The Marsh Project Week #21

This is actually Week 21 and 22, but to stay consistent, I'm calling it Week #21.  Just a few weeks ago, we were still having cold spells and now it's getting hot. Not middle of summer hot, not yet, but on Saturday I drained an entire 32 oz. Nalgene bottle while on the trails, then had to stop at my favorite gas station for a huge iced tea on the way home.   My nature nerd tan is clearly visible- tan forearms and raccoon eyes from the sunglasses- and today, burned earlobes. I didn't realize they were burned until I made some Mother's Day phone calls, and it was ouch! ouch! ouch!

The painted buntings and indigo buntings have made their presence known on a portion of the trail; my second male painted bunting sighting of the season occurred when one jumped out from some ground vegetation right in front of me and then proceeded to sit in some branches while I tried, mostly in vain, to get an award winning painted bunting photo.  In the end, it was good enough for ID.  About five minutes later, an indigo bunting did the same thing to me.  It was a good birding day.

Earlier this week I accompanied my son's class on a field trip out to the trails, and we saw three snakes- a cottonmouth, a broad-banded water snake, and a western ribbon snake.  Today, the nature gods decided to give me a special Mother's day gift and I saw five snakes- two plain-bellied water snakes and three diamondback water snakes.  I'm seeing frogs- mostly the adorable little green tree frogs- and hearing the occasional American bullfrog.

The dragonflies are out in ever increasing variety.  I'm starting to see more of the jade clubtails, plenty of the plains clubtails and the ever present common whitetails and eastern pondhawks- but this week I saw three Cyrano darners.  The first one I saw I couldn't tell what it was, and I balanced precariously on the edge of the boardwalk attempting to get a clear enough photo for an ID.  I'm still not seeing the same amount of butterflies as I have in the past;  I'm hoping that their numbers pick up.  Every time I walk, I do see a few viceroy butterflies; always in the same spot, so maybe I'm seeing the same butterflies every day.

At the blind, a red-bellied woodpecker has laid claim to a tree, and he is there every day I'm there, pecking away and making his presence known.  He climbs in and out of a hole in the tree, perches on top of the tree, and then maneuvers all around the tree. Sometimes he flies off, only to return.  Periodically there is another woodpecker there as well; I can't tell if this other woodpecker is a male or female.

Seen on the trails: green tree frogs, southern leopard frogs, bullfrog (heard), skinks, fishing spiders, painted buntings, indigo buntings, dickcissel, little blue herons, kingfisher, great blue heron, great egret, mallards, American coot, Western kingbird, Northern cardinal, red-bellied woodpecker, dragonflies (roseate skimmer, band-winged dragonlet, Eastern pondhawk, Cyrano darner, red saddlebags, black saddlebags, plains clubtails, jade clubtails, common whitetails), broad-banded water snakes, diamond back watersnakes, western rat snake, western ribbon snake, plain-bellied water snake.  Butterflies: viceroy, common buckeye, goatweed leafwing, Eastern comma, question mark, black swallowtail.