Rattlesnake Brook Preserve

At the far corner of town in the woods beyond Great Hill Pond is a little nature preserve called Rattlesnake Brook Preserve. If you are wondering, the answer is yes. There are rattlesnakes in this Meshomasic forest. Meshomasic is an Algonquin word that is roughly translated to -"land of many snakes". You'd be lucky or unlucky to find one (depending on how you look at it). They aren't particularly aggressive, preferring to camouflage into the background and keep their distance. You wouldn't want to corner one or step on one though!

This has been a one of those overlooked areas. Too far out of the way and having the name Rattlesnake Brook might discourage some people from checking it out. It is a beautiful natural area though. The last day I went it was buzzing with Yellow-throated Vireos, an Acadian Flycatcher, Brown Creepers, tanagers, and thrushes.

There was also several active Great Blue Heron nests. Maybe you have some nature preserves in your area that are overlooked? I'm hoping that by putting these places on the map there will be more to come in the future.

 

How About A Statewide Shoreline Parking Pass?

There are plenty of birds to see along the shoreline this time of year. Above is a small army of American Oystercatchers. 

 The problem is parking. Birders like to pop in here and there to have a look but there are many great shoreline access spots that have no public parking. There are some town beach parking lots that charge as much as 70 dollars unless you're a town resident. Many times you end up driving around trying to figure out a way to park without the fear of being towed. I wouldn't mind if they charged a flat fee for the year like 50 or 100 dollars so that you would have a pass giving permission to park just about anywhere along the shore.

In the meantime we just have to keep looking for little out of the way areas to park while we keep looking over our shoulder making sure our car is still there. To be fair, there are a few designated shore areas to go to but it's more fun to be an explorer! (Least Tern in above photo). 

Why Are All These Holes In The Sandbank?

Hmm, seems to be some holes in the top of that sandbank.

Upon closer inspection, I would say there are definitely holes in that sandbank but why?

Ahaa! Bank Swallows love a good sandbank to nest in! 8 of them were flying around in constant motion. They go in and out of those nest-holes like rockets so I was lucky to catch this one taking a temporary break! 

I Hit The Jackpot With The White Ibis!

I don't often chase after reported rare bird species. I have limited time and a gas tank that costs too much to feed. I avoid chasing rare little brown birds across the state that I may not be able to find when I get there, might be hard to get a photo of, and aren't overly exciting to look at. These days, I wait until there have been repeated reports of a rare bird that I'd really like to see for the first time. The White Ibis fit that profile. I got tips from a fellow birder friend of mine (thanks Anthony). 

He let me know about a location site the day before but I was a mile into the woods and too far away at the time, so I headed out at 6am the next day to the town of Clinton to try my luck. As soon as I arrived I hit the jackpot! Believe me, it is a jackpot because it doesn't always work out that way. A lot of times you end up making these trips only to come up empty!There were 7 of them but I could only get 6 into the frame. From what I was told, the birders who went there before me and after me weren't able to find them. That can be very frustrating when you know you barely missed them!

The White Ibis was both a life bird and a county bird for me!