"What a thousand acres of Silphiums looked like when they tickled the bellies of the buffalo is a question never again to be answered, and perhaps not even asked." -Aldo Leopold
Black-throated Green Warbler; Tower Grove Park, St. Louis, Missouri
As is often the case, no better description of a bird can be found other than those of Arthur Cleveland Bent. From Life History of American Wood Warblers…
“The northern black-throated green warbler I have always associated with the white pine woods, the delightful fragrance of fallen pine needles carpeting the forest floor and the murmuring of the warm summer breeze. The song has been written as ‘trees, trees, murmuring trees,’ appropriate words that seem to call vividly to mind the pretty little bird in its sylvan haunts and its delicious and soothing voice.”
Trees, Trees, Murmuring Trees – Black-throated Green Warbler; Tower Grove Park, St. Louis, Missouri
As is usually the case, I was only able to get to Tower Grove Park a few times this year in order to witness the songbird migration that rolls through this migrant trap every spring and fall. Thankfully, I was able to be there for a couple good days in terms of numbers and diversity, and was pleased to find this cooperative BGWA singing and foraging through a flowering Black Cherry.
Black-throated Green Warbler; Tower Grove Park, St. Louis, Missouri
I don’t believe the pleasing colors and patterns of this stately bird could be captured in a single better pose than what is pictured above.
Black-throated Green Warbler; Tower Grove Park, St. Louis, Missouri
Beginning in the first few days of April, Ruby-crowned Kinglets move northward through the St. Louis region on their way up to their eventual nesting grounds of the Canadian boreal forests.
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Moving through our area this early allows for nice opportunities for watching and photography before our deciduous trees have begun leafing out. Although described by Pete Dunne as “A bird that moves like spit on a skillet”, if patient, the nature photographer can find brief periods where even these birds will stop and have a look around.
How on earth did these birds get their name?
When flitting through the branches looking for their insect prey, the intense scarlet-colored crown patch can be difficult to spot. But with camera and patience, this spot that the birds use to aggressively communicate with other Kinglets, can be seen.
The Music Box
The song of the RCKI I find to be quite special. These guys typically start with a couple or three wind-up notes that lead to a wren-like jumble of rapidly progressing complexity. A welcome sound of spring.
See you in the fall…
The Kinglets have mostly removed themselves from the Show-Me State by now. They will return this fall following their nesting season and there will be folks with lenses of all sorts looking to find that ruby-red crown.
On a rainy March day at BK Leach CA Sarah and I came across a couple of young Bald Eagles hanging out. The bird on the left is a 4-year old and his partner is likely a 2nd year bird.
While driving around BK Leach Conservation Area this spring, we came across a Turkey Vulture feeding on a raccoon carcass. Did you know that the Turkey Vulture has the most advanced olfactory system of any known bird? They can pick up the smell of a rotting animal from more than a mile away. As shown below, we noticed the bird would attempt to cover up its meal when it spotted other vultures soaring nearby.
It’s all mine!
Turkey Vultures can often be seen with their wings widely spread in what is referred to as an “horaltic pose”. The benefits of doing this are not entirely known but have been hypothesized to be an aid in warming the birds and helping to dry feathers. The bird posing in the shot below was taken one morning while I was hiking at Shaw Nature Reserve.
Horaltic Poser
Finally, I thought I would share some video footage that this patient bird let us take whilst it was digging into some coon.
The northernmost breeding blackbird of North America, the Rusty Blackbird unfortunately has the distinction of being in one of the steepest population declines of all N.A. bird species.
Rusty Blackbird – Female
Rusty Blackbirds nest throughout the boreal forests of Canada and Alaska, but winters throughout the eastern United States in areas including wet forests near permanent bodies of water. They will also utilize agricultural environments. Among the protected areas considered important for overwintering habitat is Mingo NWR, located in south-eastern MO.
Rusty Blackbird – Male
Rusties exhibit an interesting variability in plumage throughout winter and spring, as can be observed in the different birds photographed in this post. Males are dressed with varying amounts of the rusty warm color that gives this species its name. This coloration is located on the tips of newly emerged feathers during the molt. As these fine feather tips wear and break off, the males will become primarily black and luminescent in summer breeding plumage. Female Rusties are even more interestingly plumaged, with tans, browns and blues.
