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Posts Tagged ‘Boston Mountains’

I watched this pair (already on eggs (4) for about 21 days). The nest was built on a nearby driveway on open gravel, as they usually do. As I’s pushed closer to the nest, the pair would go into defensive mode. The female would always come at me but stop short by 10-15 feet. The male would feign injury or death across the driveway to get my attention or draw it away from the female and nest. It seemed 30 feet was the threshold. When I moved away to further than about 30 feet; she’d nestle gingerly back onto the eggs, and he’d leave the area.

I did this 2-3 times per day for 8 days, always hoping to catch that moment when the eggs started to hatch. I missed. The hatched and the hatchlings were gone the very next morning. The long incubation period allows the chicks to fully develop and are ready to run or even fly within 1-2 hours after drying off. I did take over 1000 photos.

Pictures follow; had to use a very long lens:

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It was a warm day here in the Murray Valley. I took my camera with me to the garden today. A Blue Grosbeak flew up into a tree from the orchard side of the garden. Later I heard, then saw a beautiful Summer Tanager on a downed limb; got photos of both:

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Last week I came across a new area where Redheaded Woodpeckers were foraging and nesting. There were hundreds of debarked trees; old elms, sycamores, cottonwoods, hackberries, persimmons, and oaks. I noticed one redheaded woodpecker and then a dozen  more sharing the same area. One pair was nesting only 4-5 feet above ground; the rest 20-35 feet up. That was the lowest RH Woodpecker nesting I have ever seen. It was dark and raining so I could not use a good setting to “stop” action, so a may photos are not clear or just OOF. Not happy with the photos. There are a lot of photos; no sun until late afternoon:

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Caught these guys along the Buffalo River near Pruitt.
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Taken with a long lens; thats all I had. This is the smallest yellow-maroon Cypripedium in Arkansas, rarer than the larger cousin:

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We have high cloudiness now; but early after the fog we briefly had filtered sunshine. The place where I usually find nesting warblers is underwater. On the opposite side of the Little Buffalo River the banks are higher and I was able to get 2 fairly good photos of a male Blue Winged Warbler with a EF600L IS f/4.0 Lens on a Canon 7D with and 1.4X Extender; this was a very long shot:

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On my Bluebird Trail, I have 6 house; 3 occupied, five hatchlings each. I believe they are about 4-5 days from fledging. The male and female are making hourly flights at 4-5 minute intervals; then a pause for 20-30 minutes; then feed again for an hour. also, it is early enough in the spring for a 2nd brood; they will likely change houses. Carolina Chickadees used 2 of the 6 houses too.

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An early morning photo of a Red Bellied woodpecker (a male) on a stump in my front yard; he was very unafraid and must be feeding nestlings at this time; as is the female Eastern Bluebird below; she has found a fat cricket:

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