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During the winter Central Florida in general and the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge in particular is considered to be one of the country’s premier birding destinations. So, if you are planning a vacation in Orlando, and you are a bird watching enthusiast, then you are in for a big treat.

If you are novice you can enjoy the spring nesting season in Gatorland and if you are a more experienced birder then you will probably want to head straight to the Merrit Island Wildlife Refuge.

This is a NASA owned site and it also includes the Kennedy Space Centre. For birding the Black Point Wildlife Drive is an excellent place to view waders herons, and marsh species. This is a six-mile drive around lagoons and ponds where you don’t even have to leave the car. You can spend an entire day at Merrit Island. While you are there keep a lookout for these species: Florida Scrub-jay, Reddish Egret, Roseatte Spoonbill and Black Skimmer. To get to Merrit Island just take SR50 east to Titusville then north on the US1 shortly before going east on SR406 across the Indian River.

Besides Merrit Island, there are plenty of other places where you can enjoy birding in all the seasons of the year. Here are a few places that you can visit:

Orlando Wetlands Park. This is a water reclamation system east of Orlando off SR50. It has a small reception area and offers large open ponds with extensive fresh water marsh. The “target” birds of this park include Purple Gallinule, Least Bittern and Wood duck.

Black point drive is a six mile, one way drive which forms part of the Merit Island Reserve. The target species here include: Roseate Spoonbill, Waders, Terns and Black Skimmer. If you are looking you may also be able to spot alligators and manatees as well. This spot is also ideal for scenic photography.

Cypress Lake is located approximately 15 miles south of Kissimmee off highway 523. It is an area of rough grassland, mixed pine forest and also has muddy fringes around the edge of the lake. The target species at Cypress Lake include: Crested Caracara, Eastern Bluebird, Sandhill Crane and Loggerhead Shrike. In addition to the birds you can also see wildlife such as raccoons here.

Brinson Park is not exactly a reserve but it is so close to the main tourist areas, and it has a good selection of species, making it an ideal destination for those with little time for birding. Target species here include Snail Kite, Bald Eagle, White winged Dove, Black necked Stilt. You can get to Brinson Park by driving south on US17/92 then east onto CR525 Neptune road.

These are just some of the places in the area where birders can get up close to a wide variety of species. For more ideas you can also use the following resources: The North American Bird Guide by David Sibley, Birds of North America by Kenn Kaufman, Birders Guide To Florida by Bill Pantry, and A Birdwatching guide to Florida by Derek Moore. In addition the websites of Orange Audubon Society , the Kissimmee Valley Audubon Society, and the Ridge Audubon Society also are rich sources of information about birding in the Orlando area and in Central Florida.

Janice McSherry is an Orlando vacations specialist. Visit her website for great deals on Orlando Vacation Home Rentals.

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