Rusty Blackbird – Female
Different survey methods, such as the Breeding Bird Survey and Christmas Bird Count all suggest that the Rusty Blackbird population has declined by more than 90% over the past three decades. Reasons for this decline are not well understood, but are likely to include the acidification of wetlands, loss of wetland habitat in general, loss of forested wetland habitat on wintering grounds and poisoning of mixed-species wintering blackbird flocks in south-eastern United States, where they are considered as agricultural pests.
Rusty Blackbird – Male
In his book Birder’s Conservation Handbook – 100 North American Birds at Risk, where much of the information in this post was collected, Jeffry Wells suggests the following actions to address the population decline of the Rusty Blackbird:
Limit global warming pollution and acid deposition via air pollution.
Implement protections and management plans across the boreal forest of North America.
Stop deforestation of wintering habitat and implement habitat restoration.
I was thrilled when I took my camera inside from shooting in my wildflower garden on a past summer day and identified this hymenopteran as a Bee Wolf. Philanthus gibbosus (Family Crabonidae) is what I am calling this one. Bee Wolves get their name from doing what you expect, feeding primarily on bees. These solitary wasps will load their brood chambers with pretty much any bee or wasp smaller than themselves that they can catch as a provision for a single egg they deposit prior to sealing the chamber shut. Some taxa have specific bees they prefer to catch and this can aid in identification. This poor thing was quite beaten up as you can see in the photograph below. Missing a few legs, it probably escaped a bird or larger insect, and was not happy to have me and my camera in its face. In the photo above I captured it doing a rapid vibration of its wings, something I read that these guys are known for doing as a communication. I can’t imagine what she may have been trying to tell me…
Bee Wolf
I believe the insect below to also be a species of Bee Wolf, but have not yet been able to put a name with this one. I photographed this one having a drink in a wet area of Shaw Nature Reserve early one morning.
The False Milkweed Bug (Lygaeus turcicus) is a seed bug that, although quite similar in appearance to the Small Milkweed Bug (Lygaeus kalmii), is not strongly associated with milkweed.
False Milkweed Bug
As can be seen in the photograph above, the False Milkweed Bug is most often found feeding on yellow composites (Family Asteraceae). These bugs were all photographed at Shaw Nature Reserve on what seems to be this insect species’ favorite food plant, the False Sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides).
False Milkweed Bug
There are several members of the Lygaeidae family that are aposematically colored and found in North American prairies. As mentioned, it seems that the False Milkweed Bug does not typically utilize milkweeds. The Small Milkweed Bug feeds on milkweeds as well as other plant taxa. The Large Milkweed Bug feeds exclusively on milkweed. There is obviously a great case of Mullerian mimicry (distasteful organisms appearing similar to one another to benefit from a an easily identified color or body type) going on here, but it gets pretty complicated.
What has happened to the False Milkweed Bug? Is this a case of a species that once fed primarily on milkweed and developed aposematic coloration but has since switched food preference? Or, is this a case of a palatable species mimicking (Batesian mimicry this time) the aposematic coloration of a truly noxious species? Thinking about this, it is easy to see the selective advantages that could result from either possibility.
First, a little background…
Some insects that feed on milkweed benefit by concentrating chemicals called cardiac glycosides that are toxic irritants to vertebrate predators. Cardiac glycosides are an irritant to vertebrate herbivores (livestock) and vertebrates that feed on insects that feed on milkweed and store these compounds in their tissues. However, they are not a significant problem for insects that feed on milkweeds – they simply pass through their guts (insects that store these specific toxins, for example the monarch, must have biochemical changes to avoid toxic effects). The milkweed’s primary defense against the seed bugs and other herbivorous insects is the milky sap that gets forcefully pumped from any mechanical damage that is inflicted on the plant. For this reason the milkweed is a pain for an insect to feed on.
