Zimmer Creek Road, La Salle Parish (2017 part 1)

Flora and fauna observed along my "Zimmer Creek Road" birding route on April 17, June 17, June 18, June 29, July 6, 2017. Part one of a planned series about this location.
**link to part 2:zimmer-creek-road-la-salle-parish-2017 pt 2

   Though I have birded this location a few times before this year, I've largely neglected it. This is a shame, because it's a nice example of typical habitats found in the upland part of La Salle Parish, and unlike many roads in the woods around here, this one is in pretty decent condition, and though not gated/posted it has large stretches without houses, giving one opportunities to bird from the road without being intrusive. The route taken on all of the visits covered in this blog entry includes the roughly 0.75 mile of Fount Cutoff Road between hwy 127 and Zimmer Creek Road, and then the part of Zimmer Creek Road from there south to the southern end at Highway 84. The odometer usually shows 5 miles total by the end of the route. The general terrain is hilly, specifically in the northern 3/4 of the route, and pine plantation in various stages of growth, from one-year-old cutover to medium-age pines (guessing 20+ years old?), dominates. There are almost no real pine woods left, though, by which I mean mature pine forest. The route crosses a few small creeks, providing some instances of hardwood creek bottom woods (with some mature pine mixed in), especially at the first two bridges encountered when doing the route from north to south as described. I THINK the second one -- the largest -- is the namesake Zimmer Creek. These streams are all tributaries of Bayou Funny Louis, a large creek that flows from northeast to southwest, passing just north of the route.
   There are a few houses along the route, but most are clustered near the southern end so there are, as I mentioned, long stretches where one can stop and be comfortably distant from human habitation. The presence of some human habitation does however attract some species that might otherwise be missing along the route, including Barn Swallow and Purple Martin, Northern Mockingbird, and the herons and egrets attracted to man-made ponds.
habitat shots:

Fount Cutoff Rd -- The bent trees are from the April tornado, which crossed this road. It caused considerable damage just a little ways further along its path, in the Summerville community, but the damage was relatively light here.

Zimmer Creek Road, going south...

first creek crossing on ZC Rd

view along hilliest section of ZC Rd. Photo - 4/17. Logging operation going on on next hill over on my 7/6 visit -- those taller trees center-right in above image had been cut.

ZC Road through hilliest section, which is primarily cutover of 1 and 2 or 3 years old. (The Confused Cloudywing butterfly photos were taken on the roadside just past the tree on the left.)

...further along, the 2 or 3 year old cutover

second creek crossing -- the Louisiana Waterthrush spot

The woods around the creek and extending a little ways south to the highline are the main "big woods" along this route. Logging operation heard further upstream from here on 6/29, but pretty close and visible up the high-line on 7/6.

ZC Rd -- ...and so forth

Birds: 

Louisiana Waterthrush -- 4/17/17

    I visited this location during the early and mid morning -- prime birding time -- except on the visit on June 18, which was during the middle of the afternoon when bird activity is slow (that was primarily to take my mother for a scenic drive and photograph wildflowers, though I did attempt to keep a complete bird list). This accounts for the generally lower numbers of birds - individuals and species - detected on June 18 compared to the June 17 morning visit, which is reflected in the warbler numbers given below. Detection rates, and singing (especially among warblers), seemed to drop some on 6/29 and 7/6 compared to the previous morning visits. The height of breeding season has passed and we're approaching the time of lessened singing -- the "summer doldrums".
   Cedar Waxing, which are still common in this area well into May, was the only "winter bird" species encountered. All others on this list are presumed to breed in the vicinity of the route, with the probable exception of the Great Blue Heron and Great Egret.
   In the list below, I give special attention to the 10 wood warbler species (including Yellow-breasted Chat) that were encountered; listing numbers of individuals and dates of observations for each of those species, and supplying additional comments for some, as well as photos and video.

The list
55 species

Black Vulture

Wild Turkey (3 on 7/6)
Great Blue Heron (flyover on 4/17)
Great Egret (at large pond by houses on June 17 and 18)
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Mississippi Kite
Red-shouldered Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk -- 4/17

Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher (at large pond by houses -- may be suitable nesting sites at nearby creeks?)
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker

Eastern Wood-Pewee
Acadian Flycatcher
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
White-eyed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Purple Martin
Barn Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Carolina Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 
Eastern Bluebird
Wood Thrush
(video below: Two of the sweetest sounds in nature -- songs of Wood Thrush and Swainson's Warbler. Video taken 6/17 at Fount Cutoff Rd. *edit: I hear Eastern Towhee in there, too.)

