I just knew that Thursday, June 16th would be a great day when I awoke to this beautiful sunrise off the dock, one of the few that can be seen only as summer solstice approaches:
Another trip to Carden beckoned, but this time in the evening as we hoped to see some Goatsuckers like Nighthawks, Whip-poor-wills, and perhaps even a Chuck-will's widow like last year.
As I waited for John, a Brown Thrasher brought home an extremely good haul of yummy critters for the family:
Further along Wylie Road, a Northern Harrier was mobbed by several Red-winged Blackbirds. At first I thought the Harrier would leave the area, but I soon realized that in fact this was their Golden Hour game, as it went on for at least half an hour, with all of them calling and screaming at each other, what great entertainment for me!!
John and I checked out Cameron Ranch for Loggerhead Shrikes with no success, so we returned to Wylie Road at sunset...
...where we soon heard the familiar "boom" of Common Nighthawks as they soared over the open alvar, feeding on flying insects. Sadly, this species is declining, so it was truly wonderful to see them again, a first for me this year.
From there, we met up with Dan and Susan for some more serious goatsuckering in the area. John headed home around 10 p.m., but Susan, Dan, and I continued on for a few more hours until the rain set in, what a magical night!
1 comment:
Amazing photos of the Harrier air batte... and 17 Whip-poor-wills? Priceless, indeed.
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