds for the list. But then I came to my senses and accepted that I was hot and tired. I am not in the June Challenge to win, but sometimes the collector in me becomes obsessed. But what I really want in the coming weeks is to be outside, enjoying and experiencing as much as I can of my favorite places and if I see birds on the list, all the better. I have to keep reminding myself of this when I hear reports of special bird sightings. But then again, if someone reported that Phalarope…

Crane Family

Bird Count: I added 5 today, plus the Black Swans in the my neighborhood Duckpond, for a total of 65 (66). It really was not my intention to write 30 blog entries in the month of June, but so far every day has had enough activity to fill a page and then some. Time will tell if my energy and enthusiasm will last, but I'll ride the wave until then!

Keep the Barr Open!

It's hard to believe, but once again the people of Alachua County are doing battle with a small group of homeowners who are trying to limit access to public preserved lands. Last time it was an individual trying to buy part of a city nature park. This time it is a group of homeowners whose property borders a half mile section of the Levy Loop Trail at Barr Hammock Preserve. They claim that the noise of hikers on the trail disturbs them and that increased foot traffic so near their homes is a security danger. They are complaining about cameras aimed at their homes, loose dogs on their property and increased bear sightings, among other things. As a solution, these homeowners have proposed that the half mile of the loop trail that borders their yards be closed to the public. County land managers have tried to work with them, posting signs that ask visitors to be quiet for half a mile on the loop, and offering to plant vegetation that would create a privacy screen. But the homeowners want to have their views of the natural area, and they want to be alone while they view it.

Public Support, Public Funding, Public Land

The property was acquired between 2006 and 2010 by Alachua County using conservation funds from many agencies dedicated to purchasing, restoring and preserving environmentally significant land. Originally a wetlands, the prairie had been drained and used for many years for cattle grazing. It took several years after the purchase to restore the wetlands--to fill in canals that drained the marsh, build the levee trails to hold the water in and install water pipes to control the water levels during seasonal flooding. The community was very excited about this new trail that would loop around the marsh. Barr Hammock Preserve opened to the public in February of 2013. At the ribbon cutting, there was a large crowd of enthusiastic nature lovers of all ages and types. There were local politicians, birders, runners, bikers, conservationists and just people who appreciate beautiful places. After the introductions, histories and dedication, there were hikes and hay rides led by naturalists and it was a wonderful day. Barr Hammock quickly became a popular spot for nature lovers all over the county.

Educational Bike Rack

Florida Watersnake

Water Moccassin

History of the Property

You can see the Loop Trail on the Lower Left

Watch for snakes, no dogs, protect the cranes and be careful!

I am one of those nature lovers and I've been on the trail probably 10 times over the past year and a half. I walked the entire 6 1/2 mile loop the day of the ribbon cutting, but for most of my visits, I walk a mile or so out on one side, then walk back, and then walk a mile or so and back on the other side. That way I can experience a little of the open, sunny walk on the north, as well as some of the shady, swampy side on the south. My experience is that the north side tends to have lots of birds, bugs and flowers, while the shady south side is where I've seen snakes and otters.

Beginning the Sunny Walk Along North Levee

Looking Back from the North, Over the Prairie

Phoebe

Sandhill Cranes

Great Egret

Dewy Spiderweb

Coyote Scat

Burmarigold (Bidens laevis)

Beggars Ticks (Bidens mitis)

Big Flock of Pigeons

Bladderwort (Ultricularia inflata)

Swamp Sparrow

Viceroy

Mockingbird

Then you go back and try the other side

Walking on the South Levee

Orbweaver Spider and bugs

Phaon Crescent Butterfly

Shady Swamp

So here's the problem. This is a 6 1/2 mile loop trail and the homeowners who live near the beginning of the loop would like to turn this into a one way trail and not allow visitors to pass in front of their homes. This means that anyone who wants to walk to the north side, with its vast horizons and marshes for birds will need to walk 6 miles in and 6 miles back. This just isn't fair. It restricts access for all but those who have the ability to go so far. In the summer, especially, 12 miles will be daunting. There are no bathrooms or drinking fountains. Essentially, these homeowners would close most of the trail just by making it too hard to get to. They want to enjoy the fruits of a beautiful wet prairie restoration (remember that just a few years ago it was dry cattle grazing ground), paid for by public funds, all by themselves.

Six Miles Either Way

One funny thing about the noise complaint--the trailhead is right next to I-75. It is so loud there that when my hiking buddy drove in today, I was taking photos and couldn't even hear her car come in. The traffic is very loud up to about the first half mile on either side of the loop. Only after you turn away from the road does it start to quiet down. It just seems like a stretch to say that the voices of the birders, bikers, hikers and families are more disturbing than the interstate. And there usually are very few people out using the trail, anyway. My friends and I are usually alone when we hike during the week. Weekends may be different, but it's just hard to imagine it's that bad.

Entrance Right Next to I-75

Quiet Parking Lot

I can sympathize to a small degree with the homeowners. It probably feels intrusive to have someone with binoculars aimed toward your house, even if the person is looking for birds. The same goes for cameras with big lenses. And people outside enjoying themselves can be loud. Some people might bring dogs, even though it is not allowed. And there are just jerks everywhere who yell, litter, and do stupid, rude things. And if these homeowners did live in the houses before the trail opened, they got used to their privacy, with their vistas looking out over the grazing land. But now the land has been restored and is gorgeous and they still want their privacy. You just can't have it both ways. They just have to share. It's public land and you can't make it private for just a few. But the public has to be respectful and polite. People with cameras and binoculars can remember that there are homes behind those bushes, and everyone should keep their voices down in the early morning hours. You see more wildlife that way, anyway! We can find a way to get along and play well together.

Mutual Respect is the Only Way

This is late notice, but there is an Alachua County Commission meeting tonight to address this issue. Come to the meeting and show your support for public lands. 5pm. Alachua County Administration Building, 12 SE 1st Street, Room 209. Keep the Barr Open.

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Update after the Commission meeting: The Commissioners decided to keep the entire trail open after the homeowners withdrew their request to close the half mile, which is a good thing. And then in order to ease the concerns of the homeowners, they voted to ask the land management staff to do further evaluation about how to discourage visitors from taking the North Levee and add some more interpretive signs. I won't go into the meeting. It was, as a friend put it, like watching the sausage being made, and I'm a little queazy over it still. Local government is not a pretty thing. But I think the public was mostly served in the end and our trail is open. Go enjoy.

One thing I learned at the meeting that I hadn't fully appreciated before was that this is just the first phase of a much larger project. In the near future there will be more trails to the south, with more options such as horse trails and better bike trails. And there will be another entrance, which should take some of the pressure off of these homeowners.