FLORIDA KEYS BEST

A Guide to John Audubon's visit to the Florida Keys

CLICK image Above for LODGING Hotels and motels Florida Keys and Key West       AUDUBON IN THE FLORIDA KEYS     INDEX    AUDUBON INDIAN KEY 1832 CORMORANT ROSEATE TERN GRAY KINGBIRD REDDISH EGRET LOUISIANA HERON SANDY KEY WHITE IBIS WILLET   ZENAIDA DOVE WHITE CROWNED PIGEON THE AUDUBON HOUSE IN KEY WEST AUDUBON'S KEY WEST KEY WEST AFTER AUDUBON ROSEATE SPOONBILL GREAT WHITE HERON GREAT BLUE HERON KEY WEST DOVE FLAMINGOS BLUE- HEADED QUAIL DOVE FRIGATE BIRD BROWN PELICAN MANGROVE CUCKOO TORTUGAS SOOTY TERN BLACK HEADED GULL BROWN NODDY CAYENNE TERN BROWN BOOBY SANDWICH TERN NIGHT HERON GREENSHANK GREAT MARBLED GODWIT MANGO HUMMING- BIRD TROPIC BIRD BIRDING LODGING ONLINE STORE   BOOK ORDERS AUDUBON PRINTS NATURALIST PHOTOS     FLORIDA KEYS BEST INDEX KIDS IN THE KEYS LINKS FAMILIES IN THE FLORIDA KEYS COMPANION SITE - DUCK KEY ONLINE     BIRD LINKS

John Audubon observes the Night Heron   April and May, 1832 - Audubon paints the Night Heron in the Florida Keys   Night Heron           The frog, of which I introduced a figure, is common in the retired swamps which the Night Heron frequents, and is often devoured by it. The flowering plants which you see, are abundant in the states of Georgia and South Carolina, as well as in the Floridas.     Audubon writes about the Night Heron in Volume III of his Ornithological Biography . He writes that the Night Heron is a "constant resident of the Southern States" as well as Eastern States as far north as Massachusetts. Some of his comments about Florida and the Keys appear below:  In the course of my winter rambles through East Florida, I met with several of the large places of resort of the Night Heron, . . . " "At the approach of spring, great numbers of those which have wintered far south, leave their place of sojourn and migrate eastward, although probably an equal number remain in the low lands of Louisiana and the Floridas during the whole year. There. indeed, I have found them with eggs in April and may, and as young birds just fledged were very abundant at the same places, I concluded that these eggs were of the second laying. . . . " As to breeding places Audubon writes, "In the Floridas they are partial to the mangroves that overhang the salt-water; . . . . . Those which I found in the Florida were all placed on the south-west sides of mangrove islands, but were farther apart from each other, some only about a foot above high-water mark, while others were in the very tops of the trees, which, however, scarcely exceeded twenty feet in height. . . . "     Additional information about the night heron may be found by following the link below to the Florida Breeding Bird Atlas. The Atlas, a collaborative effort of Audubon of Florida, the Florida Ornithological Society, and the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission provides information of general status, habitat, and status of  breeding species in Florida    http://wildflorida.org/bba/BCNH.htm      THIS PAGE CREATED BY FLORIDA KEYS BEST COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL http://www.floridakeysbest.com site map email@floridakeysbest.com Florida Keys Best 386 East Seaview Drive Marathon, Florida 33050 305-289-1872