Weekend Warblers

As this past Sunday afternoon was slipping away and I was slightly sulking at the thought that the weekend had passed without any birding, I spotted a pleasant surprise. Right in my own backyard lurked this Black-throated Blue Warbler. While conditions were poor for any decent photos, I grabbed my camera to attempt to capture my first photos of this species. I slowly approached the area and the warbler quickly retreated into the brush. I stood motionless for a while and the warbler returned for a little foraging right out in the open.

Black-throated Blue Warbler

I noticed quite a bit of movement in a neighboring  tree and then spotted this Blackpoll Warbler.

Blackpoll Warbler 

This warbler wasn't nearly as shy as the Black-throated. It bounced rapidly from branch to branch, stopping occasionally to glance in my direction.

A few minutes later, in the same tree, I came across a third warbler speices, an American Redstart. I was starting to think I was having a mini fall out in my yard!

This American Goldfinch also stopped by my bird feeder to check out my limited facilities. A few minutes later, the Cardinals moved in and displaced the Goldfinch.

I have never seen any of these species in my yard before and was excited to get to see them close up. Here are a few of the "regulars" that do drop by often...

Cardinal

Red-shouldered Hawk

Painted Bunting

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Viera Wetlands & "Click" Ponds 1/18/13

Friday afternoon I enjoyed a quiet 2 hour drive around the Click Ponds & Viera Wetlands as my nap-rebelling toddler slept soundly in his car seat (a very rare occurrence). I didn't even care that it starting raining when I arrived. 

Lots of birds enjoy hanging out deep in the reeds, but I don't usually see Cardinals in there. He didn't quite blend in as most of the other species do.

The trees surrounds the ponds were packed with birds. Masses of American Robins were flying every direction. There were numerous Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers.

Most of us don't equate Forster's Terns with terror, however, that apparently is not the case for this Coot.

Great Blue Heron mating season is in full swing at the wetlands. I stopped to watch this pair for a few minutes. As I sat there, this male flew down and landed a few feet from my car.

The female looked a little impatient as she waited for the male to return with a stick. Maybe their construction has fallen behind schedule.

The male was relieved that the female approved of his choosen stick.

This refreshing drive resulted in smiles for all!

Asheville

 My family and I spent this past week visiting the town of Asheville, North Carolina where there is an eclectic mix of things to do. I was able to find ample activities to tire myself out. Most of the birding I did on my trip was incidental during other activities.

I did enjoy the nice mix of birds that were frequently out and about around where I was staying. The regulars were usually Song Sparrows, Tufted Titmice, Northern Cardinals, Eastern Towhees, and Carolina Chickadees.

Song Sparrow
Asheville, North Carolina

Song Sparrow
Asheville, NC

Tufted Titmouse
Asheville, NC

Tufted Titmouse
Asheville, NC

Carolina Chickadee
Asheville, NC

Northern Cardinal
Asheville, NC

One of my most favorite activities was hiking the trails along the Blue Ridge Parkway where the views were beautiful. There were numerous birds to be seen as well. The Wild Turkeys were quite amusing!

Blue Ridge Parkway

Due to the warmer than usual weather this year, the flowers at the Biltmore gardens bloomed a few weeks before the annual Festival of Flowers.That was very kind of them!

I did visit one great birding location which I'll share in my next post!