Bona Dea Update

Bona Dea was mostly sunny and windy and cool. Pools of water on the trails from the last rain yesterday. They are starting to do some heavy equipment work at the west end of the park parallel to Parkway Hwy. There is a track tree harvester machine that is taking down the trees by stipping them down from the top and grinding them up as it goes. Never seen that operation before. Just saw some youtube vidoes of this. Still don't know what they are doing it for. There was a Double-crested Cormorant on the old snag in Lake Dardanelle spreading its wings out. They look prehistoric and probably are. Gulls were flying over the lake and the park. American Crows doing the same thing and a few single Turkey Vultures. On Swinging Bridge trail a Great-blue Heron was flying over the area. Also the pair of Downy Woodpeckers were still in the area. Acadian Flycatchers were in the trees by the water's edge and the Eastern Phoebe Flycatcher was in Goose Pond. The female Canadian Goose was still on her nest on the island on Waldon Pond with the male standing guard close by. Since it was a sunny day the basking turtles were on their logs and snags in the water ponds and creek. Northern Cardinals were all over the park singing their usual songs. Fox Sparrows were flying low in the bushes and grounds by the old swinging bridge. Other pairs of Canadian Geese were flying over Waldon Pond. I fed the Blue Gill Brim fish today at the spillway and they were hungry. Yesterday I posted a photo of a Saucer Maganolia tree close to my house and I also took a photo of a flowering bush I could not ID but just found out it was a Camellia of the Coral Delight variety. It is very pretty and here are some photos.