Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy.
~Anne Frank
This past weekend, I drove down to Myrtle Beach State Park (yes, there is such a thing) to visit our good friends Scott and Ann. Ann is a ranger at the park and they both are superb naturalists. The park was the first SC State Park, opening in 1936. It is 312 acres of green and 1 mile of ocean beach in an otherwise sea of human-dominated terrain, the Grand Strand of Myrtle Beach. Look up and down the beach front beyond the park boundary and you see buildings, lots of them. The traffic on a summer weekend is insane and the pace of development throughout the region is incredible. The airport runway is just a little way from the park so plane noise and tourist-filled helicopter flyovers are frequent. And yet, that park and the nearby Huntington Beach State Park are some of the best places I know to see and photograph a huge variety of wildlife from birds to alligators to denizens of the ocean. I arrived mid-afternoon and we headed for a late lunch/early dinner before the crowds descended on all the local eateries. It was apparently a good omen when a Roseate Spoonbill landed along the marsh creek off the deck of the restaurant and gave us a good view.
After lunch, we headed over to Huntington Beach SP. This park is unique in that there are 3 large bodies of water inland of the ocean – a freshwater marsh and swamp, a brackish pond and marsh complex, and a tidal salt marsh. The entrance road is on a causeway that cuts between the salt marsh and brackish pond. We headed to the path locals call the Straight Road as there were not a lot of birds in the salt marsh as yet, but the tide was dropping so the action should pick up later.
-A nest of baby Green Herons in the trees along the walkway (click photos to enlarge)
There is a line of shrubs and trees on both sides of the walkway that provide nesting habitat for a variety of birds including night herons, Green Herons, and Anhingas. You might also find yourself sharing the path with an American Alligator as it crosses between the fresh and brackish ponds
-One of several alligators that crossed the path while we were there. This is about a 5-footer. It’s a treat to see them walking on land since most of the time you just see their head and back in the water.
-They often come out of the water and then lay on the path for a few minutes before crossing.
It seems that most people are looking for alligators when they visit this part of the park and we enjoyed helping folks spot them. At one point, a very nice family from France stopped us and asked about where to see the gators. We showed them a couple and several species of birds, They were very interested in nature so we had a great time chatting with them. One of the boys spotted something on the ground and asked us what it was…none of us knew. The father thought it might be a leech, but we naturalists thought it was probably the larva of an insect. It vaguely resembled a Rat-tailed Maggot, the larva of a type of hoverfly, but it was more armored-looking and it was crawling around on the ground next to the freshwater pond. Even our SEEK app just said “Insects”. I took a few photos and we promised we would email them if we found out.
-I posted the photo on iNaturalist which gave the best possible ID as a larva of a type of Soldier Fly, most likely in the genus, Stratiomys. The larvae are aquatic (that “tail” is a breathing tube) but they occasionally do crawl on land, which is where this one was found.
After ending our time on the Straight Road, we headed over to the causeway to see what might be happening at peak low tide, a favorite time for various birds to hunt for food on the salt marsh channel right next to the road. There was a flock of ancient-looking Wood Storks standing along the marsh edge. Some were preening, some feeding, but most just hanging out…what strange-looking creatures with that scaly neck and huge bill.
-A large flock of Wood Stork in the marsh along the causeway
-A face a mother could love (I suppose)
Wood Storks are one of the largest breeding wading birds in North America and our only stork. Their unusual appearance has given rise to some other colorful common names such as Ironhead and Flinthead. Sexes look alike and young birds are similar but usually have some downy feathers on their neck. They have expanded their breeding range northward since the 1970’s when habitat conditions in South Florida started declining. They feed primarily on fish which they capture by slowly walking in shallow water, gently swinging their head with an open beak in the water. They are tactile feeders rather than visual, relying on their sensitive beak to snap shut before an encountered fish or other aquatic organism can escape. They often use foot-stirring to startle fish into their beak as they walk along.
I had really hoped to photograph some of the 20+ Roseate Spoonbills that have been seen this summer along the causeway. Low tide was a great time for them to be feeding but the only ones we could find were in the brackish pond or far out in the marsh, both too far for photos. Finally, a lone spoonbill came flying in.
-Roseate Spoonbills are one of 6 species of spoonbills worldwide and the only one in the New World. Their distinctive pink color and spatulate bill make them easy to identify.
Huntington Beach SP is one of the best places I know that you can reliably see spoonbills without driving much farther south. They are seen here in summer and into the fall months. The pink color can be variable depending on their diet (this one wasn’t as pink as most I have seen in the past). The color comes from carotenoid pigments formed by various algae. Shrimp and other crustaceans eat the algae and the spoonbills eat them. Adult birds tend to be darker pink.
