3.2 Birds visiting Gumbo Limbo
As summarized in Appendix 1, of thirty-one bird species observed in Gumbo Limbos twenty-seven were observed feeding. Fifteen species fed at both the Llano Grande and the cemetery trees, nine species fed at Cecilia’s tree, and five species fed at Steve’s tree. Most visits were of short duration (one-two minutes), but several medium-sized birds did stay in the tree for longer periods of time. However, the bird with the fourth largest average time of visits, Red-legged Honeycreeper (Cyanerpes cyaneus ), was one of the smallest. No species was observed in all four Gumbo Limbos, but Rose-throated Becards (Pachyramphus aglaiae ), Yellow-green Vireos (Vireo flavoviridis ), and Yellow-throated Vireos (Vireo flavifrons ) fed in three of the four different trees. Also observed in three different trees were Dusky-capped Flycatchers (Empidonax oberholseri ), but they only fed in two of them.
However, of all the birds feeding on Gumbo Limbo fruits, the species observed the most was Scarlet-rumped Tanager (Ramphocelus passerinii ). Males and/or females fed in the Llano Grande Gumbo Limbo on six of the seven observations I made of this tree. During those observations, Scarlet-rumped Tanagers fed fifteen different times, and only on the last observation did Scarlet-rumped Tanagers visit but not feed. The only other species that fed frequently at the Llano Grande Gumbo Limbo were Chestnut-capped Warblers and Red-legged Honeycreepers. Chestnut-capped Warblers fed seven times, and Red-legged Honeycreepers fed six times.
During my study eight migrant species were observed in the four different Gumbo Limbos. Only two did not feed on the fruits — Tennessee Warbler (Leiothlypis peregrina ) and Western Tanager (Piranga ludoviciana ). In comparison, twenty-four non-migrants/breeders visited these trees and only three were not observed feeding — Brown-crested Flycatcher (Myiarchus tyrannulus ), Boat-billed Flycatcher, and Gray-crowned Yellowthroat (Geothlypis poliocephala ).