My flag is a wildflower...

or the wing of a bird, or the branch of a tree...and that's the only one I will pledge allegiance too.

(due to a lot of recent spam I am now moderating comments until the spammer loses interest, so sorry please don't let that deter you from commenting)

As birders we have to flock together for the common good...does it ever happen to you, and your birding friends will understand, you're in a conversation with someone and you're out doors you could be like this:
"Yeah I'm reading this really cool article about travel...RED HEADED WOODPECKER, and it's really been fascinating."   LOL if you hear or see out of the corner of  your eye a bird you just shout it out.  Some people probably think Im insane...It doesn't seem to matter who Im with I recall my last employer relaying a story to another coworker...She said "we'll just be driving along and there is Sondra sitting over there calling out birds, today we were on our way to pick up a chair and all of sudden she yells "BALD EAGLE'  right out of the blue.." LOL 

I go to Carolina Sandhills a lot it's close by and it's never crowded and It's big so if someone is in an area you can go to another area. It is a National Wildlife Refuge.   
You have seen me post about it many times and I will probably be making many more posts of my visits to the refuge as I continue to try to social distance.   This is the perfect spot to do that.  

I have a collection of photos I took over the past 4 visits...My reports will slow down now since the heat and humidity is on and gas prices are up again.  BUT I can't just sit inside that is just not me...so I will be out somewhere like this place a couple times a week. 

passion flower with Bumble bees

Northern Bob White Quail numbers are on the rise, which is good! I hear them almost everywhere I go an occasionally they pop up for a quick look.

Northern Bobwhite Quail 

There's several locations in the refuge where carnivorous plants are living...here is a couple I spotted recently...

Green Pitcher Plants  

Yellow Trumpet pitcher plants 

Purple Pitcher Plant

the bloom of the Purple Pitcher

I've also seen more Grey Catbirds than normal...ebird says the count of 8 is high but I saw or heard more than 10 one day..over the entire refuge.  

Most of the fruit is ripe now and birds are enjoying blackberries, plums, and the wild cherry has little cherries hanging all over the place..this Indigo Bunting was defending his piece of the pie! 

along with the Orchard Orioles 

male Orchard Oriole this one has more of an orange look one fellow said it was a Baltimore...but I would want to see wingbars!

The wildflowers are really peaking now and the nectar lovers are out in force...

Insects on Butterfly Milkweed 

Press Play in the middle of the video..

It's always exciting to see other animals out in the wilds, There is deer in the  park, along with Grey and Fox Squirrel, 

this lady White Tailed Deer, probably has young hidden nearby she looked a little anxious they will bed the young down then come back later to get them I was probably right by them and didn't realize....meanwhile this Fox Squirrel was hanging out on tree limb just relaxin'

black fox squirrel 

Raccoon, Beaver, Possum,  Bobcat, Wild Turkey, there is one pond where Beaver are supposed to be active...but I can't figure out how to hike to that section near the back of the pond, maybe in the winter when the leaves die off....on this day I noticed something scurrying around in one of the ponds, 

River Otter!   Three of them! Check them out in the video...

PLAY

OH those cute little ears...omg so sweet. 

 

I didn't want to scare them so I didn't out stay my welcome...and moved on.
 I took a hike on the Woodland Pond Trail.  

 

You can see it on the kiosk above, it loosely follows around the pond...I's about one mile loop.

creek bridge 

the well marked trail

I enjoyed this hike a lot and when the heat and ticks are gone I want  to do it again and go the opposite way to see it from sides.

The beautiful mixed pine forest has the scent of scorched earth and pine sap as this park uses fire to keep overgrowth under control.  Prior to settlers turning our lands into farms these areas were Savannah's with large mature 100's of years old Longleaf pine, with swaying Sedge's and wiregrass and Saw Palmetto's underneath.  Once the trees were cut and farming cleared the land and the forestry became an industry the trees were not allowed to mature fire was not allowed to keep it cleaned and all that changed the PH of the soil, it became a wasteland!

I was watched closely by the Common Yellowthroat, and the Blue Grey Gnatcatcher...while listening to the drumming of a Red Headed Woodpecker.  

Blue Grey Gnatcatcher

Common Yellowthroat

Red-headed Woodpecker

And the still listed as Endangered Red Cockaded Woodpecker...is thriving here

This Carolina Wren threw up his tail to warn others of my approach along the trail 

I wanted this to be an Alder Flycatcher, or Willow but it's an Eastern Wood Pewee, however the lower mandible is very orange...but long primaries and tail  no discernible eye ring so EWPE This one may look as if it's singing but it's not he only made the slightest of chip..

