May 26th –
June 1st
What a volatile week
weatherwise! Changes occurred from
day to day and from hour to hour.
We never quite knew just what to expect. The weather forecasters kept telling us to be prepared for any
and everything, and they were
right! After a pretty dry April
(whatever happened to “April showers”?), we’ve had plenty of precip in May. That would not have been so bad except
that the rains were accompanied by much cooler than normal temps. Example…..
On Tuesday of the week, the
day after Memorial Day, we set out at around 8:00 AM, heading for the Bashakill
to see if we could pick up any stragglers. When we left home, it was fairly warm and sunny. It looked promising! As we drove west down Route 17, the
skies began to fill in and lower.
Still, the rains held off and we figured we’d get in a couple of hours
of decent viewing.
 |
| Veery |
As we entered the preserve via
Havens Road, we immediately heard plenty of chatter. Common yellowthroats were singing their “whichety,
whitchety, whitchety” song along both sides of the road, and indeed we were to
hear and see plenty more of these masked warblers this morning. The Veeries have also begun to sing in
earnest, but it was their distinct “veeeeerrr” call that drew our attention at
first. Sure enough, close to the
road but still nestled in the cover of the foliage, a veery called out to
us. With the RAV as my blind, I
managed to get off a couple of shots which I later had to lighten up to get a good
view. He only stayed for two or
three frames before dropping out of sight. Still, one good view of these fine-looking specimens is more
than gratifying.
We moved down to the “orchard”
and had enough bird song to keep us scanning the tree-tops. The “bird du jour” for the parking area
had to be the Redstart. An
occasional glimpse of the red and yellow varieties was all we could muster, but
we knew there were other songs being sung and continued our quest. As we walked down the “Stop Sign trail”,
we heard the slow trill of the Swamp sparrow close to the trail. In the reeds, we could see an
individual bouncing along from stem to stem and occasionally jumping up onto an
overhanging branch for a better view of what was coming down the trail.
The rich chestnut sides of this sparrow make for easy identification if
his distinctive song was not enough.
Nice views of a summer resident of the Bash.
As we continued our birding through
the park, the skies thickened and the rain began to fall more steadily. We decided to give the “Nature Trail” a
quick look, but the cameras were relegated to the back seat of the vehicle as
the rain is generally not kind to electronics and optics. What a shame, for as we walked the
first section of the trail, we immediately had a nice view of a Least
flycatcher and the Warbling vireo, both singing and both about 10 feet
apart. Soon, a Black-billed cuckoo
called and as we looked for the source, one flew into clear view. It certainly would have made for a nice
shot, but I always maintain that if you really want the best looks at some
great birds, just leave the camera in the car…..works every time. The rain drove us back to the parking
lot where Sharon and located a Cerulean warbler possibly nesting nearby. We watched in the rain as the bird
called once or twice, flew overhead and back and then disappeared into the
thick foliage.
Our last sighting of the day
was up on the power line on Port Orange Road, just outside the Bashakill
boundaries. Every year, we make a
quick stop here to see if the Prairie warblers are singing. It’s pretty much a “sure thing”, but
Sharon says , “Never say never and never say always”. This time, the bird was here in spite of the falling
rain. We often get the Chestnut-sided
up here as well, but that bird had enough sense to stay in out of the rain.
 |
| Prairie warbler |
And so, we began with sunny
skies and ended up with stormy weather with a high of 57 degrees on one of the
final days of May! But what did
the rest of the week hold for us?
High heat! After such a chilly beginning, the
temperature rose more than 30 degrees over the next two days. Along with the heat came the emergence
of the 17 year cycle Cicadas. By
the end of the week, the emergence was patchy with some area not showing any
sign of the insects at all, while other areas were literally covered with newly
emerged adults and the molted exoskeletons. The mating chorus was just beginning to be heard by week’s
end.
We rounded out the week with a
walk through the Outdoor Discovery Center in Cornwall. Although it was hot, we still managed
to record 43 species. The migrants
appear to pretty much moved on, but the remaining birds are beginning to nest
and we did find 8 species showing signs of such behavior. Best sightings of the day included a
pair of Green herons flying overhead, a pair of gorgeous Scarlet tanagers (male
and female) foraging for food and/or nesting material in the middle of the
forest trail, a late Pine siskin, and nesting Yellow warblers.
Also of note was the Gray Tree
frog shown below. This frog is
often heard throughout the northeast, but because it rarely descends from high
treetops and because it is nocturnal, it is rarely seen. So, this photograph is a record of a
fairly rare opportunity to actually see one!
As we progress into June, the
cicadas are sure to become more numerous and more vocal. The birds will no doubt become less
vocal as they begin to have their young and become quiet, not wanting to
attract the attention of predators to their whereabouts. So, let’s see what the beginning of
June has to offer this photographer of the natural world.
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