Central Louisiana Birding & Wildlife: January-February, 2022: Sicily Island Hills, National Catahoula WMP (KNF), and Catahoula NWR

Rock Falls, Sicily Island Hills - 1/31/22

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Related Posts:

- Visits to Catahoula NWR HQ Unit on January 5th and 22nd, 2022, Willow Lake Unit on Jan. 5, and Bushley Bayou Unit on Jan. 31, 2022 are already covered in the post at this link:

https://falloutbird2014.blogspot.com/2022/02/catahoula-nwr-la-salle-and-catahoula_12.html

- Previous visit to Sicily Island Hills:

https://falloutbird2014.blogspot.com/2021/11/sicily-island-hills-catahoula-parish.html

- Previous visit to Kisatchie National Forest in Grant Parish:

https://falloutbird2014.blogspot.com/2021/12/kisatchie-national-forest-including.html

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This post covers visits to three areas in northern Cenla during January and February, 2022. The first is Sicily Island Hills (more precisely, the JC "Sonny" Gilbert State Wildlife Management Area) in northern Catahoula Parish. Secondly, there's a trip to the National Catahoula (or "Catahoula National...", you see it both ways) Wildlife Management Preserve, which is part of Kisatchie National Forest's Catahoula and Winn Ranger Districts. The parts of NCWMP that I visited are in northern Grant Parish, but a portion of this WMP extends into southern Winn Parish.. Finally, there's a visit to Catahoula National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters Unit in La Salle Parish.

Sicily Island Hills (JC "Sonny" Gilbert WMA) - 1/31/22

On this trip to Sicily Island Hills, I drove the length of the main road in the southern part of the WMA, making numerous stops to walk the road, a bit on a side road, and a portion of the Rock Falls Nature Trail down to the waterfall. Bird activity was okay.

The list for the day follows the habitat shots.

Habitat Shots:

creek just inside entrance to WMA

main road

walking side-road through area that was partly logged a few years ago

woods along main road

main road

woods along main road

Rock Falls Nature Trail trail head

woods along main road, west of Rock Falls

...

main road, toward NW end - Here, the habitat takes on a more piney-woods character.

...

looking out over the Big Creek bottoms from near the NW end of the main road

glimpsing Big Creek through the woods

looking out over Big Creek bottoms from NW end of main road

Rock Falls Trail

Rock Creek

(brief video of Rock Falls)

Rock Falls

Vandalism and litter have become an even bigger problem at Rock Falls over the past couple of years.

Red-bellied Woodpecker

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Sicily Island Hills

January 31, 2022

8:50am; 5 hrs, 15 mins; 4.4 miles

47-68F.; sunny; S and SE wind ~3-10mph.

Birds:

Snow Goose - x (a few heard-only flyovers probably representing groups)

Mourning Dove - 4

Turkey Vulture - 11

Bald Eagle - 1

Red-bellied Woodpecker - 6

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Downy Woodpecker - 4

Pileated Woodpecker - 4

Eastern Phoebe - 2

Blue Jay - 6

American Crow - 6

Carolina Chickadee - 15

Tufted Titmouse - 11

Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 11

Golden-crowned Kinglet - 12

Winter Wren - 1

Carolina Wren - 16

Brown Thrasher - 1

Hermit Thrush - 1

American Robin - 3

American Goldfinch - 4

White-throated Sparrow - 5

Eastern Towhee - 1

Orange-crowned Warbler - 1

Pine Warbler - 14

Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) - 2

Northern Cardinal - 9

Other Wildlife:

I didn't encounter any mammals, but found tracks of Virginia Opossum, Northern Raccoon, and Coyote.

Herps...

More than a few Cajun Chorus Frogs were heard, along with a few Spring Peepers.

I saw a Common Gartersnake in the woods near Rock Falls.

Common Gartersnake - near Rock Falls Nature Trail

Butterflies...

