We had heavy rain during the night, and the Lindy Bain loop trail here in Old Trail was even wetter than it was yesterday. At 9:00 a.m., there wasn't any wind, and once again, it was like hiking in a steam bath. But by 10:30, some low pressure bands starting to move into the area, and at least there was a slight breeze. It was still quite warm, and I don't remember ever seeing turtles out on pond logs this late in the year.
Turtles
Although I only saw 29 avian species this morning, falling short of yesterday's 38 avian species here, I did have a few highlights, including 5 woodpecker species: Downy, Pileated, Red-bellied, Northern Flicker, and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, as well as a new Old Trail species (# 131) for me: Red-breasted Nuthatch.
Northern Flicker
Downy Woodpecker
Immature male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Red-breasted Nuthatch
I only saw two warblers: a Magnolia an a Palm.
Magnolia Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Palm Warbler
Most of the other birds were common species here.
Gray Catbird
Starling
House Sparrow
I either saw two Red-shouldered Hawks, or more likely, the same hawk in two different locations.
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
The best bird I saw this morning was a Scarlet Tanager. Sibley's field guide shows a drawing of a female Scarlet Tanager variety with narrow wing-bars and white edging on its secondaries (inner wing feathers). I rarely see a Scarlet Tanager with these features.
Scarlet Tanager
Scarlet Tanager
Scarlet Tanager
Scarlet Tanager
Here's a photo of a Scarlet Tanager with these features that I took in Waynesboro, Virginia, in September 2014.
Scarlet Tanager