January 2000 Table of Contents

High winds and flooding did a lot of damage but most birds were able to survive this. The delayed effects of the storm, however, had a greater impact. The vegetation was defoliated by the high winds and salt water; flooding killed many trees and shrubs outright. With no flowers for nectar, many hummingbirds starved to death. Several dead ones were found on the roads around Treasure Cay and those with feeders and gardens noted fewer birds. Babaquis suffered a similar fate but less so since their metabolism is slower and they substitute other foods when necessary.

Because of the defoliation, many leaf-eating insects died leaving little food for the insectiverous birds. Warblers, thrushes and woodpeckers began coming to feeders to drink nectar for energy - not their normal activity.

Migrant birds I'm sure were affected, especially if they decided to come across in the face of Floyd. Endangered species such as the Kirtland's Warbler, which is known to winter only in The Bahamas, could have taken a major hit if this occurred. One was recently found near Hole in the Wall so we're sure of at least one that didn't perish as the result of the storm.

Of the water birds, the number of Bahama Pintail Ducks is drastically down. Were they able to fly elsewhere to escape Floyd or did they die as a result of it? Time will tell, but there were but two on the Treasure Cay Golf Course where 20 or more were usually seen and I had over 40 in one location this summer prior to the storm.

Some White-crowned Pigeons do move south in the fall, but I haven't seen a one since the storm. Of more concern is the threatened Bahamas Parrot which does not migrate. A trip to the National Park in southern Abaco revealed none during an ill-timed visit during the heavy rains of Hurricane Irene, but on a later visit in early December - an all day visit - only two were heard and none seen. Fortunately, the young would have fledged from their underground nests in holes in the limestone rock before Floyd hit, but the fruit they eat (wild guava, etc) certainly was eliminated so I would expect they had some losses. Let's hope this endemic bird has enough individuals left to keep the species going. They have enough troubles with the excessive number of fires set purposely in the forest where they live by hunters, predation by feral cats and now the recently introduced racoons.

With a little help from us, such as placing a forestry officer in the national park to protect the parrots and their habitat, they'll have a better chance for continued existence in the new millenium. Mother nature has a unique way to rebound, and as the plants have now greened out and the flowers are beginning to bloom again, the birds (like the bees) will do what they do and be back in the numbers they were before Floyd.