Hoping to spot a summer tanager, my pal Jim and I drove south into the Pine Barrens this morning to the Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve. The tanager would have been a lifer for me, and Jim figured our odds of spotting one were good because he’s seen them there for a few years running.
We didn’t spot one, but that disappointment faded fast. At our first stop, we saw a red-headed woodpecker and heard at least one and probably a couple more calling from the pines.
Ovenbirds were calling repeatedly, and we heard many prairie warblers, as was to be expected at a prairie warbler preserve.
I heard from another birding friend yesterday that prothonotary warblers nesting in a wooden post were feeding their young. He had video to prove it. When we got to the bridge with the post, we discovered that the nesting cavity was empty. Did the young ones fledge? Did a predator get them? We’ll never know. Jim did spot a prothonotary nearby, and I caught a fleeting glimpse.
We turned out attention to the hooded warblers singing in the woods. I got a few dark shots not worth sharing, but I did manage a nice shot of an Acadian flycatcher. Although I’d heard them, this was the first one I got to see.
Our time near the bridge was prelude to even better sightings.
As we started back down the trail toward our car, we were surprised by a blue-winged warbler flitting about bushes a few feet in front of us. It turned out there were two blue-wings, presumably male and female. They chased each other through the bushes and trees.
All of a sudden, a prothonotary warbler appeared in those same bushes. I squeezed off four shots that were too fuzzy to share. But my luck changed as a black-and-white warbler flew into one of the big pines, about halfway up. I was able to get several nice shots.
A short while later, what we assumed was another prothonotary warbler appeared, popping between a couple of pine trees nearby. Only when I got home and uploaded a couple of photos to e-Bird did I learn that it was one of the blue-winged warblers. The defining clue: the black eye line on the bird. A prothonotary doesn’t have one.
Regardless, I was happy to get the photos. One tops this post, and here’s a closer look.
After a long spell at that spot on the trail, we moved on toward my car. At one point, Jim called out: “Stop. Don’t move. Look down.”
Just ahead of me, a black snake was slithering its way across the path. A ratsnake, Jim reported, and it was about four feet long. I wanted no part of that snake, although I did want some video and photos.
Besides birds and snakes, Jim has a good eye for other creatures. He spotted a chipmunk, an Eastern fence lizard and a skink. He also brought along a tick, which he dropped out the window as we drove through Trenton to get back to his place.
That was one satisfying day of birding, more than two hours of tramping the sandy trails of the Huber preserve. I even managed to get a good look at a prairie warbler, not long after I had my close encounter with the snake. đŚ
The Jersey Birder 