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American Bittern at Bethabara Boardwalk - W-S, NC



Wow.  I can hardly believe it.  Tom and I were out at the Bethabara
Boardwalk tonight to close that door on the Wood Duck box.  While on
the boardwalk Tom spotted an American Bittern in the grasses near the
creek end of the boardwalk.  (He can really spot them, huh!) What a
find and so many of the ASFC folks out of town on the field trip!  We
called Marilyn Shuping who came down to the boardwalk to gawk with us.
Ran over to Eckerds to get a disposable camera (because of course I
didn't have mine with me!)  Took some pictures, but not very sure how
they will come out.  The bird was near the big barkless tree that is
right next to the rail on the Reynolda Road side of the boardwalk.
There's also a tree down in the water with a stump sticking up.

The bird was very cooperative.  Pointed its bill up in that typical
Bittern style.  Yellow eyes looking at us, we got good looks at the
head, mustache, brown and white streaked neck, dark upper mandible,
yellow lower.  Looked just like the pictures in the four field guides
I had to retrieve from the car!  There's one great picture in the
National Geographic of a frontal view of the head with both eyes
visible...looked just like it!  The bird moved ever so slowly!  Yellow
legs, mottled brown body.  He/She even hunted fish (and dropped it).

Guess this was our consolation for not being able to go on the trip
with the club!

The Bethabara Boardwalk is near Reynolda Road in Winston-Salem, NC.
(see our website for directions - look under Birding Spots - Historic
Bethabara Park)

Liz Schmid
Kernersville, NC
schmid_liz@hotmail.com
Audubon Society of Forsyth County:  http://www.forsythaudubon.org