Audubon eyes go to the skies in Lakewood Ranch

It was a small bird, the kind you hardly notice if you are taking a walk around Lake Patton in Lakewood Ranch.

That's unless you are walking with Aaron Virgin.

"That's a loggerhead shrike," Virgin said, after taking a quick glance toward a tree that bordered the lake.

A what?

"A loggerhead shrike."

Photo by Jay Heater

For those who aren't familiar with the loggerhead shrike, note that it is named the butcherbird due to its carnivorous tendencies for consuming amphibians, lizards, and small mammals and birds.

"This bird is a preditor," he said. "Make no bones about it."

Virgin, an employee of the American Bird Conservancy, and a member of both the Manatee County Audubon Society and the Sarasota Audubon Society, has led bird walks for years with members of the Audubon societies.

The Sarasota Audubon Society is hoping Virgin can stir up interest among Lakewood Ranch residents so they look into joining the society.

"Sarasota Audubon Society walks tend to stay in Sarasota County," said Virgin, a former CEO at Save Our Seabirds in Sarasota. "But we have a lot of members in Lakewood Ranch. 

Photo by Jay Heater

"I live in Mallory Park (Lakewood Ranch), so I recommended we do a walk."

So from 8-10 a.m. on Sunday, Feb, 1, Virgin will lead a nature walk at James Patton Park.

"It will be a great introductory walk," Patton said. "For the most part, it is paved, and you are going to see different ducks and shorebirds. It is great for people who want to walk, who say, 'I want to get out.'"

Patton picked a walk around Lake Patton because he tends to identify between 40 to 50 species of birds when he circles the lake. In a recent walk, he said more than 2,500 swallows flew around the lake.

The walk is open to anyone who would like to attend for free and no reservations are necessary. Just show up in the parking lot at Patton Park.

He suggests anyone who joins the walk to bring binoculars and to make sure to dress for the weather. Other than that, his main advice during the walk will be to "keep your eyes to the skies."

Photo by Jay Heater

Unlike walks through a wooded area, much of the action at Lake Patton is above the lake.

Helen King, the Sarasota Guided Walks coordinator, said Lakewood Ranch residents who like to birdwatch might like accompanying a group even more than going it alone.

"When you have a group, there are knowledgable people who can talk about the birds," King said. "The more eyes, the more you will see."

With the Celery Fields, a birders' paradise, as a home base for the Sarasota Audubon Society, the club hasn't focused on Lakewood Ranch, yet.

But King expects more Lakewood Ranch-area walks in the future, or even Lakewood Ranch organizing its own Audubon Society chapter.

Virgin said Lakewood Ranch has plenty of interesting areas for birdwatchers, and if you are out there, you just might see him leading a walk.

Photo by Jay Heater

"I enjoy being with birders," he said.

The includes those just starting out, or those who those who have books filled with their sightings.

"It can become an obsession," he said. "It can take you to cool places. I have been around the world (on birding trips) and I have been leading walks for a couple of decades."

King said the Sarasota Audubon Society currently is organizing a trip for 2026 to Panama for birdwatchers with Virgin leading the tour. 

Besides Virgin leading a walk in Lakewood Ranch, King said Lakewood Ranch's Mary Alice Curtiss has agreed to follow by leading a walk in Heron's Nest Nature Park on Feb. 25.

"Lakewood Ranch has such nice parks," King said. "You look for interesting terrain. Vegetation attracts birds."

King said the current Lakewood Ranch members of the Sarasota Audubon Society have been "generating" new members, so the interest is there. "But I couldn't give you a head count," she said.

Photo by Jay Heater

Some members of the Sarasota Audubon Society have gone to Lakewood Ranch neighborhood homeowners associations to give powerpoint presentations on the club. King said the club has hosted Lakewood Ranch groups at the Celery Fields.

Those who are interested should note that the Sarasota Audubon Society will host 60 walks this season, which started Oct. 1 and runs through April 30.

The Sarasota Audubon Society has approximately 1,600 members.

"We thrived when COVID came along," King said. "People wanted to get outside."