With the promise of sunnier weather and an accomplished guide, I decided to go back to Bacon Ridge and see if I could do better. Dan Haas, the AABC led 6-8 people through the Bacon Ridge Preserve and I was able to see many more birds.
The photography was challenging, as the canopy limits the available light, and many of the birds were moving quickly, necessitating the use of hand-held photography, but I’m happy enough with the results.
Cornell:
“A small, inconspicuous bird of the forest floor, the Ovenbird is one of the most characteristic birds of the eastern forests. Its loud song, “teacher, teacher, teacher,” rings through the summer forest, but the bird itself is hard to see.”
This lovely Hooded Warbler was foraging on the forest floor and I was lucky get usable images.
Cornell:
“Distinctive in both plumage and behavior, the Black-and-white Warbler forages for insects while creeping along the trunks and branches of trees. Common in summer throughout the eastern United States and Canada, it has an unusually extensive winter range that extends from Florida to Venezuela and Colombia.”
I would never have seen this Worm Eating Warbler without the help of the good birders in our party.
These Barn Swallows were taking a break.
This Cliff Swallow was hanging out with the Barn Swallows. He’s probably headed North to his breeding grounds
Yellow Rumped Warblers are not hard to find in the Spring.
We saw several Spotted Sandpipers, but they spooked as soon as we got close.