Honey Brake ecotourism workshop, a bit of birding on the way there and back

   On 12/16/15 I attended an ecotourism workshop held at Honey Brake's facilities out in the wild and scenic rural southern Catahoula Parish. Various landowners, tourism officials, nature enthusiasts, and others were invited to learn about and discuss the subject of promoting and expanding ecotourism opportunities in the "Delta" region of northeastern Louisiana and adjacent areas. ...Of course I also took the time to do a little birding along the way.

Catahoula Lake Diversion Canal Road

some of the habitat along Diversion Canal Levee Road

   Catahoula Lake Diversion Canal Road (becomes Diversion Canal Levee Road in Catahoula Parish) parallels the north side of the diversion canal and runs from northwest to southeast across the Dewey W. Wills WMA and alongside private farmland and WRP areas. The wide shoulders of the road/levee mean that there's room for grassland birds as well as forest and wetland species and there are pines growing on the levee in some areas. I drove it from Hwy 28 in the west to Honey Brake in the east, with occasional stops to look and listen from the truck.

Diversion Canal Levee Road

   This particular morning was foggy and soggy and the birds weren't especially active. I did pick up a fair number of the expected species - your Northern Cardinals and Chipping Sparrows and Great Blue Herons and so forth - but nothing noteworthy until spotting a Cattle Egret with the cows grazing near the water outflow structure where waters from Honey Bayou and connected waterways empty into the canal. Of course Cattle Egrets are a very common summer bird in the area, but they can be relatively uncommon and hard to find in this region of the state during winter.

the Cattle Egret

   The workshop itself was held at Honey Brake's conference center, which is situated beside the levee road. The impressive lodge, cabins, and summer camp are located down a private road on the north shore of Larto Lake, and we'd visit them later in the day. Honey Brake is looking at the option of adding ecotourism activities such as birding to their outdoor experience business, which centers on hunting.
   Representatives from Audubon Louisiana, LSU AgCenter, National Resource Conservation Service, Louisiana Delta Adventures, and of course Honey Brake itself were on hand to give presentations aimed at helping landowners understand how to promote better wildlife habitat on their property and some of the legal and financial aspects of venturing into agritourism and ecotourism, as well as how attendees can help promote the region's outdoor recreation opportunities.
   The idea is exciting. There's a lot that the region has to offer that goes unadvertised or is often simply unrecognized as being a boon. Hopefully multiple landowners and outfits in this area will successfully expand into ecotourism.

Catahoula Lake Diversion Canal, looking W/NW from Larto Bridge Road

   An afternoon group tour of some of the property by UTV caravan gave everyone a chance to see firsthand what kind of habitats and wildlife-viewing opportunities there are at Honey Brake. Among the highlights were a juvenile Bald Eagle, which flew over the path not long into our tour, an impressive flock of American White Pelicans, and lots and lots of ducks - Mallards, mostly, with Northern Pintail, Northern Shoveler, and Ruddy Duck, among others.

flock of American White Pelicans on the Honey Brake tour
 (sorry for the crooked image, photo snapped from moving vehicle)

   Back at the lodge, Forster's Terns patrolled Larto Lake and lots of the little woodland mixed flock birds (chickadees, titmice, kinglets, etc.) were busy in the hardwoods. Other wildlife included a large American Alligator basking on the bank of Honey Bayou, and Cajun Chorus Frogs could be heard a few times.
   Wildflowers that I noticed include Halberdleaf Rosemallow growing here and there around the impoundments where the ducks were, and this really nice Cutleaf Groundcherry at the edge of a road on the HB Lodge grounds.

Cutleaf Groundcherry

Spotting this Celery Leaftier Moth just before leaving was a nice little goodbye.


