FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 31, 2002

New Bird Watching Opportunities Await Nature Lovers

-- Groundbreaking ceremony at Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park --

FLORIDA BIRDING TRAIL -- The West Florida Birding Trail, part of the 2,000 mile Great Florida Birding Trail, officially opens Saturday, November 2 with a groundbreaking ceremony at Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park.

Three areas on the west end of the 93,000 acre Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway, managed by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, were selected as part of the birding trail for their excellent bird watching and educational opportunities.

"The Inglis Island Trail is a 3.4-mile wilderness trail which begins at Lake Rousseau in northern Citrus County and crosses Inglis Dam to Inglis Island where 1,200 acres of bird-ing activities await. Long-tail ducks, ring-neck ducks, and golden eyes are found along the river and the Island is a favorite nesting site for ospreys and bald eagles. Anhingas, limpkins, and double-crested cormorants can also be found. A live oak forest attracts neotropical migrants in the fall and spring. Grassy fields on the island provide food and shelter for wintering sparrows. Evenings and early mornings bring out nighthawks and barred owls. More than 50 bird species can be seen along the trail on a spring or fall morning walk.

"Planned for completion by the end of summer 2003, the Withlacoochee Bay Trail, a non-motorized multi-use paved trail, provides a mix of bird habitat including scrub, hardwood hammock, flatland, and coastal areas. Along the trail, visitors can watch hawks, bald ea-gles, ground doves, spotted sandpipers, pelicans, cormorants, and loons.

"The Withlacoochee Bay Spoil Islands is a 10-island, 10-mile, open-water trail stretching into the Gulf of Mexico. Birders can see oyster catchers, cormorants, gulls, terns, and skimmers. The islands are off limits during the breeding season.