Author: samm85

A former rural journalist who now lives with her two dogs in the capital of Arkansas.

In search of the “F” Hawk

November 27, 2012

My parents joined me as I searched for the Ferruginous Hawk the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. I showed them pictures of the hawk taken by other Arkansas birders and we headed out to Newport. It was an interesting experience.

My Mom kept exclaiming “I can’t even find a Black Bird in the sky” while I kept saying “That’s OK, you’re looking for a hawk.” I had a hard time seeing the hawks before we passed them and, even when we saw them in time to stop, my Dad barely slowed down enough for a picture.

I can’t pronounce the name of the Ferruginous Hawk so I basically call it the “F” Hawk. I might need to come up with a new nickname since I feel like I’m cursing the hawk.

Despite these setbacks, we enjoyed the trip together and I did get pictures of one of the hawks we passed, a Krider’s Redtailed Hawk. It might not be the “F” Hawk, but it’s still a beautiful bird.

Vermilion Flycatcher

November 21, 2012

A rare bird to Arkansas has been spotted in Arkansas County. I met up with a fellow birder late this morning to go see the female Vermilion Flycatcher. The flycatcher is presently living on the 18th hole (which doubles as the 9th hole) at the Oak Hill Country Club in DeWitt.

Luckily, we found it although we weren’t too sure of ourselves at the time. Unfortunately, the pictures are kind of out-of-focused. Still here’s two more shots of the bird.

Day dreaming

November 19, 2012

Today has been one of those days where I’ve stayed cranky despite the day turning out to be pretty decent (even if it’s a Monday). I spent the weekend and today sick and wishing for warmer weather. I finally decided to go through pictures to help cheer myself back up. It worked because who wouldn’t smile when looking at a fawn, wildflowers or other wildlife. 🙂

 

A long way to go…

November 16, 2012
Short-Billed Dowitchers off of Hwy. 306 near Wynne

I shot this picture of Short-billed Dowitchers in a flooded field last Sunday. It was overshadowed when I went on to see Bald Eagles, mallards and Cooper’s Hawk in the following 48 hours. I began attempting to identify the Short-Billed Dowitchers this week and remembered I had similar looking birds in an Aug. 25 picture.

Silly me. I found the August picture and, well, the birds in both pictures really looked the same to me.  They’re not, although I was somewhat right in my assessment that they were sandpipers. I successfully begged for help on the Arkansas Bird Listserv today to learn that the below picture is apparently of Buff-Breasted Sandpipers.

Buff-Breasted Sandpipers at the Bald Knob National Wildlife Refuge

Overall, I learned two key things today. The first is that I’m horrible at identifying birds if its not absolutely obvious (re: me thinking the birds in the above pictures were the same). The final fact is, well, I’ve photographed two new birds in Arkansas for my state bird list. Yay for me! 🙂

 

Travelling to the Bald Knob refuge

November 16, 2012

A few months ago, I found myself heading west of Wynne towards the Bald Knob National Wildlife Refuge. I will gladly admit that the highlight of that trip was stopping at Jack Ryan’s Country Store just about a mile outside of Fair Oaks. The Hwy. 64 store has the absolute best sandwiches.

Here’s some more pictures from my trip:

 

Chilling in the fields …

November 15, 2012
Bald Eagles

Right now is the perfect time to capture waterfowl in the flooded fields between Wynne and Stuttgart. I was headed back home one morning last week when I passed four birds (one flew away) sitting in a field. I grabbed my camera, grumbling that I needed new contacts and snapped a few pictures. Boy, was I surprised to zoom in on the pictures and learn that the birds were Bald Eagles, juveniles and adults. It basically made my week — yes, I’m easy to please! 🙂