Celery Leaftier Moth

   The location, I think, has a lot of potential for birding tours, and things like "nature walks".  Depending on the time of year and factors such as water level, a wide variety of animal and plant species might be observed while walking or riding the paths and roads or perhaps canoeing the waterways. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for ecotourism in this region of the state, and at this location in particular.

view from Catahoula Lake rec. area

   When I arrived back out at Hwy 28 there was still time for some birding before dark. So, I went on across the highway to the Catahoula Lake Recreation Area. The rec area, and the roughly one mile of the road leading to it, were pretty much dead. Very little bird activity was noticed, and from what I could see from the high levee at the rec area, there weren't any rafts of ducks on the near part of Catahoula Lake, and no gulls and only a couple of Great Blue Herons were around the spillway on the canal. Hey, you can't blame a birder for trying!

http://www.louisianadeltaadventures.com/
https://www.honeybrake.com/
http://la.audubon.org/
http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/site/la/home/
http://www.lsuagcenter.com/
  

Catahoula NWR 12/10/15 and 12/14/15

Spider Lilly, Catahoula NWR HQ Unit, 12/14/2015

   I've delayed the wildflower posts mentioned in the previous entry (will have those up starting this Friday or Saturday, have enjoyed working on them) and I will have what should prove to be a rather interesting and different entry posted this coming Thursday, but for now I thought I'd relate what was present - and what was unaccounted for - during two more recent trips to Catahoula NWR Headquarters Unit.
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HQ Unit, 12/10/15:

Catahoula National Wildlife Refuge Road, aka "the refuge loop"

   The 10th was an unusually foggy morning (not conducive to watching birds, or anything really!). During a short 1 hr. and 10 min. visit to the refuge I recorded only 24 bird species with the continuing trend of this fall's unseasonably low numbers of ducks being of note. Over all, there just wasn't much bird activity, though one can still appreciate just being outdoors.

Duck Lake in the fog

   I heard Spring Peeper calling. These frogs are among the select few frogs that are normally heard vocalizing during the winter months when temps are too low to elicit such activity from most of our Anurans.
   Perhaps due to the recent unseasonably warm weather or perhaps I'm getting better at spotting flowers (probably the former), I noticed a couple of unexpected plants in bloom. Some beautiful Spider Lilly - a species common to see here in the spring - were blooming at the edge of the roadside ditch by the refuge entrance.

Spider Lilly, 12/10/15

Spider Lilly (full plant)

I noticed one (though there were probably more) Swamp Leatherflower blooming along the refuge loop. Small numbers of Halberdleaf Rosemallow and Symphyotrichum also retained blooms.

Swamp Leatherflower

The bird list for that trip follows:

7:07 am - 8:17 am
one mile by vehicle w/ numerous stops, stand around at north end of Duck Lake. Water level: 37.1 feet.

Wood Duck - 5
Mallard - 20

Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Heron - 3

Belted Kingfisher - 1

Red-bellied Woodpecker - 3
Downy Woodpecker - 1
Northern Flicker - 2
Pileated Woodpecker - 2

Eastern Phoebe - 3

Blue Jay - 2
American Crow - 3

Carolina Chickadee - 6

Carolina Wren - 2

Golden-crowned Kinglet - 3
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 6

American Pipit - 1

Cedar Waxwing - 14

Yellow-rumped Warbler - 3

Dark-eyed Junco - 1
White-throated Sparrow - 5
Savannah Sparrow - 2

Northern Cardinal - 6

Red-winged Blackbird - 4

American Goldfinch - 60
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HQ Unit, 12/14/15:


view from NE corner of Duck Lake

   This visit proved to be better birding than the previous one. Also, I drove the entire 9-mile refuge loop, getting a fuller picture of what's present on the unit right now.
  Bad news first: duck numbers and diversity continue to be disappointingly low. Also on a glum note: the effects of relatively frequent mowing of the roadsides on the refuge are apparent as there are far fewer individuals and species of sparrows and other "skulkers" at such locations as the levee/roadsides at the north end of Duck Lake than there were a few years ago when there were weeds left standing for the winter.
   But now the good news: after last year's really low numbers of Yellow-rumped Warblers in this region (based on my observations) it is indeed nice to be hearing and seeing normal numbers of Yellow-rumpeds this fall. I tallied 49 that morning and surely would have had more if I had taken my time and made more and longer stops. A couple of Winter Wrens made for a sweet FOS species for the day as well.

