Dickcissel, Duck River, TN National Wildlife Refuge

Say hello to the Dickcissel. He is a life bird for me. I hadn't anticipated finding a new species today on my visit to the wildlife refuge. I visited the Duck River Unit of the Tennessee National Wildlife Refuge today. This little bird kept flying from stalk to stalk. When he got close enough, I stopped to snap these images. All the while I sat and snapped away he sang to me a beautiful song.

Dickcissels migrate from the Deep South north and and generally breed in the Midwest. With the many grasslands in the Duck River Unit, I venture to guess this little fella could make this his home. Many of the roads were closed for the season, in late 2016 when I last visited here, but they were open today, so I was able to drive deep into the refuge.

I encountered many species of birds today including Great Blue Herons, Great White Egrets and Cormorants. I'm fairly certain I even caught a glimpse of a Yellow Headed Blackbird before he flew away.

We are in the throws of a heat wave here in Tennessee and the South. The next three days will be sweltering and will no doubt reach the 90's. I had planned to travel to Gibbs Gardens this weekend in northern Georgia. I opted out of that trip as the heat wave isn't conducive for walking two or three hours in the hot sun taking in the gardens. Perhaps it will cool off in a few weeks and I can get there. Stay cool out there. ENJOY!