Scarlet Tanager
The Scarlet Tanager had been singing throughout the morning from the highest points of the forest canopy. As he changed perches, a chance meal in the form of a bright green caterpillar would interrupt his song, but only momentarily. Perhaps the tanager was already aware of the small pools of water near the base of the tree trunks or maybe he came upon them purely by chance.
Taking a longer break from his song, he moved down through the branches and made is way toward the forest floor. The pools were so calm they appeared as mirrors reflecting images of the leaves skyward. They beckoned the tanager to move in even closer. The invitation was too great to ignore and his descending flights from branch to branch became more deliberate and precise with intent.
I didn't see the tanager bathe, but witnessed the theatrical preening that followed. The rest is how I imagined it before human eyes were fixed upon the bird. Birders crave these moments and capturing it in a photograph preserves the memory of a great day of birding at Baxter's Hollow in the Baraboo Hills.
Nodding Trillium
Most songbirds were heard only. This is how it is by late May at Baxter's Hollow. Leaves conceal thrushes, flycatchers, vireos, and warblers, but at least colorful wildflowers are visible near your feet. If you know the behavior of the bird behind the song, then you're likely to appreciate your chances of seeing it. A Winter Wren in the woods on the opposite side of Otter Creek? Forget it. Listen for a few moments and move on.
You'll also pause for the voices of Yellow-billed Cuckoos, Canada Warblers, or the haunting calls of a Pileated Woodpeckers, but you're unlikely to see them. If you're lucky, though, you might catch a glimpse of a Veery, Ovenbird, or Acadian Flycatcher. Of the fifty or so bird species that were detected by song, fewer than half were ultimately seen.
Columbine
Mayapple
Baxter's Hollow SNA, Sauk, US-WI
May 26, 2013 7:00 AM - 10:30 AM
51 species
Great Blue Heron
Turkey Vulture
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Barred Owl
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
Acadian Flycatcher
Alder Flycatcher
Least Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Yellow-throated Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Winter Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Veery
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Ovenbird
Louisiana Waterthrush
Blue-winged Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
American Redstart
Blackburnian Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Canada Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Scarlet Tanager
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
American Goldfinch
All images © 2013 Mike McDowell