American Robin, one of the many "songbirds" seen along the refuge loop that morning

 

female Northern Harrier

   Maybe the most enjoyable observation was the several minutes that I spent watching an impressive female Northern Harrier at pretty close range. In fact, we were both interested in watching the same group of White-throated Sparrows, it seems. After a few minutes (she patrolled low over the grass a few times, perched in a bush for a few minutes, called a few times, took flight and made a few more passes over the now-hidden sparrows, including a couple of dry dives into the grass) she flew off empty-taloned and I drove off with a few photos and some video. This was at the east boundary of the refuge, with the harrier hunting the weedy field just yards off the refuge. (Here's a link to the video, which I posted on flickr. File size was too big for the blog.)

American Alligator

   As for herps, I did hear Spring Peeper a few times that morning, but the American Alligator was a nice surprise. It was a chilly 57 degrees f., and the gator was basking beside a roadside ditch that had flooded from the previous day's rainfall event. This was well away from the lake or other of the larger or more permanent waterways.

American Alligator (is its eye injured?)

   A few wildflowers noted include Spider Lilly and Swamp Leatherflower - both species also found on the previous trip - and Blue Mistflower.

Spider Lilly

Swamp Leatherflower

  

Blue Mistflower, looking soggy after the rain of the previous day and night

Complete bird list from the trip is below.

6:59 am - 9:17 am
birded driving 9 miles w/ frequent stops. Water level marker at Duck Lake showed 37.4 feet.

Greater White-fronted Goose - 10
Wood Duck - 2
Gadwall - 29
Mallard - 35
Ring-necked Duck - 2
duck species - 9

Pied-billed Grebe - 2

Double-crested Cormorant - 3
Anhinga - 2

Great Blue Heron - 3

Turkey Vulture - 1
Northern Harrier - 1
Red-tailed Hawk - 3

Belted Kingfisher - 2

Red-bellied Woodpecker - 12
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - 3
Downy Woodpecker - 4
Northern Flicker - 9
Pileated Woodpecker - 5

Eastern Phoebe - 10

Blue Jay - 2
American Crow -  20

Carolina Chickadee - 25
Tufted Titmouse - 12

Winter Wren - 2
Carolina Wren - 5

Golden-crowned Kinglet - 5
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 15

Hermit Thrush - 1
American Robin - 4

Orange-crowned Warbler - 3
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)- 49

Chipping Sparrow - 7
White-throated Sparrow - 22
Savannah Sparrow - 3
Song Sparrow - 1
Eastern Towhee - 2

Northern Cardinal - 27

Red-winged Blackbird - 3

American Goldfinch - x (Group of approx. 30 seen, multiple flyovers heard but not seen w/ accurate count hard to make.)

Cowpen Bayou

Catahoula NWR, November 2015

frosty morning and fall colors on Catahoula NWR, 11/23/15

Here's an account of the several trips I made to Catahoula NWR during November. Decided to hold off of doing individual blog posts for these and combine them into one big post. Bird lists from these trips are at the bottom of the post.
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half-way down the walk-in road

11/6/2015:
   After the recent rain events, ending the drought, I was eager to go to Catahoula NWR Headquarters Unit and see how things had improved. There was a marked up-tick in numbers of winter bird species. I got my FOS Greater White-fronted Goose, Snow Goose, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Orange-crowned Warbler, and Song Sparrow for this fall/winter season that morning. What will likely be my last Indigo Bunting (a summer species) of the year was seen as well. 
   There continued to be a large Tree Swallow presence centered around Duck Lake. However, no other swallow species were recorded, though any that might have been present could easily have been overlooked among the hundreds of Tree Swallows.
   "Herptiles" were limited, with only Blanchard's Cricket Frog and Green Anole making the list. Eastern Fox Squirrel was the morning's only mammal species.