For a seed bug, with its piercing-sucking mouth parts, feeding on the gummy sap of a milkweed is a significant hurdle. Assuming the False Milkweed Bug once fed from milkweed primarily and gave it up would be a significant advantage. Keeping the aposematic coloration, which would allow it to gain the benefit from its vile-tasting, similarly colored cousins, still feeding on milkweed, would be advantageous as well. With my brief observations, the False Milkweed Bug still behaves conspicuously – feeding and doing everything else it does out in the open, suggesting that the aposematic coloration is still working in this mimic-model system, whatever the source history ultimately may be.
I’m finally ready to share a few more images from a float down the upper third or so of the Current River that Steve and I had the great fortune to experience this past October. We started at navigable mile 8.0 at Cedar Grove Access and pulled out three days later at mile 51, the confluence of the Current and that other, oh-so desirable, Ozark stream – the Jacks Fork. If one floats slow and quiet, the opportunity to see wildlife is very high in this National Park (Ozark National Scenic Riverways N.P.). I’v shared a couple of images of these guys previously. I believe we found 8-9 Mink during the first day of this float. It was enjoyable watching them busily hunt along the stream banks, mostly oblivious to our presence. As usual, Steve did a great job in keeping us quiet and pointed in the optimal direction for capturing some images.
American Mink
It was quite a challenge to keep up with these guys as they fished. This one below had caught a nice-sized crayfish and barely slowed to stop and enjoy his snack.
Ozark Lobster!
Here is a photo of one investigating the water prior to dipping back in.
Testing the Water
Not only does a float down the Current allow for great observations of wildlife, but many geological features are most easily seen by being on the river as well. Cave Spring can now be accessed via a nice newer trail, but it is much nicer accessing it by boat. The endpoint of a vast and interesting karst drainage system, Cave Spring rises from the back of a short cave. At the rear of this cave one can guide a boat over the vertical conduit of the spring, which is ~155 feet deep! What an eerie sensation it is to shine your light down and still see no more than a fraction of the length of the conduit shaft. In the image below, I am on a dry exposed shelf adjacent to the spring’s outlet and Steve is guiding the canoe towards the river.
Cave Spring
Pultite is a spring found on this upper stretch of the Current River that is surrounded on all sides except the river by private property. This means that one must boat or wade/swim to visit it. At only ~ 1/10 the output of Big Spring, Pultite is still quite a good-sized spring with and average daily output of ~ 25 million gallons. The effluent channel on this one is quite attractive and I hope to visit more often.
Pultite Channel
If day one was for the Mink, day two was our River Otter day. We had no Mink, but 5 or 6 of these large weasels were spotted.
North American River Otter
Not to forget the birds! These days, a trip to nearly any permanent Missouri water source will likely bring an encounter with a Bald Eagle. Observing these guys in the Ozarks will never get old to me.
Bald Eagle
Another constant companion on these floats are the Fish Crows, here pictured finishing up a little Ozark lobster.
Fish Crow
We were fortunate in having mostly clear and dry skies on this trip, which allowed us to throw our bags directly on whatever gravel bar that struck our fancy and sleep directly underneath the stars. A morning fire was necessary – not only to burn the dew off of our sleeping bags, but of course, for the river-water French-press coffee. Dark skies on these streams afford great opportunities for astrophotography. My only wish for this trip is that I was a little more tolerant of the cold, tiredness and laziness that limited my patience for getting better nightscape images… 😉
Nightscape on the Upper Current
I will be posting more images of this trip on my Flickr account in the near future. Thanks for visiting and I hope to post again in the near future.
Steve and I took advantage of a long holiday break by making a pilgrimage to Squaw Creek NWR. Even though the temps were in the 50s and 60s, you can see we still had white out conditions… 😉
My third and final day to myself in southwestern Puerto Rico would be quite memorable. I placed myself within the center of the Elfin Woods of the Maricao State Forest. I arrived at ~ 06:30 and did not leave until ~19:30. The AM weather was spectacular, with cool temps and some steady breeze and partly cloudy skies. I stayed the entire day in a little recreation/biological station that was about 1/4 of a mile long. It contained nice bathrooms and covered picnic tables. This was a good thing because the rains came onto the mountain at about 13:00 and stayed mostly through the time that I left.
