Damage from the 2024 hurricanes have disrupted my camping plans in widely separate geographic locations. First it was New Year's camping at Hillsborough River State Park, which I was notified in mid-December would not reopen until sometime in 2025 to finish cleanup and repairs from hurricane Milton. Then just 2 weeks ago I was notified that my reservation for next month in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was cancelled since the road to Big Creek is still closed from hurricane Helene damage. Fortunately the backpacking portion of that trip will be unaffected, and there is a car camping alternative, although the large RV campground will not be as appealing as the small tent only Big Creek campground.
For New Year's I ended up doing a four day three night backpacking trip in the Citrus Tract of Florida's Withlacoochee State Forest. I had not been there since the early 90's when I visited with the Tampa Bay Grotto of the National Speleological Society to expore some of the caves there and practice our vertical rope-work. On the first day of my recent hike I passed one of these caves, known locally as Jeep Cave.
Entrance to Jeep Cave
While most of the Citrus tract is sandhill habitat, there are small areas of upland hardwood forests, one of which was where Jeep cave is located.
Trail entering upland hardwood forest
When I was in this forest before, during my first decade as a Floridian, I did not know anything about sandhills. Since then I have come to appreciate not only the natural beauty of this habitat, but also the wide variety of plant and animal life that makes its home in the sandhills.
Trail passing through sandhills
Being as it was winter, there were not a lot of wildflowers in bloom, but I did see a few, including some pineland goldenasters.
Pineland goldenaster with bloom
As i neared the end of my first day's hike, I came across a corn snake on the trail that I managed to photograph before it slithered off.
Corn snake on the trail
Another critter that I did not see but there was extensive evidence of their presence were pocket gophers. While the large sandy mounds are often ubiquitous in sandhills, the small rodents nearly always close off the entrance. Twice on this Withlacoochee hike I saw pocket gopher mounds with the opening to the burrows exposed, a sight I have never seen before this.
Pocket gopher mound with opening
One of the other plants in bloom was pineywoods dropseed. This grass had a dainty, open red and white inflorescence.
Pineywoods dropseed
The highlight of the hike had to be the fact that I saw or heard six of the eight species of woodpeckers that can be found in Florida. This started early on the first day when I spotted a red-headed woodpecker flying between dead trees.
As I continued on my hike I passed a number of banded trees with the tale-tale candling from red-cockaded woodpeckers. These small rare birds are dependent upon finding old live longleaf pines trees that have soft heartwood caused by a fungus. The fungus makes it easier for the woodpeckers to excavate a nest cavity, and the fact that the trees are still alive allows the woodpeckers to peck around the opening to their nest, causing the sap to run down the trunk (candeling), helping to protect the nest from predators, such as snakes. I heard some of these woodpeckers, and might have also seen them, but too briefly for a positive ID.
I also saw and heard Florida's largest woodpecker - now that Ivory-bills are extirpated and presumed extinct - the Pileated.
In my second campsite I was treated shortly after dawn by the sights and sounds of a red-bellied woodpecker. About the same size as red-headed, but with less red on the head, the namesake belly coloring is most noticable if these woodpeckers are perched on a small branch or wire.
One of the more interesting sights on day three were two birds on a branch high in a pine tree. I first noticed the fan-shaped tail characteristic of the woodpecker family, and as I watched them, realized that one was doing most of the calling in a manner that suggested to me mating behaviour. These two birds turned out to be northern flickers.
As if to cap off the entire hike, just after I reached my vehicle and was stowing my gear I heard the tapping of another woodpecker. Looking around I spotted a little downy woodpecker peeking out of a hole near the top of a snag next to the parking area. After a few minutes it emerged and flew away.
Read more about and see photos of Woodpeckers in Florida at the Paul Rebmann Nature Photography Woodpeckers in Florida blog post .
Note that clicking on any of the images or links above in this newsletter will take you to the Wild Florida Photo website page for that subject.
Paul Rebmann Nature Photography/Wild Florida Photo will be at the Florida Wildflower and Garden Festival, this Saturday, March 29, 2025 in Downtown DeLand, Florida and at the FNPS Pawpaw Chapter Native Plant Sale and Expo on Saturday, May 3 at the Piggotte Center in South Daytona.
For details on these and other events, visit the Wild Florida Photo events page.
Lady Orchid #2 canvas print
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Field of Blazing Stars weekender tote bag
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Thank you, and I hope that you enjoy my photography.
Paul Rebmann
Wild Florida Photo
paul-rebmann.pixels.com
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