Sleepy Orange (Abaeis nicippe) nectaring on Sida, Catahoula NWR HQ Unit

Sleepy Orange (Abaeis nicippe) nectaring on Sida,
 Catahoula NWR HQ Unit

   Butterflies were out in good numbers. Little Yellows were especially numerous with a rough count of 59 individuals. The Sleepy Oranges, which are becoming one of my favorite butterfly species to see, were out as well (6).
Checkered-Skippers were a pretty frequent sight (12). Fiery Skippers were tallied at at least 10, and a "dark/brown skipper" of some species was seen briefly but I didn't get to snap a photo or take my time looking it over in the field.

 Fiery Skipper nectaring on Sida, Catahoula NWR HQ Unit

Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta),
 Catahoula NWR HQ Unit

   Both Phaon Crescent (3) and Pearl Crescent (3 or 4) were seen, as were Common Buckeye (7). Though absent from my Lep list from the 10/23 visit, Red Admirals were seen at several locations on this morning's outing, with at least 4 individuals encountered.  Two Gulf Fritillries were seen nectaring on Brazilian Verbena. A single Carolina Satyr was seen at the gate on the walk-in road. A single Gray Hairsyreak was seen nectaring on "aster species" (see flowers in Common Buckeye photo below or photo in flower section below) near the north end of Duck Lake.

Carolina Satyr, Catahoula NWR HQ Unit

Common Buckeye (Junonia coenia) nectaring on asters, Catahoula NWR HQ Unit

   I photographed three moths as well, all of them along the walk-in road. A Celery Leaftier Moth (Udea rubigalis, tentative i.d, but pretty confident)

Celery Leaftier Moth, Catahoula NWR HQ Unit

, Hawaiian Beet Webworm moth (Spoledea recurvalis, comfirmed/accepted by BAMONA)

Hawaiian Beet Webworm Moth, Catahoula NWR HQ Unit

, and a Velvetbean Caterpillar Moth (Anticarsia gemmatalis, confirmed/accepted by BAMONA).

Velvetbean Caterpillar Moth, Catahoula NWR HQ Unit

   (Tentatively identified) Flowering plants from that outing include Annual Marsh Elder (Iva annua), Sickle-pod Coffeeweed (Senna obtusifolia), Prickly Fanpetals (Sida spinosa), Fourspike Heliotrope (Heliotropium procumbens), Indian Heliotrope (Heliotropium indicum), Halberdleaf Rosemallow (Hibiscus laevis), Frogfruit (Phyla lanceolata), Acmella species, White Morning-Glory (Ipomoea lacunosa), and Brazilian Verbena (Verbena brasiliensis).
  In early December, I'll be putting together a blog post covering the wildflowers I've photographed/documented during this fall season as part of my ongoing quest to learn to i.d. the wildflowers of my region, so the photos and further details about the plants from this outing (including possible corrections) will be in that post.


...and, below... Asters which I mentioned above. I think they may be Symphyotrichum praealtum (and maybe more than one Sym. species present??), but I'll certainly look into it more before "fall flower" post.

This one's from HQ Unit...

...this one from Willow Lake

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HQ Unit and Willow Lake Unit, 11/20/2015:

North end of Duck Lake, Catahoula NWR HQ Unit

   I returned to the HQ Unit on November 20 to find that more winter species had arrived. My FOS Ross's Geese, Mallards, Gadwalls, Ring-necked Ducks were among them. Water levels were up a little and at about 'normal' level in Duck Lake. There was the normal assortment of woodland and grass birds such as Orange-crowned and Yellow-rumped Warblers, Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglets, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Dark-eyed Juncos and several sparrow species. No Tree Swallows were observed this time, and it seems that all exclusively 'summer' bird species have departed.

   The highlight of the day were the seven Wild Turkey. They looked to be a group of young birds - Jakes and Jennys. I got lucky and was able to photograph them and get some short video footage. Its always a treat to watch these charismatic birds making their rounds through the woods, especially when its more than a fleeting glimpse of a frightened or distant bird.
   After the headquarter unit, I made a pass through Willow Lake Unit. By this point in the morning, things were quieter, but a few of the usual suspects such as Swamp and Song Sparrows, and Eastern Towhee were encountered. A Northern Harrier was patrolling the weedy 'meadow' - an almost guaranteed sight at this location during the cooler months.

