birding all over the place http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/ en-us Webligo BlogHoster Once the morning mist had cleared at Lake Herrick I found this obliging female Ring-necked Duck with the usual 6 Mallards. Being habituated to humans, the Mallards swam almost directly underneath me on the footbridge, and sure enough, the Ring-necked Duck followed. I walked around the lake trying to get closer looks at the Beaver I had seen distantly at dawn, but it never reappeared. However, I did find the lodge it's building between the two wooden jetties. It remains to be seen whether it can cope with all the off-leash dogs that like to swim around there... http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/12758/ After a rainy 24 hours Mitchell Jarrett and I checked Lake Herrick at first light, and were rewarded with a splendid drake Hooded Merganser - a new county bird for me. Next stop was Bear Creek Reservoir, where we encountered some distant Red-breasted Mergansers and Ruddy Ducks, plus a closer drake Bufflehead. Just off of the dam we had a single Ring-necked Duck plus 5 Lesser Scaup. This poor Pied-billed Grebe appears to have been swept over the spillway, and was having no luck in climbing out of this channel. Hopefully it will cross under the road where it will have more of a take-off runway. Our final stop was Lake Chapman, where we struck out on James' Wigeon, but did see this Ring-billed Gull (my second ever gull in Clarke Co.)... ... and a tight flock of 44 Double-crested Cormorants. http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/12754/ Perhaps the most interesting birding to be had in Georgia right now is in a park in the centre of the Atlanta metropolis, where an astonishing 11 species of warbler have been recorded in a single day, plus some mouthwatering hard-to-see species such as American Woodcock and Whip-poor-will. While I can't match 'Nathan's Warblers', I did see a late Black-and-White Warbler at Little Lake Herrick a couple of days ago. An Orange-crowned Warbler is skulking in the lakeside vegetation too. A fly-by Merlin was a most welcome addition to my county list here, though I more frequently see this Sharp-shinned Hawk. The Pied-billed Grebe persists on the lake in spite of disturbance from off-leash dogs. Early morning is a good time to scrutinize the sparrow flock here. This Swamp Sparrow came out into the open in the early morning sun. Blue-gray Gnatcatchers should be long gone from the Piedmont by now, but I'm still seeing two birds regularly: one at Little Lake Herrick and this bird on the golf course road pond. I'm seeing multiple flyover American Pipits at this latter site, plus good numbers of Savannah Sparrows. Two birds blending in with the fall colours: House Finch and Pine Warbler. The unusually warm weather means that many insects are still active. This mantis is still hanging around my front porch... ... while the occasional Monarch is still drifting through campus.  http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/12740/ In spite of scanning the skies for migrant Sandhill Cranes, diligently checking the Lake Herrick goose flock and working every promising-looking sparrow field I see, I haven't turned up anything interesting in the last week. One of the better spots for sparrows has been the road down to the golf course pond, where this Field Sparrow showed well (the quizbird from a few entries back). Savannah Sparrows and Eastern Meadowlarks are back here in numbers now, and I've had a couple more flyover American Pipits. The biggest excitement in the botgarden of late was watching this Redtail get hammered by an American Crow. This Cedar Waxwing showed up among the copious Robins in the backyard. White-throated Sparrows continue to exploit the seed at the base of the feeder. Yesterday brought continuous heavy rain as a result of Hurricane Ida. I ventured out to Lake Herrick twice in miserable weather, but saw nothing more than this soggy young Cooper's Hawk. Today Mitchell Jarrett and I headed out to Bear Creek reservoir and again drew a blank on storm-driven migrants. We did get a respectable total of 88 Ring-necked Duck though. Let's hope for better things in the coming week! http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/12701/ Got up early to check a foggy Lake Herrick. Still no lost Snow Geese in with the Canadas, but yesterday's Pied-billed Grebe was still around. Once the fog lifted, an American Pipit and this Cooper's Hawk flew over. I recorded a high count of 49 Killdeer - usually I struggle to break double figures. I decided to walk some of the wooded trails to add some easy missing species to my 'Herrick list'. Mission accomplished, with 2 each of Dark-eyed Junco, Winter Wren and Brown Creeper. The creek trail came out on a smaller vegetated lake that I didn't even know existed! It