Bona Dea Update

Bona Dea was sunny and cold and windy. However there was no shortage of wildlife today. It all started with a drive down Lakefront Drive and seeing 5 Double-crested Cormorants on the snag in Lake Dardanelle. Then after parking at the pulloff, I saw at least 3 Pied-billed Grebe ducks. These ducks as mentioned in a previous recent post are really small and brownish all over. They duck under the water and swim quite a ways before surfacing. I got 2 way off pics of one of them here. One just shows its head in the waves and the other and back view. Going on down to the swinging bridge, I went down by Prarie Creek and stood there for quite a while. I did not see any ducks as I had hoped but I looked down the creek and on my side of the creek I saw a White tailed Deer walking toward me on the bank. Then right behind it were 3 others peering around at the one walking. I never could get a photo of this group. Behind me I heard some birds talking to each other and looked around and saw a pair of Northern Flicker woodpeckers in a tree. The pic here. Also toward where the deer were was a pretty bright red male Northern Cardinal and pic here. After a little bit I heard the sounds of Mourning Doves and a Barred Owl calling out for its mate. Here are the sounds of the Doves, Owl and Flicker woodpecker. Click on the links and then click on the sound tabs on the pages. http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Mourning_Dove/sounds http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Flicker/sounds http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Barred_Owl/sounds

Sounds of the Chickedees and Cardinals were all around. Flying high over head and in abundance were the usual graceful Gulls. Also a few Turkey Vulchers flying about. Flocks of Grackles and Starlings, blackbirds, were flying every which way. At the spillway there were some woodland type Sparrows and Bushtits. They were on the back on the muddy banks scratching for food. Of course Robins were hopping all over the grounds doing the same. I heard Canadian Geese calling out over on Black Water Swamp. So quite a bit was happening at the Sanctuary today.