Savannah Sparrow, Catahoula NWR Willow Lake Unit, La Salle Parish

   A formerly dense weedy/brushy section of 'meadow' - the part west of the little slough - had been cleared since my last visit a few weeks ago, and one can now see what lays at ground level all the way across the open area including some shallow water associated with Willow Lake. The water was too distant to scan thoroughly from the road (and I didn't have time to go out there on foot) but it looks promising for some ducks and shorebirds. I did spot a Mallard and some sort of shorebird (possibly Wilson's Snipe) that flew briefly before landing again behind some grass. A Great Egret was also hunting out there. I heard American Pipit - a species found on open ground and short grass - there as well. It'll be interesting to see what species this now mostly very short-grass area will attract.

recently cleared area of Willow Lake Unit

   Other than birds, there wasn't much going on at either unit that morning. Wildflowers, with the exception of some bedraggled-looking Halberdleaf Rosemallow and a smattering of small asters (see photo in above section) were hard to come by. The hale, vibrant Swamp Leatherflower that I spotted at Willow Lake stood out as a last holdout from among the bountiful and diverse flowers that characterize the location in the warmer months.

Swamp Leatherflower (Clematis crispa), Catahoula NWR Willow Lake Unit

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Sunrise at Duck Lake

sunrise at Duck Lake

Headquarters Unit, 11/23/15:

   I made another visit to the HQ Unit on 11/23. A cold, wintery morning, with frost on the grass, fog rising from the lake, and a chill, clear-blue sky certainly made it feel like winter had come. The birdlife reflected that to some extent. Nothing summer-y remained, and more winter species continue to arrive. FOS Redhead was a nice find. This duck was in the company of Mallards in the water across the road/levee from the north end of Duck Lake.
   There doesn't seem to be as many ducks on the lake as I might have expected at this part of the season, though hopefully that's because I just haven't seen them having only visited the one part of the lake in the past few visits, or perhaps because they just haven't arrived yet.

male Redhead, Catahoula NWR HQ Unit, La Salle Parish

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Bushley Bayou Unit, 11/24/15:

   And, finally, I broke the routine and this time went to the Bushley Bayou Unit, which I haven't birded since September. I walked a half mile or a little more, one way, along Minnow Ponds Road from the Highway 8 entrance and some of the levee beside the adjacent impoundments.

middle impoundment

   It was a fairly 'birdy' morning. Flocks of geese and ducks, some too high or distant to i.d. with certainty, were frequently passing overhead. There were at least two species of ducks - Green-winged Teal and Ring-necked Duck - flying to/from the private shiner farm ponds on either side of this corridor of the refuge. Shots from hunters were heard there several times and the hunting activity seemed to have the ducks on the move.

Field Sparrow, Catahoula NWR Bushley Bayou Unit 

Swamp Sparrow

   A nice assortment of winter sparrows were seen. White-throated were common where the cover was more woody. Savannah Sparrows were at the open, grassy, wet impoundments. Swamp and Song Sparrows were a common sight and sound, with a Song Sparrow or two occasionally singing. There was a Vesper Sparrow or two and a Field Sparrow seen, as well as some Chipping Sparrows. Lots of Eastern Towhees (some of them permanent residents, some winter visitors?) noisily scratched in the leaf litter.
  Unfortunately, I didn't find any Fox Sparrows or Lincoln Sparrows - two species which can sometimes be found here. It was disappointing that Common Yellowthroat - a common bird here year-round - didn't seem to be present, either.
   A pair of Bald Eagles seen briefly as they flew over was a definite highlight of the trip, as was my first of season (FOS) Pine Siskin, which was heard as it passed overhead.  The Tricolored Heron was unexpected (photo in checklist below). Though several may be seen in some years wintering in the area (usually HQ Unit of refuge, or elsewhere near Catahoula Lake), Trics are not a 'common' winter bird in the area and this is probably my first at this location from the 'winter' part of the year.
   Despite the cold, there were still a few wildflowers to see. I'll include photos and i.d.'s. for those (some of which I still need to identify) in the upcoming "fall flowers" blog post. Other plant observations... I came across a Persimmon tree, leafless but decorated with its famous orange fruit.

