Its easy to take your home location for granted but lately I have been feeling the love for my stomping grounds even though there has been nothing rare.
Where else can you see a Clapper Rail crossing the road so nonchalantly? Fort Fisher.
Fort Fisher is also one of the best places to see Painted Buntings in the whole state.
The females are easy to overlook but when you do see them, they are almost as striking as the males. It's a color of green you just don't see on many birds especially in this area.
Whimbrels are not rare but lets say they are nice to see every time.
Its always nice to have a Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs combo. The bill size differences become evident but also the Greater is more heavily barred underneath.
Lesser Yellowlegs are harder to come by until migration time, whereas the Greater can be seen all winter.
Mottled Ducks do not flag as rare on eBird, but they should. They are quite hard to find, although a pair has been hanging out around the aquarium area.
Soras like most rails are usually secretive but sometimes you get a bold individual like this one.
Banded Water Snake!
Baby American Alligators! I counted about 20 of them in the little pond off the aquarium bike path. Perfect size for a Great Blue Heron to eat, but luckily Mommy was not far off.
Usually I only go to Burnt Mill Creek in the fall during migration but I went recently and it was great so I have been going more often.
Chimney Swifts love the downtown area for the chimneys.
Yellow-crowned Night-heron!
Virginia Spiderwort loves the Oakdale Cemetery.
Great-crested Flycatchers on the other hand are everywhere.
Mississippi Kites are starting to come back in big numbers although it is usually hard to get close for pics.
Meanwhile at the beach the Least Terns are back in full force.
Many of the Lesser Black-backed Gulls have moved on but some are lingering, especially the ones that have developed a taste for washed up watermelon.
A few Gull-billed Terns have been terrorizing the Least Tern nesting area.
Black-bellied Plover
Red-breasted Merganser
Common Tern claiming its territory.
Gray Catbirds love Wade Park.
As does Lyreleaf Sage.
Chinese Privet
A young Little Blue Heron molting into adult plumage.
Green Heron
GBH at WB
For some reason I was under the impression that all American Elms were wiped out by Dutch Elm Disease but apparently we have some big ones by Burnt Mill Creek. Maybe I was thinking of Chestnuts which I think are gone.
Barred Owl at BMC
Yellow-crowned Night-heron
Broken Northern Dash?
American Lady
Common Grackle
Needham's Skimmer
Little Blue Heron looking for fish in BMC.
Got one! Ignore the Fritos bag..
Nom Nom Nom.....
American Black Elderberry
Yellow Iris
You have to love the spring!
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