2024 Hammock Coast Birding Festival

Bonaparte's Gull blending in with Hooded Mergansers

The Second annual Hammock Coast Birding Festival took place Feb. 8 – 11 on Super Bowl weekend. The host of TV show ‘Expeditions with Patrick McMillan’ was the keynote speaker for a dinner at Pawley’s Plantation, and then he went in the field the next day to the Tom Yawkey Wildlife Center for birding. Multiple properties in the area partner with the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce to promote the migratory species of birds found in winter. A sighting of a Western Kingbird at Brookgreen Gardens gave many birders the chance to add this species to their Life Bird List. 

Western Kingbird at Brookgreen Garden

          

“I am a botanist, but I appreciate the birding and charm of the Hammock Coast,” said McMillan. “I stand at 2642 Life Birds all time. Once I saw a bird with a leg band in the Lowcountry, and then when I was filming the TV show in Chile, I saw the same bird after its remarkable migration.” McMillan went on to state that S.C. is a weigh station for migrating shorebirds, and that he also marvels at hummingbirds. He implored birders to promote conservation when they can, and cited how native Americans created shell rings with oyster shells 5000-years ago that are still creating botanical and birding habitat today.

            

White Pelicans jockey for position

Day One of the Hammock Coast Fest included a visit to Huntington Beach State Park, walking on the North end of the beach including a stroll down the jetty. An immature bald eagle sitting in a dead pine tree where saltwater intrusion is killing the maritime forest was my first sighting of the day. Pelicans, Red-breasted mergansers, sanderlings and red-winged blackbirds all came into view. Two horned grebes swimming together in the ocean near the end of the jetty were a joy to view. And no one could miss the playful minks that now call the jetty home.

Great Blue Heron with Siren and shorebirds

Later that afternoon the Center for Birds of Prey came to Atalaya Castle to give a flight demonstration with their captive raptors. A Mississippi Kite and a Red-tailed hawk thrilled the birders, as staffer Addie Cater answered any questions about the birds. Saving the best for last, Carter surprised organizers and birders by releasing a rehabilitated Barred Owl into the woods besides the castle, saying that this was a great place for that bird to restart living in the wild after a brief hospital stay with them. Surely, this was the best sighting of the entire weekend.

            

Day Two at Brookgreen Gardens began at dawn, so it’s a good thing I was staying nearby at the Brookwood Inn. I saw a wood duck fly over, and heard its cry, which was immediately answered by a loud gobble by an unseen turkey nearby in the woods. Our grounp would later see that turkey strutting in a sure sign that Spring is nearing. A visit to their Zoo allowed for close up looks at waterfowl and wading birds for photographers. Besides the bird statues at the Brookgreen Zoo, the Red Wolf Ridge enclosure is a must see, but then its time to get back to birding!

To view the entire story in Trilogy Outdoors click on the March Issue.

To view past stories from Trilogy Outdoors click on Pheasant Tower Shoot -  Release Over 20 - 2023 Hawk Watch -  Kiawah Bird Banding -  2023 Crappie Camp -  Early Birds of September -  SCDNR Salt Fishing Clinics -  Silver King Makes Big Splash - S.C. Mahi Series - 2023 Yawkey Wildlife Center - 2023 Hammock Coast Birding Festival - 2023 Lowcountry Oyster Festival - 2022 Sea Turtle Season - Navigating an S.C. Public Draw Deer Hunt - Crappie Camp - Blessings of a Sporting Father