Persimmon tree (Diospyros virginiana) w/ fruit, Catahoula NWR Bushley Bayou Unit

Persimmon (Diospyros virginiana), (close-up of fruit), Catahoula NWR Bushley Bayou Unit

Bird lists from 11/6, 11/20, 11/23, and 11/24 are below...
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11/6/2015
Catahoula NWR HQ Unit, La Salle Parish 
7:41 am to 10:47 am
75 to 80 degrees f., near calm, occasional very light brief sprinkles of rain, cloudy with a brief partly-sunny period and ending the trip when it began to rain in earnest.

Greater White-fronted Goose - 55
Snow Goose - 1
Wood Duck - 10

Double-crested Cormorant - 5

Great Blue Heron - 4
Great Egret - 2
Snowy Egret - 1
White Ibis - 1

Turkey Vulture - 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1
Red-shouldered Hawk - 3

Mourning Dove - 1

Red-bellied Woodpecker - 5
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - 3
Downy Woodpecker - 2
Northern Flicker - 6
Pileated Woodpecker - 1

Eastern Phoebe - 8

Blue Jay - 3
American Crow - 4

Tree Swallow - 300

Carolina Chickadee - 5
Tufted Titmouse - 3

Carolina Wren - 4

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - 1

Golden-crowned Kinglet - 4
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 5

Hermit Thrush - 3
American Robin - 23

Northern Mockingbird - 1

American Pipit - 1

Orange-crowned Warbler - 2
Common Yellowthroat - 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) - 8

White-throated Sparrow - 9
Song Sparrow - 3
Swamp Sparrow - 2
Eastern Towhee - 2

Northern Cardinal - 15
Indigo Bunting - 1

Red-winged Blackbird - 2
Common Grackle - 32
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11/20/2015
Catahoula NWR HQ Unit, La Salle Parish
6:52 am to 8:56 am
1.5 mile
48 to 51 degrees f., sunny, light breeze

Snow Geese and Ross's Geese

Mallards

Snow Goose - 11
Ross's Goose - 3
Gadwall - 2
Mallard - 62
Ring-necked Duck - 2
duck species - 80

Wild Turkey - 7

Wild Turkey "Jenny" (young female)

Wild Turkey "Jakes" (young males)

Double-crested Cormorant - 7

Great Blue Heron - 4

Red-shouldered Hawk - 2

shorebird sp. - 20

Mourning Dove -

Belted Kingfisher - 1

Red-headed Woodpecker - 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker - 7
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - 1
Downy Woodpecker - 2
Northern Flicker - 4
Pileated Woodpecker - 1

Eastern Phoebe - 5

American Crow - 7

Carolina Chickadee - 5
Tufted Titmouse - 2

House Wren - 2
Carolina Wren - 1

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - 1

Golden-crowned Kinglet - 2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 4

Eastern Bluebird - 4
American Robin - x

American Pipit - 2

Cedar Waxwing - x

Orange-crowned Warbler - 2
Common Yellowthroat - 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler - 11

Chipping Sparrow - 3
Dark-eyed Junco - 3
White-throated Sparrow - 9
Savannah Sparrow - 8
Swamp Sparrow - 2
Song Sparrow - 4
Eastern Towhee - 1

Northern Cardinal - 12

Red-winged Blackbird - 5
Common Grackle - 16
blackbird sp. - 20

American Goldfinch - x

***************************************
11/20/2015
Catahoula NWR Willow Lake Unit, La Salle Parish
9:00 am to 9:54 am
1 mile
55 to 56 degrees f., sunny, light breeze

