Frogmore BBS Route 2016, Concordia Parish, Louisiana

Dunbarton, looking south along hwy 566 -- some of the species found in this area include Mourning Dove, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Loggerhead Shrike, Purple Martin, Barn Swallow

    My sister joined me for the Frogmore Breeding Bird Survey on the morning of June 8. This was my second year to do this route. The route runs from the north end of Bob Rife Road at the point where it meets hwy 566 and follows the highway west then south to Frogmore, takes Hwy 84 west to hwy 129, follows 129 south, then west on Ames Road, south on Gallup Road, west a short ways on hwy 565, then south on Deadening Road. The route lies in the Tensas and Black River alluvial plain and habitats include agricultural land, some bottomland hardwood forests, brush/second-growth areas, some areas of rural homes/buildings and pastures, some swampy areas and small bodies of water. Some habitat shots below, listing some species associated w/ that area of the route:

hwy 566 between Dunbarton and Frogmore -- some of the species found in this area were Red-winged Blackbird, Dickcissel, Barn Swallow

cypress slough at Frogmore, Hwy 84 -- some of the species found in this area include Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Cattle Egret, European Starling, Common Grackle

hwy 129 where it passes through hardwood forest -- some of the species found in the area were Red-eyed Vireo, Indigo and Painted Buntings, Blue Jay

in the woods on Ames Road -- some of the species found in this area were Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Barred Owl, Acadian Flycatcher, Hooded and Prothonotary Warblers

one of the stops on Gallup Road -- species in the area included Cattle and Snowy Egrets, Killdeer

   Disappointingly, we didn't have some of the species this year that were found last year, including Northern Bobwhite, Swainson's Warbler, Mississippi Kite, and Red-tailed Hawk. We did, however, have multiple Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks again this year, and it was nice to see American Kestrel. Between stops on Ames Road, we got to see a Barred Owl (my sister was hoping we'd see an owl). Lots of flyover water birds were seen, with Little Blue Heron and Cattle Egret being the most frequently seen, and a scattering of Great Egret, Green Heron, plegadis ibis sp., and Anhinga, as well.

Loggerhead Shrikes near Dunbarton, hwy 566, Concordia Parish

American Kestrel, Hwy 84 near Frogmore, Concordia Parish

   Non-avian critters included rabbit sp., Eastern Fox Squirrel and Eastern Gray Squirrel, Green Treefrog, Cope's Gray Treefrog, Green (Bronze) Frog, and American Bullfrog, which were heard at a lot of locations. We didn't get to spend time trying to get good looks/photos of butterflies, because of the BBS protocol, but some that we saw as we traveled along appeared to be duskywing sp., Orange Sulphur, yellow-colored sulphur sp., Little Yellow, Giant Swallowtail, and possibly Gulf Fritillary and others. I did snap a few photos of what I think is a Vetch Looper Moth at stop 49 on Deadening Road.

tentative i.d.: Vetch Looper Moth, Deadening Road

   Wildflowers included Commelina (dayflower) sp., Helenium sp. - "probably" Helenium brevifolium (Shortleaf Sneezeweed), Coreopsis tinctoria (Plains Coreopsis), Tradescantia (spiderwort) sp., Justicia (waterwillow) sp., Verbena brasiliensis (Brazilian Verbena), to name a few.
http://southeasternflora.com/

tentative i.d.: Helenium sp.

tentative i.d.: Plains Coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria), hwy 129, Concordia Parish, Louisiana

tentative i.d.: spiderwort sp. (Tradescantia), hwy 129, Concordia Parish, Louisiana

  Passing trough Jonesville after the count was over, we made a stop near the junction of hwy 3037 and Hwy 84 to check for the Scissor-tailed Flycatchers that had been present in previous years. Unfortunately, we didn't see them this time, but it was a brief stop and they certainly could be present on this territory again this breeding season.

...along Ames Road