Bolton Flats (Virginia Rail) & Forbush Bird Club-May 17th

I spent another day birding today and managed to get a few lifers in despite the lousy weather. Alan and I went to Bolton Flats in the afternoon to search for the reported Sandhill Crane that was spotted there yesterday and late this morning. Despite our best efforts we were unable to locate it. When we got there we saw about 1/2 dozen other people all there for the same goal and I am hoping they lucked out since many drove long distances to get it. While we didn't get the crane we did manage to see closeups of a family of Virginia Rails (LIFER!). I am telling you seeing this bird gave me that birding high that I long so much for. The bird is so magnificent that words cease to come and you are overcome with awe in seeing a bird as beautiful as this one. This is now my new favorite bird for the month of May!

Check out the black and white under its breast and near its rump. Mother nature was feeling quite artistic the day she created this bird.

Another shot of one preening itself. It spent a lot of its time doing this and didn't even seem to notice us.

Another closeup. I took a lot of pictures of the rails and wanted to post them all because I doubt I will ever get this fortunate again to get shots like these. Yup, a birding high to say the least.

Last one I promise!

Lousy digiscope pictures of another lifer for me which is the Semipalmated Plover. This bird looks similar to the familiar Killdeer but has one band underneath its neck vs. the two of the Killdeer. These birds are very quick so decent pictures were not possible, at least for me.

Another blurry shot of them. I believe there were 3 or 4 in total.

Better digiscope pictures of Least Sandpiper. Such a striking bird and they are all over Bolton Flats.

We spent most of the morning at Buck Hill in Spencer for a Forbush Bird Club field trip. The weather was damp and raw but Susan our leader did a fantastic job finding us birds which was quite the challenge due to the dreariness of the day. Here is a picture of an Ovenbird which is now my official nemesis bird of the year. I can't manage a decent shot of this bird for the life of me. It taunts me all day with it's manic Teacher, Teacher, Teacher call letting me know it's in the woods yet I can't get lucky enough to get a clear picture. I will get it by the end of the summer but I want it now. ;o)

Another lousy photo of the Black-throated Blue Warbler. I am telling you weather conditions were terrible and so clear shots were not in my fortune this morning.

A semi-view of the Common-Yellowthroat.

An extremely hidden view of the Black-throated Green Warbler. This one was hard to get as it didn't want to come down any lower so all I got were some butt shots.

Susan took us to a lovely river in search for various thrushes and many could be heard but not seen. Such a pretty river though. So much different than the Blackstone which is in my town. The Blackstone has been plagued with pollution in the past so it was nice to see on this clean and clear.

On our way back from the field trip we saw this family of Canada Geese in a homeowners pond. We backed up to get a better look at a Great-blue Heron that I saw and to my excitement we saw the proud family with their goslings. So cute! Yes Canada Geese can be filthy, loud and obnoxious but they are still so pretty to look at.

Pictures of wildflowers from our field trip. Here is a picture of Trillium. I don't know what kind as wildflowers are completely new to me but all of the other birders new the exact name of it. I don't know how these people do it. They know so much about birds, butterflies, wildflowers, etc and I am still trying to get my warblers straight. It's a great way to learn though and each day I learn something new.

My first of the year Ladyslippers.

Finally Painted Trillium. Seeing these gorgeous wildflowers puts many of my favorite backyard flowers to shame. Sometimes the most beautiful things in life are those that are untamed, wild and uncontroled by man. A walk in the woods will get you there if you take the time to do it.