Male Downy Woodpecker

All posts tagged Male Downy Woodpecker

A Glorious Morning with Woodland Creatures in the Winter Forest

Posted by Lee Hiller on January 21, 2014
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“I take flight on the wings of my Dreams to greet the new day.” ~ Lee Hiller

SONY DSCWinter Serenade: Woodpeckers and Warblers appear throughout the Forest this morning.  Pileated, Sapsucker and Downy provide a rapping tapping rhythm section as Vireos, Chickadees, Tufted Titmice and Mockingbirds sing a sweet melody. The Trees sway and groan to the glorious song carried by the breeze.  The symphony of life carries me along each trail.

HSNP Lower Dogwood trail Chipmunk The Stud Muffin

HSNP Lower Dogwood trail Chipmunk The Stud Muffin

The Stud Muffin: Ice, snow, drought, prolonged extreme heat , floods and tornadoes have ravaged Hot Springs National Park the past 18 months.  The number of small mammals has greatly diminished.  Squirrels, Rabbits, Chipmunks, Fox etc. have now become rare sightings.  About 20 minutes into my hike I spotted this little Male Chipmunk chasing Female Chipmunks. Racing across logs, hopping onto rocks and popping in and out of numerous burrows for half an hour this athletic little stud muffin hooked up, made booty calls and knocked up the female population along the Lower Dogwood Trail.  He was so busy he nearly ran me over twice crisscrossing the trail to keep the ladies happy. His amorous endeavors are sure to help rebuild the decimated Chipmunk population in Hot Springs National Park. For his selfless entrepreneurial spirit Nature photographers salute this Forest Hero for his re-population efforts!

HSNP North Mountain Deer Tracks

HSNP North Mountain Deer Tracks

Signs of Life:  Although I know there are several herds of White-tail Deer roaming Hot Springs National Park they are elusive and I am always delighted by any sighting.  Heading home I hike down North Mountain it is wonderful to see fresh Deer tracks in the soil.  I make a slow 360 turn to see if I can catch a glimpse of an ear tip or  vanishing white tail.  I will have to hike up a bit earlier to catch them on their morning migration across the mountain in Hot Springs National Park. I love finding these delicate reminders of Forest life.

HSNP Sunrise on the Trail

HSNP Sunrise on the Trail

A Dance of Light: As the sun rises to illuminate the trail I am bathed in the beauty of a new day.  Mornings rays dance among the Short Leaf Pines and the tangle of Deciduous limbs.  Delicate splash of color appear as the first light kisses each surface of the Forest.

I embrace the beauty of the winter Forest!

Love to ALL!
Lee

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A Tiny Deer on the Path and Woodpeckers in the Trees Above

Posted by Lee Hiller on December 9, 2011
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My Husband Rick and I had a lovely hike yesterday that was brimming with wonderful surprises.   A sprinkling of glorious autumn leaves were dancing on the cool breeze traveling through the park.  Cackling high in a Short Leaf Pine was a male Red-Bellied Woodpecker.  Rapidly moving from Tree to Tree we could barely make out the striking red marking on the back of his head.

I stopped because a familiar odor filled the air, looking around I could not see the creator and we continued hiking.  A few minutes later three Whitetail Deer bound across the trail so quickly I was unable get a clear photograph as they vanished into the Forest.  In a park where they are protected it is strange that they always act as if it is hunting season.  We often see Deer in groups of 3 and I wonder if this is normal Doe herd size.

We decided to hike around to the far size of North Mountain to try and catch up with the 3 Deer.  Normally this strategy would be a wasted effort, but not yesterday.  After hiking half an hour we reached the trail head of the Upper Dogwood Trail below the North Mountain overlook.  Lovely bird song echoed from distant Trees as we moved along the trail.  Suddenly both Rick and I stopped, staring at us in the distance was a tiny creature standing in the middle of the trail.  I wasn’t sure who was looking back at us until I looked through my zoom lens.  The tiniest Whitetail Doe either of us had ever seen stood still with its head cocked in curiosity.  Hiding on bank to our left were the two other does that made up the trio we had seen earlier.  As soon as we took a few steps closer they all gracefully bounded up and over the ridge out of our view.  It was a beautiful moment in the cool autumn Forest.

Further along the trail another wonderful surprise, high above us a Woodpecker was foraging for a meal.  A spectacular male Northern Flicker was performing acrobatic feats on a large gnarled limb.  The first Flicker I would document in Hot Springs National Park. Now that I know where he is nesting I will drop by again in hopes of another viewing.

As we left the park a soft beeping sound in the distance leads us to a small male Downy Woodpecker hopping up a Tree.  The cool weather and leafless Trees revealed a gorgeous array of Woodpeckers in the Forest.  It was a perfect hike with my beloved husband Rick.

Much Love to ALL!
Lee

Wildflowers Everywhere and a Surprise Discovery

Posted by Lee Hiller on May 16, 2011
Posted in: Hot Springs National Park. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 5 Comments

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I spent so much time hiking, taking and editing photographs that words will be kept to a minimum.  I must begin by mentioning my delight in seeing Stubby, she is a sweet Squirrel who is missing nearly half of her tail.  It has been many weeks since our last encounter, I was concerned that she might have been killed or injured.

