ACE Basin- No Bears but Many Birds and Gators at Bear Island

 

It was good to get out of the house Sunday and make the lengthy drive south to the ACE Basin. The vast protected preserve is worth the drive time because it’s always a great commune with nature. And it’s so quiet out there except for the calls of birds and the grunts of alligators. And we did see lots of both. 

To follow are my photographs that show some of what can be seen at the precious preserve called the Bear Island Wildlife Management Area.

This long road dissects the 12,000-acre undeveloped property. It extends from the entrance straight to the outer limits of Bear Island. 

Summer Saturday in February!

A Saturday outing to Sullivan’s Island turned out to be a very fun day. Winter? Not this day, more like a summer day based on the warm weather and busy beach activities seen in this photo. 

It has been a year now since the coronavirus crisis began worldwide. And what a long, stressful year it has been. You can tell in this photograph that people are so ready for things to get back to normal. 

There was plenty of activity on the water also. It was a perfect day for sailing and boating. 

Indigo Bunting Sunday Visit

 The last day of February brought a neat treat Sunday morning as I was reading the newspaper on my back porch. This is why if I’m sitting out there for any length of time I have my trusty Canon SX50 with me. 

A blue flash caught my eye. Was it “just” another Eastern Bluebird? Don’t get me wrong, that’s a gorgeous bird that I’m always happy to see and photograph. But I do see them all the time in my yard. 

No, this is an Indigo Bunting, a juvenile or immature one at that. And a banded one as well. Note in the above photo the clear round plastic around the right leg. A birder told me it could have a band around its left leg also but I can't see that leg in the photos I took. The bird stayed behind the feeder, maybe so it could keep an eye on me sitting just a dozen or so feet away.  

This was the first time I can recall seeing an Indigo Bunting in my backyard. Years ago, I photographed one at the old Kings Grant Golf Course not too far from where I live. That was an adult one. 

I’m hoping for a revisit soon! Hopefully, the food was appreciated and will be remembered. 

Finally, from whatbird.com here some interesting tidbits about the Indigo Bunting: 

• Indigo Buntings are actually black; the diffraction of light through their feathers makes them look blue. This explains why males can appear many shades from turquoise to black.
• They are more common now than when the pilgrims first landed. This is due to an increase in their favorite habitat of woodland edges, such as power line clearings and along roads.
• They migrate at night, using the pattern of stars nearest the North Star to guide them. In captivity, these birds will become disoriented if they can’t see the stars in April/May and September/October.
• A group of buntings are collectively known as a "decoration", "mural", and "sacrifice" of buntings.

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Sighting Continues

Yesterday was a rare clear dry day this winter, so I was able to enjoy some cool (literally with the temperature in the 50s) back porch time in the sunshine.  Right away, I heard then saw an old friend up in a pine tree. Pecking away was this Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. This is one of my favorite bird names. 

For years a Sapsucker, maybe this same one, has frequented my backyard trees. Must be some tasty treats he’s able to find in the wood. 

Notice above the row of three holes on the right side of the tree. 

This is a male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Note the red throat under the bill. The female’s throat is white. 

The bird’s coloring blends so well with tree bark. A defense feature I would think, making it hard for predators to spot. 

Great to see you, hear you and photograph you again old friend! 

Winter Birding Highlighted by Oriole Visits

He’s a long way from Maryland! But truth be told, Baltimore Orioles have become common sights in the Southeast. 

A neighbor who lives only several hundred yards from me (as the Crow flies) has been attracting them to his backyard feeders for years. 

The key I learned from him is grape jelly. Orioles have a sweet tooth for jam. So I recently put out some jelly and sure enough the last several days one has come to my backyard. 

The Orioles also seem to like the seed food seen in this photo (taken through my kitchen window) but this one may have been trying to stay out the rain too.

Book Accolades- Thank You Resurrectionalium!

With the vast world of social media, anyone at any time may see a current or past posting whether it be on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, or LinkedIn. 

Such an example happened during the weekend when I received a Facebook notice of a new comment. Wow, what a nice thing to read! Made my weekend for sure! 

I do not know this blogger from Ohio whose blog is called Resurrectionalium but his objective and complimentary commentary on my 2014 Magnolia Cemetery book “In the Arms of Angels” is greatly appreciated. Click the image to make it bigger and easier to read. 

New copies of this book and my others are available via my Amazon site or from me directly! Drop me an email for more information at birdseyeviewspublications@gmail.com. 

And thank you so much Resurrectionalium! 

A New Lease on Life!

I usually don't post about my personal life but the hip surgery I had on Jan. 11 was monumental for me and hopefully will mark a new lease on life. 

As project in one of my SC State University classes I'm asking the students to also post and speak about an important day in their lives. 

It will be interesting to see what the young people choose to feature.  They are to talk about the experience using their cell phone's voice memo app.  I did so to talk about my surgery. Here is why this day this week was so important to the rest of my life! 

Click here to listen to my two-minute talk about my surgery. 
(Music selection "Morning" is courtesy of the free music site Incompetech).

Note: To get this audio file on Blogger I first uploaded it to Soundcloud. This involved starting a new, free account with the service. 

Hawk Twofer and Finally the Kingfisher Capture

 Having a small pond really close to our house is a great value added feature of where we have lived for (hard to believe) 25 years now. I was not a bird enthusiast when we moved here and the bug didn’t bite until 2008 at Magnolia Cemetery when a pair of Wood Storks captured my fancy and camera. I tell that story in my 2011 book, “The Birds of Magnolia Cemetery: Charleston’s Secret Bird Sanctuary.” One of my Wood Stork pictures graces the cover of that coffee table book published in 2011. 

Anyway back to the backyard pond. It was helped expand my bird identification count, as this ecosystem attracts and perpetuates its own food chain. 

Just yesterday while I was raking leaves I saw a hawk fly by in the direction of the pond. When I walked over for a better view I could see the bird had landed in a nearby tree.

Christmas Visit a Birder’s Delight!

 I wasn’t sure if the gate would be open Christmas Day at Magnolia Cemetery but I was glad it was! Inside was an amazing variety of birds in the two ponds, especially the front one near the entrance. 

These are the most birds I’ve seen here in some time. And I’ve been coming here fairly regularly for about 12 years.

I’ve written two books about this grand 19th-century necropolis, the first one titled “The Birds of Magnolia Cemetery- Charleston’s Secret Bird Sanctuary” in 2011. 

Bluebird House Hunting?

 

I observed this Eastern Bluebird checking out two of my backyard birdhouses. Both seem to be vacant now so this male Bluebird may be seeking to claim one for the winter or even looking ahead to the spring for birthing babies time.