This morning two volunteers from Highbanks Metro Park joined me for a visit
to the Hoover Nature Preserve. It was a hot and humid day with high air
quality  numbers which made for a short romp in the back forty. We quit after
several  hours and headed for air conditioning. Our walk began on a positive note as
the  male at the first territory in Area N greeted us as we began. A second
male was  also singing in the background. We temporarily took our attention
away from the  prothonotary warblers as a young red-tailed hawk caught prey near
us and then  landed where we were able to watch it snack on its prize. We
later moved on to  the back of Area N where we continually heard prothonotary
warblers singing. The  number still present for mid-July is surprisingly high and
I'll have to look for  evidence of second broods.

We were teased by yellow-billed cuckoo's as they were calling all around  us,
but none cooperated and made an open appearance. Some additional species of
interest observed in Area N included osprey, spotted sandpiper, Acadian
flycatcher,  and scarlet tanager.

From Area N we made a quick stop at Area L where there were numerous
prothonotary warblers calling.  A male came very close to us as it foraged  on low
logs. It likely has fledglings in the nearby button bushes. We made a  slight
side route and checked out the hawk nest I've been watching. There was a  hawk
at the nest rim when we arrived and it gave a first impression of being an
adult, but the streak pattern on the breast would indicate an immature bird. It
seems the kids have fledged the nest but are staying close for now and they
are  as large as the adults.

The overall activity was quiet this morning, but there was enough activity
to make things interesting. Last year I observed prothonotaries feeding
fledglings into early August, whereas in the past many started their journey  south
as of mid-July.

Charlie Bombaci
Hoover Nature Preserve
.




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