– Pete Ostlind
Pheasant Branch Conservancy's Creek Corridor
August has arrived! By the end of the month the creek corridor will be teeming with wood warblers once again. Today, though, I found only a single American Redstart along the corridor and a few Common Yellowthroats at the North Fork, both of which are nesters at the conservancy. I suspect Yellow Warblers have already dispersed, but there may still be a few around. I walked 4 miles and birded (mostly by ear) over 3 hours without my leg giving out, so I'll take that as a good sign that things might finally be on the mend. Just in time for fall field trips! I'll be posting my schedule in a couple of days.
Photography-wise, it was another macro workout:
Common Amber Snail Succinea putris
Cross Orbweaver Araneus diadematus
Sharpshooter Leafhopper Draeculacephala zeae
Long-legged Fly Condylostylus sp.
Walnut Husk Fly Rhagoletis suavis
Blue Dasher (female) Pachydiplax longipennis
This concerned Common Yellowthroat is also a bug hunter, but of a different sort. Imagine the insect tally this bird has taken this season with caring for himself, his mate, and his young. All those moths, beetles, katydids, crickets, grasshoppers, caterpillars, spiders and probably even bees and wasps. The little bird and I share the same space and quarry for a short time, but to him it's all food and survival. The wary warbler returned to his business once I moved on.
Common Yellowthroat
Purple Coneflower
Pheasant Branch, Dane, Wisconsin, US
Aug 2, 2015 7:00 AM - 10:30 AM
54 species
Wood Duck
Mallard
Great Blue Heron
Green Heron
Turkey Vulture
Red-tailed Hawk
Sandhill Crane
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Solitary Sandpiper
Ring-billed Gull
Mourning Dove
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
Marsh Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Common Yellowthroat
American Redstart
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Baltimore Oriole
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
All images © 2015 Mike McDowell