harboured another Pied-billed Grebe and many sparrows, including Field and Swamp. Could be a good bet for a Lincoln's... I managed a 4 warbler morning - very respectable in November. There was a late Magnolia Warbler, a bright male Pine Warbler and both flavours of Palm Warbler among the hordes of Myrtles. Harlequin Ladybirds are invading my home in numbers looking for overwintering sites, Surprisingly I found a tree chock full of larvae and pupae - they'd better hurry up and eclose before winter kicks in! Later in the day I had a kettle of migrating Turkey Vultures (42 birds in total) over the house. Am crossing my fingers for some flyover Sandhill Cranes! http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/12564/ http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/12561/ Another day, another new county bird... today's pre-work stroll around Lake Herrick produced 4 Vesper Sparrows, feeding mostly at the lakeshore by the levee, and occasionally flushed up by joggers into nearby trees. Yesterday's ducks and coots had gone, but were replaced with a Double-crested Cormorant and a Pied-billed Grebe. Seems like this place is getting enough turnaround to warrant daily checks. http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/12554/ This morning dawned bright and sunny at Lake Herrick after yesterday's gloom. The resident 6 Mallard at Lake Herrick were joined by 4 Ruddy Duck and a female Ring-necked Duck. Three Coots were also a site tick. My first county American Pipit flew over calling as I was photographing this showy Yellow Palm Warbler. I also county-ticked 2 Horned Larks in the recently-mown fields adjoining the botanical garden. Yesterday I was surprised to see a late Black-throated Green Warbler in the backyard. It arrived during an activity burst which also brought in this Blue-headed Vireo and the male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. I was lucky to see this Red Fox in a friend's garden adjoining the Birchmore Trail. http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/12549/ Just before the weather turned nasty I headed down the golf course pond road, and was finally able to add American Kestrel (a male) to my county/bike list. My first Field Sparrows of the season were there, along with a late Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher. The power lines along Milledge had a nasty infestation of Brown-headed Cowbirds. I walked the entire length of the power line cut in the quest for a rare sparrow. I didn't succeed, but did find a large flock of Chipping Sparrows containing my FOTS Dark-eyed Juncos (4), a Swamp Sparrow and 2 Yellow Palm Warblers. The fruiting dogwoods were attracting a mass of attention from Robins, Cedar Waxwings and a 30-strong flock of Eastern Bluebirds. Northern Mockingbird and Brown Thrasher enjoying the glut of berries. The river trails were mostly quiet, and the warbler flocks have been replaced by roving bands of Ruby-crowned Kinglets. The beaverpond contained the 3 expected sparrow species and a Belted Kingfisher. This darner has been hanging out on the edges of the pond for the last week. Giff Beaton (author of the excellent guide to GA dragonflies) was kind enough to help out with the ID. It's probably a Shadow Darner, a scarce inhabitant of the Piedmont (c. 13 previous GA records), though in-hand examination is necessary to rule out other darner species (any of which would be a first for GA). Probably much more noteworthy than any of the birds I've seen this week! http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/12536/ The warbler migration is officially over. No more Black-throated Greens and Magnolias at the regular spots, just a few residual Palm Warblers and ever-swelling ranks of Myrtle Warblers. The winter residents continue to swarm in - I currently have 4 White-throated and a single Chipping Sparrow at my feeder. Now we're all hoping for a Lincoln's, Le Conte's or Henslow's Sparrow as the last hurrah of fall migration. Two Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers continue their winter residence in my backyard. A large flock of Robins swept through on a rainy day, bringing with them a lone Cedar Waxwing. After a few weeks' absence, Brown-headed Nuthatch has returned to the feeder. This road-killed Armadillo is practically opposite my house - I have yet to see a live one in Athens! Lake Herrick gets prettier by the day as the leaves turn. These two Eastern Phoebes are on constant guard duty at the wooden bridge. Common Grackle numbers seem to be up. Worm Snake was an unexpected lifer at the lakeshore. Monarchs and Gulf Fritillaries have been very much in evidence all over town. And to finish on a gruesome Hallowe'eny note, here's a parasitoid wasp dragging a spider of at least twice its size to its doom. http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/rjhall/12533/