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SC coastal plains birding



Hi C-Birders,

I spent today birding, recording sounds and enjoying the spring weather. I
am also enjoying the fact that things are wet. The rivers are in flood and
there is standing water in the fields. It's been a long time since we have
had this much water around in late winter.

At dawn I was along King's Grant Road (Road 100), which is a south turn off
of SC 6 about six miles east of St. Matthews. There were are number of
Horned Larks singing over the cotton fields. Also present were hundreds of
American Pipits and one Lapland Longspur (call notes recorded). I also
enjoyed a singing flock of White-crowned Sparrows moving over the cotton
fields. Is this South Carolina or southern Illinois? (No American Tree
Sparrows, so it's probably not Illinois).

The only spring arrivals that I found today were a few tree swallows, which
were over flooded fields along US 301 near the Black River. I also checked
out Woods Bay State Park (a few carpenter frogs calling ca-dunk, ca-dunk,
ca-dunk, with the numerous chorus frogs-- western or southern) and Longleaf
Pine Heritage Preserve (LOTS of chorus frogs -- western or southern, plus a
few Brimley's). This area has lots of sparrow habitat, but I did not find
much. I did flush a covey of Northern Bobwhite. This species is in trouble.

Today is like the moment in a concert when the conductor raises his hands.
All is fairly quiet right now, but soon spring will be here for real.

Robin Carter
Columbia, SC
rcarter@sc.rr.com