Taking flight 1
It’s our first day on the road as we head north back to our home in the Empire State. The transition from the coastal plains of Florida to the Highlands of New York always takes some getting use to, but we make it a gradual change as we break the trip up north into three legs. The first leg ends in Santee, South California at Santee National Wildlife Refuge. There are a couple units to this preserve, and in the past, we’ve made time to visit both the Cuddo and Bluff Units. But lately, it seems there is only time to cover one. And so it is today as I spend several hours hjking through the Bluff Trail and through the swamp where I’m hoping for the reliable Protonotary warbler abong others. First, however, a stop at the Visitors’ Center to check out the feeders.
And not to be disappointed, the Painted bunting makes an appearance for the camera. Actually, we did not have much luck finding a good photo-op for a male PABU while in Florida, so this was a really nice beginning to the afternoon’s jaunt. As it turned out, this bird was a precursor of things to come as far as color was involved.
And indeed, color was quickly becoming the theme of the day, as the dragonflies were numerous along the trail’s edges. The odonates are always a sight to behold in their brilliant metallic hues. The Great blue skimmer seen here literally glowed in the late afternoon sun and yes….typically, the thorax of the Great blue is green…go figure.
The prime target of this trail was the Prothonotary warbler and since the common element of today’s species is quickly turning out to be vibrant colors, this bird simply had to make an appearance. No other warbler can match the Prothonotary for sheer richness of the yellow these birds sport. As I walked along the boardwalk through the swamp, the songs of this warbler were seemingly constant. Judging by the “whitewash” seem below this little guy, this was one of his favorite perches. Just glad he chose to use it again while I was standing by with camera in hand. The changes of my finding one of these beautiful birds when I get back to New York are pretty slim, so I even more grateful for his obliging me with his presence.
Make it stand out
As I was enjoying photographing the Prothonotary, my attention was drawn to the familiar song of het another species of warbler, the Yellow-throated. While not as densely saturated with yellow as the bird I was engaged with at the time, this little guy manages to draw attention by augmenting his appearance with black and white stripes and a bold facial pattern. Another absolutely strikingly gorgeous warbler.
But wait…there’s more! While still on the boardwalk traversing the swamp, my attention was drawn to the canopy above and a perched Summer tanager with its robin-like song. It always sounds a bit raspier to me as well, but it is loud and hard to ignore. As I drew the camera up to grab a shot, he took flight and sadly the image was not quite as sharp as I had hoped for. But as the song goes, “if you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.” And so, this being my first of the year summer tanager, I’ll love the shot regardless.