Kilometer 16
On mountain road 120, look for this sign. This is one of only a likely two spots on earth to have a good chance of seeing the Elfin Woods Warbler, one of the endemic bird species to the island and one I had little hope of finding.
CCC at Maricao
There were a couple of those old CCC signs here as well.
Elfin Woods – Tourist Style
I had read bits and pieces that there were trail heads here and others scattered throughout this small forest preserve, but I could find no signs of those anywhere. Ultimately, I doubt I missed much. The ~1/4 of a mile I had was split mostly between the birds and myself. All it took was some patience, or, lots of patience as the birds came and went into the thick vegetation that rose or dropped steeply on one respective side of the road or the other.
Antillean Mango
Many species of tropical hummingbirds are known to occur within a narrow range of altitude. The Antillean Mango can be found throughout the rainforest habitats of Puerto Rico, up to the highest peaks of the island.
Puerto Rican Bullfinch
The Puerto Rican Bullfinch is not a finch at all, but a Cardinal. It has a song that is quite reminiscent of our Northern Cardinal. I found these guys, like so many of the birds on the island, to be a bit shy and tricky to get a clear view of.
Puerto Rican Tanager
The Puerto Rican Tanager is another endemic bird of the island. The cloudy skies made photography quite challenging.
Pearly-eyed Thrasher
After this Pearly-eyed Thrasher had its fill of the water-apple, I made sure I got my two or three as well… 😉
Exotics
While this stretch of mountains is a dream for the botanist (more than 250 species of trees), several of these are imports from other tropical locations. Similar to the El Yunque forest on the eastern side of the island, several exotic tree species have been introduced here from Australia. While several of these species seem to have a small or even neutral effect on the native ecosystems, some have become quite problematic, like these invasive eucalyptus.
Puerto Rican Tody
The Todys were here as well! And I was in for quite a surprise.
Puerto Rican Tody
One of the several highlights of the day was finding a PR Tody nest cavity in the side of a mud bank. These guys are in the same family as the Kingfishers, and build a similar nest cavity. I happened to be walking by as a bird hopped to the entrance and darted within feet from my face while giving me a terrible scolding. I backed off a bit, hoping it would come back for a great photo opportunity. After 20-30 minutes no birds came, so I pushed on, not wanting to be the reason a youngster was not getting a meal. I would walk by the cavity a few times over the course of the day, but never had any luck. I don’t think they spend a lot of time within sight of the nest cavity, it being a quick in and out operation.
Puerto Rican Tody Nest Cavity
Although I was able to find a couple of the PR Woodpeckers the day prior at Cabo Rojo, I was not able to get any photographs. Thankfully a group came through the area and I managed a couple of mediocre shots. Spectacular birds, as are most Woodpeckers.
Puerto Rican Woodpecker
Finally, the quintessential bird for this most Tolkienesque of forests. The Elfin Wood Warbler. I was able to watch a small group of these quite mobile darts move in and out of the dense, roadside wall of the forest canopy. Only described by science in 1972, it has been estimated there may be as few as 1800 of these birds left on the island.
Elfin Woods Warbler
Human modification and destruction of these mountain forests are having major detrimental effects on these habitats throughout the tropics. In Puerto Rico this habitat is being lost to communication arrays and the roads to service them – one of the costs of global connectivity. I was appalled by some of the views I had of antennas being stacked as thick as trees on some of the mountain tops in this Forest.
Coffee is king here and some of the oldest and largest coffee farms are found within Maricao. I was able to speak with several folks on the island who worked as, or were part of families associated with farming coffee. Not one of them practiced or had any plans to practice shade-grown, bird-friendly coffee. Although it certainly is not the perfect answer in protecting these endemic mountain species, purchasing shade-grown coffee is an important practice in enabling conservation in these areas.
As the light waned and the rains began to lighten, I sat listening to the coqui frogs and other pieces of the night symphony begin their warm up. Just when I thought it couldn’t get better, I heard what I had hoped to hear – the Puerto Rican Screech Owl. This bird gave me a total of 17 of a possible 18 endemic bird forms for the enchanted isle. The only miss was the Puerto Rican Parrot, which is only found in small patches of El Yunque to the east. I can only hope that these birds can continue existing in their present forms long after I have not.