Brown Thrasher 
Northern Mockingbird
Cedar Waxwing (15 on April 17)
Worm-eating Warbler -- April 17 - 2 (singing), June 17 - 1 (singing), July 6 - 1 (heard and seen at same spot as previous)
(Heard in the video below are Swainson's, Worm-eating, and Kentucky Warblers, and Northern Cardinal. Vid. taken 6/17 along Zimmer Creek Road. Hooded and Pine Warblers were also singing across the road at that spot, but I don't hear them in the video.)

Louisiana Waterthrush -- April 17 - 3 (one pair heard and seen; one at another stream heard singing), June 17 - 1 (singing, same spot first encountered on 4/7), June 18 - 1 (singing, same spot as previous)
   When I arrived at the promising-looking patch of Louisiana Waterthrush habitat on my first visit this spring, I didn't hear LAWA singing. I don't like to overuse playback, but I decided to play LAWA song to see if I could get a response, because surely the species was present at this spot. Immediately got a response, and leaving it playing a little while, I got good looks of one and heard it's mate calling a few times from just upstream. In the video below, I was recording his calls after ending playback, when he flew into frame.

   Here's a video from 6/18 where the LAWA can be heard singing a couple of times.

  On 7/6 I didn't hear Louisiana Waterthrush for certain at usual spot, but might have heard call a couple of times. However, the noise from a logging operation nearby made it hard to hear bird vocals in those woods.
Black-and-white Warbler -- April 17 - 5 (singing). Missing from other dates. Had they simply hushed their singing by that point in the season?
Swainson's Warbler -- April 17 - 5 (four singing, one calling and briefly seen), June 17 - 7 (all singing, one also seen), June 18 - 2 (singing), June 29 - 1 (singing), July 6 - 2 (singing)
   I have a special affinity for Swainson's Warblers -- they're just naturally a favorite of mine and I make a point to seek this species out when in appropriate habitat and try to keep track of exactly where each was found from visit to visit and from year to year. 
   The Swainson's in these photos is the same one heard singing w/ W-E and KY Warblers in the video under the Worm-eating Warbler account.

Swainson's Warbler, 6/17 -- Flash on...

Swainson's Warbler, 6/17  -- ...flash off

Kentucky Warbler -- April 17 - 2 (singing), June 17 - 2 (singing), June 29 - 2 (singing), July 6 - 1 (singing)
Common Yellowthroat -- April 17 - 1 (singing), June 17 - 1 (singing), June 18 - 2 (singing), June 29 - 1 (singing), July 6 -2
Hooded Warbler -- April 17 - 17 (sixteen singing, one male also seen, one female seen), June 17 - 20 (all singing, one also seen), June 18 - 3 (singing), June 29 - 14 (thirteen heard singing, one female seen foraging), July 6 - 11 (singing)
Pine Warbler -- April 17 - 14 (all singing, one male seen), June 17 - 17 (many were only heard singing, but some were seen, including a family group w/ a female and about three juveniles), June 18 - 3 (singing), June 29 - 1 (singing), July 6 - 3 (singing)
Prairie Warbler -- April 17 - 10 (all singing, two seen), June 17 - 2 (singing), June 18 - 2 (singing), June 29 - 2 (A female was seen bringing food to nest and one young nestling was briefly visible sticking it's head up when she approached nest. Any other young in nest were hidden by foliage. The nest was roughly 8-10 feet up in a Sweet Gum sapling. On 7/6 I staked out the nest for a couple of minutes but saw no Prairie Warblers.)

Prairie Warbler nest, 6/29 -- adult female at right side of nest, a young nestling partly visible in nest, behind leaf.

Prairie Warbler (male) -- 4/17

Yellow-breasted Chat -- April 17 - 6 (singing), June 17 - 14, June 18 - 5, June 29 - 8, July 6 - 4
Eastern Towhee
Summer Tanager
Northern Cardinal
Blue Grosbeak

Blue Grosbeak

Indigo Bunting
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole

Other vertebrate fauna:

White-tailed Deer doe

   White-tailed Deer, Eastern Cottontail, Eastern Fox Squirrel.
   Green Treefrog, Cope's Gray Treefrog, Green (Bronze) Frog.
   Redfin Shiner, Longear Sunfish -- Both fish species were visible from the road, in the largest creek, which appears to be spring water. One pair of the sunfish were observed spawning on June 18 and  four males, each guarding a nest, were observed on June 29. Some males noted at nests on July 6.  The Redfin Shiners were swimming around the nests on all three dates, especially active on 6/18. I've read that this shiner species apparently spawns over the nests of sunfishes (source: "Texas Freshwater Fishes" website - http://txstate.fishesoftexas.org/lythrurus%20umbratilis.htm), so perhaps this is what was going on. Videos below...
Spawning pair of Longear Sunfish, Redfin Shiners swimming around:

