|
Birders:
I spent the last 3 days working at the
Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge,
mostly observing red-cockaded
woodpeckers. The refuge is about 20
miles NE of
Macon, about 5 miles from Juliette, a
little milltown on the Ocmulgee River
where they filmed Fried Green Tomatoes.
As others on this listserv have noted,
migrants have exploded on the scene. The
abundant blooming wisteria, redbud,
dogwoods, and plentiful wildflowers made
the refuge seem like a movie set.
Here's a list of birds I either heard or
saw at the refuge or at the old mill
in Juliette.
Broad-winged Hawk (first of the year for
me)
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-Tailed Hawk
Osprey
Wild Turkey
Northern Bobwhite
Black Vulture
Whippoorwill
Barred Owl - lots of activity all over
the refuge
E. Screech Owl
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe (already on her nest)
all SE woodpeckers except for sapsucker,
including two copulating Red-cockaded
Woodpeckers; I guess only a birder would
get a thrill out of that
Chimney Swift
Tree Swallow
Northern Rough-Winged Swallow
Barn Swallow
CLIFF SWALLOW nesting under bridge at
Juliette
Fish Crow
Wood thrush
Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher
RC Kinglet
Cedar Waxwing
Red-eyed Vireo
White-eyed Vireo
Blue-Headed Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
*Yellow-billed Cuckoo - possible, heard
only
Summer Tanager
Yellow-throated Warbler
Northern Parula
Black and White Warbler
Northern Waterthrush
La. Waterthrush
Hooded Warbler
Yellow-Breasted Chat
Common Yellowthroat
Ovenbird
Prairie Warbler (tons)
BACHMAN'S SPARROW - great view, singing
on territory
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
**Common Loon - even though I didn't see
them, my co-worker swears that she
heard two loons fly over recently,
calling as they flew; Refuge personnel
confirmed that they had also heard loons
in the last week
Butterflies were also plentiful,
fluttering over roads and sunny fields.
In no
particular order:
Zebra Swallowtail
Spicebush Swallowtail
Tiger Swallowtail
Spring Azure
Falcate Orangetip
Question Mark
Southern Cloudless Giant Sulfur
Sleepy Orange
Hairstreak sp.
Carolina Satyr
Gemmed Satyr
Eastern Tailed Blue
Hoary Crescentspot (I think)
Pearly Crescentspot
Great Southern White (I think) -
medium-sized white with black spot in
cell of
forewing and black wing tips
Horace's or Juvenal's Duskywing (or
both, I never can tell)
Unfortunately, I had to leave the refuge
for a few days while the turkey
hunters do their thing.
Todd Plummer
|