-The spoonbill used its strange bill to gently preen under its wings. There is a slight hooked tip to both the upper and lower bill. This probably helps grab prey items but it must also make it easier to preen feathers.
We had hoped for some late afternoon sunlight to provide that golden hour glow for some photos, but an incoming thunderstorm had different plans. As the light decreased, the spoonbill seemed to get even more energetic in its feeding. I took a few short videos of its feeding style – an intense head swing back and forth while moving swiftly though the shallow water. Video was far more forgiving than trying to take stills of all this motion in the low light.
A Tri-colored Heron came in near the spoonbill and exhibited yet another feeding style – the low crouch and wait. When a fish swam near, the bird snagged it with one quick jab.
-A Tri-colored Heron patiently waits for a fish to swim near…
-A quick jab and the bird speared a nice evening snack of a small mullet
Next morning I woke up to find that Ann had already left (about 6 a.m. I think) to relocate a sea turtle nest. She, and a team of trained volunteers, are on call to relocate sea turtle nests from the heavily impacted beaches of the city to a more protected stretch of sand at the dune line in the park. Scott and I were about ready to head out when she came back and took the Loggerhead Sea Turtle eggs over to the beach to be re-buried. Ann has been doing this for many years and is a real pro at the protocols and instruction training for the volunteers. A couple of young park visitors had joined the group to observe by the time we arrived and listened intently as Ann explained what was happening. The nest had 106 eggs which volunteers carefully placed into a new nest hole they had dug. The nest is covered with sand and then a protective sheet of plastic screening is staked over it to keep out predators like raccoons and foxes. The final step is adding a sign identifying it as a protected spot and explaining how we all can help turtles (and other coastal wildlife) by reducing the impact of our visits to these beautiful shores. It reminded me of my time as a park naturalist and working with sea turtle nests at Hammocks Beach State Park many years ago. Some of the techniques are similar, but we know so much more about sea turtles now and have made great progress in getting the message out about their protection.
-The nest was relocated and protected with screening and information for park visitors
After that, we headed back over to Huntington Beach to look for more birds and other wildlife. Since the tide was high and still coming in, we headed to the north end of the beach to walk out to the jetty at Murrells Inlet. We beat a lot of the crowd out to the beach but it was already pretty hot with little breeze, and my bum knee made the 1.3 mile walk seem a bit longer. As we neared the jetty a couple said they had just seen a mink between the rocks, supposedly a rather common site these days on the jetty. We didn’t manage to find a mink, but the ocean water was exceptionally clear and Ann knew to be on the lookout for juvenile Green Sea Turtles. They are regular visitors to the jetty, having a somewhat more omnivorous diet when young. Sure enough we hadn’t walked far when she spotted one. Now, getting a photo of one, even with the clear water, isn’t easy. They are fast swimmers and usually just poke their head above water once for air and are gone.
-A juvenile Green Sea Turtle pops up for a breath of air
We continued walking and came across a Snowy Egret fishing off the jetty’s boulders.
-A nice snack for the Snowy Egret. Scott thought it might be a blenny of some sort based on the body shape and the fact they are an abundant fish species on the jetty.
Walking back, we saw a second juvenile sea turtle. Notice the barnacles on this one that are lacking on the one in the previous photo. Loggerhead Sea Turtles are the dominant breeder on these beaches with only an occasional Green (or Kemp’s Ridley or Leatherback) laying eggs in this region. But juvenile Greens are frequently seen at the jetty or off the fishing pier from April to November.
-Another juvenile Green Sea Turtle off the jetty…check out those chompers!
As someone said, the walk to the jetty is 2 miles out and 5 miles back. It certainly seems that way on a hot day. We escaped to the nature center to eat lunch in the breezy shade under the deck. The park maintains a bird feeding station and some much sought-after bird diners regularly appear. Painted Buntings are a favorite species for many park visitors and this is a place where you are almost guaranteed to see them. There were two males regularly visiting the feeder along with a Red-bellied Woodpecker, some finches, and, eventually, a stunning Red-headed Woodpecker. It was the middle of the day, the light was harsh, and it seemed neither bird nor photographer wanted to be out in the sun. But it was still fun to see these wildly colorful male birds, considered by many to be the most beautiful bird in North America.
-A male Painted Bunting waits his turn in the deep shade before flying out to the feeder.
-A Red-headed Woodpecker shows off his colors after opening a seed
I headed home before a line of storms reached the beach area, driving through the dense developments, car wash places, and seemingly endless sea of t-shirt shops that characterize this beach town environment. Hard to believe you can find such natural beauty hidden in some remaining pockets of habitat and that so many species are able to co-exist with the crowds, noise, and lights. We should all appreciate folks like my friends that help manage these lands and the wildlife for the rest of us to enjoy…thank you all.
Roads End Naturalist 