 Redfin Shiners (I can't tell yet what those other fish that show up below them are):

Longear Sunfish (male) -- 6/29

Redfin Shiners -- 6/29

Butterflies:

Confused Cloudywing nectaring on Pineland Milkweed, 6/17

Confused Cloudywing -- This was the first time I've seen this species in La Salle Parish. Initially seen on 6/17, when one was observed nectaring on Pineland Milkweed. (Thanks to Craig Marks and Jeff Trahan for helping i.d. it -- I'd initially been pretty sure that I'd photographed a Southern Cloudywing!) The species was seen along same stretch of road on the subsequent visits, including 2 nectaring on those milkweed, a few feet apart, on 7/6.

Confused Cloudywing, 6/17 -- First spotted fluttering onto this Pineland Milkweed about 7:20 am. It spent a while nectaring from the flowers before flying to the ground and apparently grooming (see video below).

Long-tailed Skipper -- 2 seen on Fount Road on 7/6.
Zebra Swallowtail -- 1 seen on ZC Rd between Conf. CW spot and Zimmer Creek on 7/6. A new parish species, and life-list species for me!

Zebra Swallowtail -- It's a shame I couldn't get some better pics. What a beautiful species!

Zebra Swallowtail nectaring on Liatris

Spicebush Swallowtail -- ovipositing on Sassafras on 4/17, nectaring Orange Milkweed 7/6

Spicebush Swallowtail ovipositing on Sassafras

Gulf Fritilary

Cloudless Sulphur
Little Yellow
Eastern Tailed-Blue
"Summer(?)" Azure
'Astyanax' Red-spotted Purple
Gulf Fritillary
Common Buckeye
American Lady
Goatweed Leafwing

American Lady nectaring on Ligustrum

Wildflowers:

Pinewoods Rosegentian -- Zimmer Creek Road, 6/18

   For at least a couple of years now I've been trying to teach myself to identify the numerous and diverse flowering plants I encounter out in the field. I mainly use online sources such as http://southeasternflora.com/ and  https://www.wildflower.org/ . I would generally suggest approaching all of my assigned identifications as tentative except when it comes to the obvious, easy species. If you have suggestions/corrections for any of the below, please drop me a comment and let me know.
   (Also, because this is such an extensive subject, and practically each visit to the field seems to yield something that's new to me, I'd like to do a series of posts dedicated to wildflowers from the various locations I visit. Perhaps I'll start that later this summer. But for now, my Zimmer Creek Road list...)

Largely kind of sort of in chronological order, as first photoed or noted:
Phlox sp., yellow Coreopsis sp., Scutellaria sp. ...

Scutellaria sp., 4/17

Tradescantia sp., Yucca sp. ...

Yucca sp. -- stalk still growing -- 4/17

yucca sp. -- now in bloom as of  7/6

 Vaccinium sp. ...

Vaccinium sp. (huckleberry sp., blueberry sp.) -- 4/17

Oxalis sp., Ligustrum sp., yellow Baptisia sp., Triodanis sp., Pineland Milkweed (Asclepias obovata)

Pineland Milkweed (Asclepias obovata) - 6/18

Goatweed, Aureolaria sp. ...

tentative i.d.: Aureolaria sp.

Salvia sp. ...

TENTATIVE i.d.: Blue Azure Sage (Salvia azurea)

multiple Hypericum species (see section on Hypericum at end of list), Sabatia sp....

Sabatia sp. -- Maybe good ol' S. angularis (Rosepink)?

Pinewoods Rosegentian (Sabatia gentianoides),

Pinewoods Rosegentian -- 6/18

Pinewoods Rosegentian -- 6/18

 Narrowleaf Mountainmint (Pycnanthemum tenuifolium) ...

tentative i.d.: Narrowleaf Mountainmint -- 6/18

TENTATIVE i.d. Whiteleaf Mountainmint (Pycnanthemum albescens),

TENTATIVE i.d.: Whiteleaf Mountainmint or similar sp. -- first noticed on 6/29, but this photo's from 7/6

 Rhexia sp., Shortleaf Sneezeweed (Helenium brevifolium), Bitterweed or Bitter Sneezeweed (Helenium amarum), Monarda sp., Pineland Rayless Goldenrod (Bigelowia nudata), Rudbeckia sp. -- probably Blackeyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta), Delphinia sp. (I'm guessing Carolina Larkspur) ...

