Highland Preserve & Bell Farm 5.1.23

• Posted on 18 July 2023
• By Michelle Corgan
• Posted in Birds

Quick Trip to Highland Preserve

On the way to highland preserve it dawned on me that it rained heavily the night before.  I looked down at my white sneakers and knew we had a problem, but I was halfway there already so I just had to run with it.  I approached the trail and was immediately greeted by a beautiful female bluebird and just a little mud!

I continued to walk and found a tree that the bluebirds loved.  As I stepped closer there were little spiders scurrying out from the grasses I was stepping on.  I was a little worried they would get on me, but I just had to get these shots, and they were worth it.  They preened, they perched, and they modeled for me.  I couldn't get enough of them.  I was lucky enough to capture one in flight!  Soon after I saw a snake, and I was ready for a change of scenery, so onward I went.

Second to the bluebird show, was the red winged blackbird symphony.  They were singing up a storm and they were everywhere!

I had my merlin sound app and it showed a yellow warbler and a yellow throated warbler.  I unfortunately did not spot them.

I ran into a couple who warmed me about worse mud in the trails.  I didn't let them stop me, I just chose the higher trails.  I didn't regret it, having spotted an Eastern Towhee from a high point looking down at a clearing.  It was too far away to get a good shot.

There wasn't as much activity in the trail, so after my Eastern Towhee sighting, I turned around and headed back.

Near where I saw the bluebird pair, I spotted a mockingbird.  My merlin app had all kinds of ducks and geese showing up from the calls of the mockingbird.

I had one last rendezvous with one of my bluebird friends and I was ready to call it quits.

When I pulled back up to Bell Farm the grounds sounded so active, I just had to take a peak and see who was around.  I spotted a chipping sparrow, cardinals, blue jays, heard a Carolina wren's song and got a photo of this phoebe.