Life at Boomer Lake with Deb, Sunday June 2, 2013

Between the wind and the rain, my little piece of Oklahoma is still standing strong, but the ducks are confused. They aren’t sure if they should be in Boomer Lake or in the many deep puddles in fields around the lake. Basically, I think it is a matter of convenience. It doesn’t matter where I look, I have ducks surrounding me. As long as they keep out of the roadway, I’m happy, and so far, they have done that.

The lake has a healthy amount of water in it, and the red eared sliders are sunning themselves on what banks are left on the Southern Cove. There have been several roiling battles in the water between red eared sliders and either their meals or the water moccasins. To be honest, I’m not completely certain that these snakes are the poisonous variety. By the time I had the camera trained on the battle, it was over, so I have nothing to show you there, BUT I do have a decent shot of a snake, and it’s a big one.

I found through research, that this snake is the harmless watersnake. A water moccasin has a large head and a thick neck, which this one does not.

While out getting pictures for several days, I got caught in cloudbursts, but it was worth it. I got great shots of the Blue-winged Teals, the Northern Mockingbird, and the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher.

Yesterday, I witnessed the Western Kingbird evict the Northern Mockingbird from his tree, which includes his nest. The nest from last year has been rebuilt, but it doesn’t appear to be in use. Perhaps this is the new residence, but I cannot say if this is the same pair or not. I’ll still watch the old nest, just in case it is taken over.

I believe I have located the nest of a White-eyed Vireo, but I won’t swear that this is a white eye. I was lucky to get two photos, neither of which are prime, but I know that I have a vireo nest. I spent more time there today, but didn’t see the parents. However, the little tree was alive with lots of calls.

There are lots of marsh rabbits around the lake, so I know that the population is healthy. I saw a youngster, but it was so fast, I was unable to even think about getting a photo. For those of you that are curious, these rabbits are similar to cottontails, but the ears are much shorter.

There are several Eastern Meadowlarks in residence at and on the outskirts of the lake. I got a few very bad photos today facing the sun. I was unable to locate the one that was on the correct side of the lake for the time of day, much less in a tree like last year. With all the rain, the fields are very high, so the grass hides them without any effort at all.

I got shots of a butterfly, so the bad weather hasn’t been a deterrent for some of them. I haven’t seen any admirals so far this year, but I have seen one or two monarchs over the past few weeks. I’m sure that once the weather calms down, they will be out in droves.

The yellow shafted Northern Flicker was out insect hunting this morning, and these are some of the better shots that I have for this bird now. The yellow shafted variety of the flicker is the most common, but there are also the red shafted and gilded. Do you see the yellow on the back of the bird? That’s where the coloring for the different varieties is located for identification purposes.

I lost a couple of photo opportunities for the Yellow Warbler, but plenty of them are around the Southern Cove. An attempt was made to infiltrate the Northern Reaches, but there is so much water, I was unable to walk far. There is a great deal of bird life out there, including an assortment of warblers, vireos, bluebirds, redstart, buntings, grosbeaks, and I actually caught a glimpse of the longspurs. The birds are out there, but will be difficult to photograph with the trees fully leafed.

Here’s hoping that everyone has been surviving the bad weather as easily as I have. If you think of it, while out in your travels, please pick up fishing line and plastic litter. This will help keep our feathered friends safe from the potential harm that this material can cause. If any of you teach, please explain this to your students, and they can educate their parents, too. Thanks so much for your continued help and support.

Keep your eyes to the ground and your head in the clouds. Happy birding to one and all, ad may you all find birds on your Life List. I’ll talk to you again next week.