Rudbeckia (yellow) and Delphinia (blue) -- 6/18

purple Aster sp. and yellow Aster sp.,

TENTATIVE i.d.: maybe Southern Pine Aster (Eurybia hemispherica)?? -- 6/18

TENTATIVE i.d.: maybe Soft or Cottony Goldenaster (Chrysopsis/Bradburia pilosa)??? -- 6/18

Vernonia sp., Eryngium yuccifolium,

looks to me like photos I've seen of Eryngium yuccifolium - 6/18

Southern Magnolia, Helianthus sp., Bidens sp., Tephrosia sp. ...

tentative i.d. Tephrosia spicata

Ruellia sp...

Ruellia -- 6/29

Rhus sp. -- maybe Smooth Sumac (Rhus glabra)?, Butterfly Pea (Centrosema virginianum),

Butterfly Pea (single flower at center) and Beebalm (Monarda sp.)

Ludwigia sp., Liatris sp.,

TENTATIVE i.d.: Liatris spicata

Chamaecrista sp. ...

Partridge Pea (Chamaecrista sp.) -- 6/29

Solidago sp., Lythrum sp., Blue Waterleaf (Hydrolea sp., presumably H. ovata),

Blue Waterleaf (probably Hydrolea ovata, right?), 7/6. Other common names of H. ovata include False Fiddleleaf and Hairy Waterleaf. Hydrolea are some of my favorite flowers to find. There were a good many of these in bloom on 7/6 in a wet patch in a small cutover at the edge of the first little hardwood creek bottom.

Orange Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa),

Finally found on this route on July 6 (despite being common in this terrain in this region, w/ blooming starting back in the spring)! Common names of Asclepias tuberosa include Orange Milkweed, Butterfly Milkweed, Indian Paintbrush.

2 or more additional Fabaceae spp, and an assortment of additional Asteraceae species (yellows and whites).

*Hypericum species: 
   (The websites linked at beginning of wildflower section are the sources for much of the info below.)
   There are a number of similar-looking species of Hypericum (the various "St. Johnswort" and "St. Andrew's Cross", and similar species). As I said, I'm teaching myself wildflower i.d., and I'm finding that these are especially tricky. I think there are 4, possibly more, species of Hypericum represented in photos from this location. So, here's a breakdown of what I think we have here...

Hypericum with 4-petaled flower -- St. Peter's Wort, St. Andrew's Cross, or Pineland St. Johnswort?
   St. Andrew's Cross are named for the four petals in an 'X' shape. There's a St. Andrew's Cross with narrower petals and a more distinctive 'X' shape (H. hypericoides) that I've seen at other locations, but I hadn't noticed ones with wider petals before, like the flower in the photos below. Maybe it's the same species, maybe it's St. Peter's Wort (H. crux-andreae). Yeah, the one w/ the Latin name meaning something like "Andrew's cross" is the one called St. Peter's Wort... because "reasons", I guess. A third option, Pineland St. Johnwort (H. suffruticosum) might have to be ruled out because our plant is presumably too tall (over 6 inches). Pictures below...

A 4-petaled Hypericum -- could it be H. crux-andreae or H. hypericoides or H. suffruticosum ? Whole plant pictured below. Photo taken - 6/29

Whole plant (detail above)

Below, a pic. of a different individual at a different location on the route, also with 4 petals and similar-looking leaves --

another 4-petal Hypericum -- photo 6/29

Orangegrass aka Pineweed (Hypericum gentianoides) -- This species is familiar to me from other locations. I'm assuming that I've been i.d.ing them correctly, as they seem pretty distinctive.

What I think is Orangegrass (Hypericum gentianoides). Photo -- 6/29

2 more Hypericum with Five-petaled flowers:
   These are two more St. Johnswort. Initially I was pretty confident that the first species pictured below was Coastal Plain St. Johnswort (H. brachyphyllum), but I'm not certain....

I believe these may be H. brachyphyllum. ZC Rd, 6/18. They have been abundant along Fount Road and northern part of ZC Rd since my 6/17 visit.

more possible Hypericum brachyphyllum along Fount Rd, showing full plant

 And then there is this second, larger, species, which is a tough one, in my opinion...

Larger 5-petaled Hypericum --  ZC Rd, 6/29

   All just guesses, really. I'd like to explore this further in the planned wildflower posts, by which time I'd hopefully have more information, and possibly additional species, better photos, etc.

Wild Turkey feather dropped by one of the birds on 7/6

****************************************************************