Wildflowers are bursting open across the park with purple, pink and yellow being the predominant colors. I discovered one lonely battered Birds-Foot Violet with a teeny tiny grasshopper sitting on its bottom petal. The new park arrival abundant on both the Gulpha Gorge and Goat Rock Trails is the Pink Ouachita Blazing Star.  Lovely bell shaped pale purple Smooth Petunias are blossoming on nearly every trail in the park.  The spectacular array of Wildflowers are attracting a variety of colorful Butterflies.  There colors rival the flowers on which they are feeding.  A nearly invisible Prairie Lizard is frozen on an old log resting within a field of Pink Wildflowers.

My biggest surprise was discovering a patch of Cactus hidden among the Wildflowers I was photographing.  Yes, Cactus! I had no idea they could grow and survive in this climate.  I must return soon as they will be blooming soon.

My final comment is about the Male Cardinal I photographed today.  This poor fellow is molting in on one spot, his head.  He has a receding hair/feather line and looks as if one of his parents was a vulture.   To learn more about molting please read this great article by The Cornell Lab.  Embarrassed to say I had no idea this was happening to my feathered friends in the park. I Love learning something new everyday, Nature is the best teacher!

Love to ALL!
Lee

Nesting, Foraging and Sprouting in the Spring Forest

Posted by Lee Hiller on March 26, 2011
Posted in: Hot Springs National Park. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments

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Winter rains have fallen and spring has brought forth an abundance of life sprouting along the Forest Trails. The once barren Trees are a flowing canopy of green, pink, orange, red and silver shimmering against a bright blue sky. The Forest floor is a carpet of brown now embroidered with green, purple, pink, white, violet, yellow, lavender and red. The ever-changing artistry at Nature’s hand is a glorious rainbow that dips into my Soul. Standing in the Spring Forest I am reminded how easily we can be reborn if only our Hearts awaken to the realization that our past failures are merely signposts leading us toward opportunities not yet realized.
May Spring Fill You Life with Beauty!
Love to ALL,
Lee

Hiking with Violets, a Cat, a Sapsucker and Downy Woodpecker

Posted by Lee Hiller on January 22, 2011
Posted in: Hot Springs National Park. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

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A Special THANK YOU to the jogger who saw I was photographing a bird and stopped so I could get the shots. I am extremely grateful for your thoughtful and considerate gesture.

Field Notes January 21 2011:
I open my blog today with a story of an extended paw of friendship.  Many of my regular readers will be aware that  For nearly a year I have been documenting the activities of what appears to be a feral cat in the park. This beautiful cat seems to live on the neighboring hospital grounds and hunts in the park.  This is not a good situation for the cat or the wildlife.  Today something was different, instead of keeping the fence between us it came over to see what I was doing.  After several minutes of exchanging meows and taking photographs this beautiful creature walked along a ledge and placed it’s nose on my camera hood.  Using my lens as a mirror it could be the first time it has seen its reflection.  It lead me part way up the path then passed through a gap in the fence and back to the hospital grounds.  This sweet lonely creature needs a better home.

As I near the top of the Dead Chief Trail I hear a tapping sound in a Tree ahead of me.  I look up and see a beautiful Male Downy Woodpecker hanging on to a  small Branch.  Usually I only see these industrious birds on the side of large Trees, this is a wonderful view.  From this new perspective I can see how they use their feet to grasp and their tail feathers for balance.  I am blessed to have a very patient teacher, Nature.

Along the top Hot Springs Mountain the air has a bite and it stings my face as I hike along the trail.  The cold air seems to magnify the beauty of the Forest and you can hear even the distant Bird songs clearly.  Hiking on the Hot Springs mountain Trail the sound of tapping and pipping is becoming louder. It is as if the source of sound and myself are each moving toward each other.  As I pass the ravine I see a small brown flecked Bird hopping up a Tree and pecking.  As first it’s size and color make me think it is a large Brown Creeper.  As I get closer the truth is revealed, it is a small juvenile male Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker.  It makes me wonder how I missed seeing all these amazing woodpeckers when I was hiking last year.  I have clearly been changed by this year of hiking in the Mountains of Hot Springs National Park.

I am surprised to see so many dead and dying pines as I hike down the Gulpha Gorge Trail.  It is a field of rust where once green stood, is this the damage from last winter or something new?  On the Goat Rock Trail the spring Bird-Foot Violets are still blooming,  but the last snow and freeze has battered the fragile blooms.  The cold snow and freezing air transformed their once velvet petals to sheer translucent veils. The storms could only change not destroy their fragile beauty.  The upper Goat Rock Trail on North Mountain has become a silvery Forest, and I find myself thinking it is a twin to sunset trail atop West Mountain. As always thank you dear friends for joining me as I travel into the Mountains.

Thank You for all the lovely prayers for my Husband Rick these past several weeks.  His kidney stones are passing and he is on the mend, your lovely messages have kept us strong throughout his medical care and healing.

With Love,
Lee