Sometimes a non singing flycatcher (Alder or Willow) is called Traill's Flycatcher, 

because unless they vocalize you really can not tell them apart. 
Something to keep in mind.  

And no forest walk is complete without an Eastern Towhee to sing for you..

The immature Eastern Bluebirds were out in force as I moved from the forest after my hike to a field...where one of the many ponds is located...there is a bluebird trail here meaning many bluebird nest boxes are kept up and every one I checked either had eggs, or hatchlings in it....I think there's like 50 boxes in the park maybe even more...and the most recent checks I see second nestings are happening so I think it's been a very good breeding year for the Eastern Bluebirds.

Flowers all over the place like this Cross Vine that hummingbirds love...along with lots of Fleabane. 

Wild Garlic is in bloom...

This one below I forgot the name of...

TiTi bushes blooming now in the refuge...

Hatpins...and Meadow Beauty lines the edges of the ponds...

Pearl Edge Fritillaries, maybe...

...and most recently when I visited they had drained 2 of the ponds!  Lake Bee I think they needed to work on the dam and they ripped down an old boardwalk that was always flooding....

I had hopes of more mud flat birds and maybe in a few more days some will show I had a Gr Blue Heron and a Great Egret...

PLAY

And some killdeer were running around.  And they also are draining Lake Martin where the photo blind is located...if you recall my hike to there 

No water in Martin's Lake...

Some small fruit of the American Persimmon 

 Bees on ...the Common Buttonbush below

I love the fields this time of year...

So do the Blue Grosbeaks...

Immature or a female

Male...

I hope this post gives you a better understanding of how important protecting areas for wild life is.  Without these big fields with flowers and ripe fruit these insects, birds, and animals would have no place to find food and cover to exist and raise their young.  

Without these wilderness ponds and streams where would those precious otters live?  Hopefully the dams will be repaired and the lakes will refill...there is Plenty of freshwater ponds and lakes here for the frogs and turtles to move to during this reconstruction period...this was not the otter pond being drained...
 just up and downsteam of the ponds that are under going change are numerous other ponds .  So Im not worried about the survival of any of the critters...while they do this work. 

the flowers will produce seeds...

Every season is different there too...soon the migrant birds will do the change around the birds who move South will begin to stage and arrive...Fall fruits and seed heads will be waiting to feed them!  

Now Imagine this place open to Gas, Oil, Fracking, Drilling leases...and suddenly areas are now only off limits to YOU.  They put up locked gates to keep the public away from these leases on Public Lands so now you are out of the loop and roads are busy with big haulers and lots of non caring individuals in 2 ton or larger pick up trucks....they pollute the land, disturb the chain of life, plants are destroyed, trails used by wildlife are disrupted and You are kept in the dark about what's really going on by the fencing, the locked gates, and the private security...The Fascists are now in charge.


Now this next part if you don't care about our environmental and personal freedoms don't bother to read. 

----------------------------
things on my radar 

  Not only are our freedoms in peril so are the birds and our natural areas as the Trump legacy continues to destroy what protections we have so far kept from the hands of Fascism. Think Oil and Gas leases in our public lands.  He is doing all he can to put the Fascists in charge of all of our natural resources, our National Parks, and our National Identity.  What kind of nation are we?  We have to push back!  We define what kind of nation we are by who we elect.

  So celebrating the 4th of July,  not feeling it...I feel that we have a leader who is manipulating a neo-con right wing party being controlled by Fascism into believing   they are supreme rulers over the  Identity of this country.  They are wrong.  This country has a bill of rights we have a constitution....When a President orders Americans to be gassed and beaten back by military helicopters during a completely legal demonstration, so he can grand stand in front of a church, along with an Attorney General who is taking his orders from this corrupt President, then I fear our Democratic Republic  is in jeopardy.  We need to let him know it's NOT OK WITH US.  If he will do that to citizens how can you expect one morsel of love for the natural world from this man or his party.  There is no love in the man or his party they are liars, and they really don't care.

  I won't be flying a flag until I'm proud of and KNOW what that flag represents.  

No it is not a Happy 4th of July for this country!  If we want to stay free we have to Break the Glass on this one. 

PEACE

Every day is a new Adventure.