Mallard - 1

Cormorant - 1

Great Egret - 1

Black Vulture - 2
Turkey Vulture - 1
Northern Harrier - 1

shorebird sp. - 1

Belted Kingfisher - 1

Red-bellied Woodpecker - 1
Northern Flicker - 2

Eastern Phoebe - 5

Blue Jay - 2
American Crow - 15

Carolina Chickadee -

Golden-crowned Kinglet - 2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 4

Eastern Bluebird -
Hermit Thrush - 1
American Robin - x

Brown Thrasher - 1

American Pipit - 2

Cedar Waxwing - 20

Yellow-rumped Warbler - 2

Savannah Sparrow - 3
Song Sparrow - 5
Swamp Sparrow - 4
Eastern Towhee - 3

Northern Cardinal - 2

blackbird sp. - 30

American Goldfinch - x
******************************************
11/23/2015
Catahoula NWR Headquarters Unit, La Salle Parish
6:44 am to 8:04 am
1.5 mile
31 to 35 degrees f., clear, calm, light frost early, some fog at lake.

Redhead and Mallard (males)

Snow Goose - 100
goose species - 20
Wood Duck - 1
Mallard - 35
Northern Pintail - 22
Ring-necked Duck - 4
Redhead - 1
duck sp. - 200

Pied-billed Grebe - 1

Double-crested Cormorant - 10

Great Blue Heron - 3

Red-shouldered Hawk - 1

Mourning Dove - 3

Red-bellied Woodpecker - 2
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - 2
Downy Woodpecker - 4
Northern Flicker - 3
Pileated Woodpecker - 3

Eastern Phoebe - 7

Blue Jay - 3
American Crow - 10

Carolina Chickadee - 3

House Wren - 1
Carolina Wren - 3

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - 1

Golden-crowned Kinglet - 2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 6

American Robin - 4

Cedar Waxwing - 30

Orange-crowned Warbler - 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler - 14

Yellow-rumped Warbler on left and Chipping Sparrow on right

Chipping Sparrow - 5
Dark-eyed Junco - 2
White-throated Sparrow - 17
Savannah Sparrow - 5
Song Sparrow - 2
Swamp Sparrow - 2

Northern Cardinal - 12

Red-winged Blackbird - 3

American Goldfinch - x
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11/24/2015
Catahoula NWR Bushley Bayou Unit, Catahoula Parish
7:02 am to 9:27 am
0.5 mile
Conditions: chilly, start temp 41 degrees f., cloudy at first but sunny by the end, wind calm or near calm.

Greater White-fronted Goose - 285
Snow Goose - 180
Green-winged Teal - 63
Ring-necked Duck - 40
duck sp. - 100

Great Blue Heron - 1
Great Egret - 4
Tricolored Heron - 1

Tricolored Heron

Bald Eagle - 2 adults
Red-shouldered Hawk - 1

Killdeer - 33 - flyover flock, hunting activity/shots on private land sent them over the refuge
Greater Yellowlegs - 4 - in impoundments

Mourning Dove - 2

Belted Kingfisher - 1

Red-bellied Woodpecker - 2
Northern Flicker - 1
Pileated Woodpecker - 1

Eastern Phoebe - 2

Blue Jay - 3
American Crow - 9

Carolina Chickadee - 2
Tufted Titmouse - 3

House Wren - 1
Carolina Wren - 5

Golden-crowned Kinglet - 2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 7

Eastern Bluebird - 1
Hermit Thrush - 2
American Robin - 4

Brown Thrasher - 3
Northern Mockingbird - 2

American Pipit - 2

Cedar Waxwing - 5

Orange-crowned Warbler - 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) - 3

Chipping Sparrow - 2
Field Sparrow - 1
White-throated Sparrow - 12
Vesper Sparrow - 2
Savannah Sparrow - 5
Song Sparrow - 5
Swamp Sparrow - 5
Eastern Towhee - 9

Northern Cardinal - 5

Red-winged Blackbird - 100

Pine Siskin - 1
American Goldfinch - 30
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