I really wasn't expecting to see many/any butterflies this day, but starting around midday I saw four, all flew from the road when I was driving back out (including before stopping to walk Rock Falls Trail). There were two Red Admirals and two that I didn't see well enough to ID (possibly either Goatweed Leafwing or Question Mark).

Red Admiral

wakerobin sp. (Trillium) - woods near Rock Falls Trail

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National Catahoula Wildlife Management Preserve (Kisatchie National Forest in Grant Parish) - 2/11/22

On February 11, I made a trip over to National Catahoula WMP in northern Grant Parish. I birded along portions of Forest Service Roads 556 (between LA-472 and US-167) and 558 (west of US-167), driving and making many stops and taking some short walks along the roads.

Habitat shots and bird lists below:

FS Rd 556

habitat along south side of FS 556

habitat along north side of FS 556

burn on north side of FS 556, west of FS 151 -- I assume that this was a prescribed burn by Forest Service, but there were some spent fireworks (box of Roman candles?) at corner with 151, which is where the burnt area began, so I have to wonder...?

FS 556 at pond on east side of railroad

ditto

pond between RR and US-167

FS Rd 558 west of US-167

FS Rd 558 at first creek west of US-167. This is 1.1 miles west of the highway. FS 558 crosses several streams between US-167 and FS 155, all tributaries of Saddle Bayou, but I do not know the names of these creeks. Actually, I remember from an old map of NCWMP that I had as a kid--a map that was much more detailed that what's available now--that there were Schoolhouse, Friday, and Prairie Creeks here, but I do not recall which one's which.

first creek along FS 558 west of US-167

(video: song of Cajun Corus Frogs at the creek)

another creek along FS 558, a direct tributary of the first creek

558

FS 558 - creek bottoms just east of junction with FS 155

the larger of the two creeks in those bottoms

You can still see the damage that Hurricane Laura (2020) did to these woods, especially in hardwood creek bottoms like these. A lot of the largest trees were knocked down and others severely damaged, so the woods have a more open canopy than they used to.

...

NCWMP

2/11/2022

8:34am; 3 hr, 18 mins; 6.3 miles

45-69F.; clear; S and SE wind ~2-15mph

FS Rd 556 from LA-472 to US-167, then FS 558 from US-167 to WMP boundary just west of FS 155

Birds:

Mourning Dove - 3

Turkey Vulture - 10

Red-shouldered Hawk - 2

Red-bellied Woodpecker - 4

Downy Woodpecker - 3

Downy Woodpecker

Pileated Woodpecker - 7

Blue-headed Vireo - 1

Blue Jay - 2

American Crow - 16

Carolina Chickadee - 14

Tufted Titmouse - 9

Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 4

Golden-crowned Kinglet - 4

White-breasted Nuthatch - 2

White-breasted Nuthatch

Brown-headed Nuthatch - 4

Carolina Wren - 11

American Robin - 1

Eastern Towhee - 1

Pine Warbler - 57

Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) - 5

Northern Cardinal - 3

Iatt Creek Bottoms (FS 558 just outside of NCWMP/KNF; Grant and Winn Parishes)

11:56am; 27 mins; 0.6 miles

~70F.; clear; wind 5-15mph

...

Iatt Creek

Birds:

Turkey Vulture - 1

Red-bellied Woodpecker - 2

Blue Jay - 1

American Crow - 1

Carolina Chickadee - 2

Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 2

Carolina Wren - 1

Brown Thrasher - 1

Eastern Towhee - 1

Pine Warbler - 1

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Catahoula NWR Headquarters Unit

Swamp Sparrow - 2/27/22

On February 27 I made a trip to Catahoula NWR Headquarters Unit in eastern La Salle Parish. I drove portions of the refuge loop, going past the north end of Duck Lake (shown as "Little Lake" on some maps) to the NW corner of the loop by Cowpen Bayou, and then turning back and going down the east leg of the loop, as far south as the trailhead for he nature trail. I made numerous stops along the route.

Habitat shots and bird list are below: