ABSTRACT
Limpkins are medium-sized birds which are mostly brown, with white flecks on the neck, back, and upper wings. Limpkins are not strong flyers, but fly with rather slow, deliberate wingbeats. Movements of the birds are somewhat erratic, with no definite pattern. Limpkins often appear to be relatively tame and unsuspicious, but are difficult to observe in their natural habitats unless they are perched in the open or are flying. Limpkin habitats are typically inaccessible to counting on foot; counts are most efficiently made from motorboats or airboats where watercourses are present. Birds can be counted along a shoreline from a slow-moving boat, with resulting data expressed as a relative index. Point counts can be used by stopping at designated intervals along a watercourse, and data can then be expressed as birds per sample point.
