Who's the cutest bird in the Swamp?

That would be ME!!

I'm a blue-gray Gnatcatcher... I am a tiny
bird with a long tail.

I am the male and you can tell by the dark black line above
my eyes. It's Spring and I'm in breeding plumage.

I have a prominent white eye ring and so does my
female counterpart.

I am usually very active flitting from branch to branch
but today I decided to preen so my friend Jalynn could
get some very coveted pictures of me.

She was persistent and never stopped clicking that
camera for a second.

I threw in a couple moves that I don't usually make just for her

I like to flick my tail from side to side to scare up some
hiding bugs. My diet consists of small insects and spiders.

I like to sing

I have a soft rambling song which I sometimes
borrow from other birds' songs

My habitat of choice would be deciduous forests
and preferably near water
Listen to my song

Am I not the cutest bird in the Swamp?

I thought you would agree....

To God be The Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done

The Great Swamp

Another jane & Barbie Adventure

The Great Swamp is located in Morris County
N.J. only 26 miles W. of Manhattan's Times Square. Established in 1960. It consists of over 7000 acres of varied habitats.




We visited the boardwalk part of the swamp.









A refuge for over 244 species of birds.. . turtles
fish, frogs, snakes and a wide variety of


wildflowers and plants call the Great Swamp
'Home"

We spent a whole day there and saw quite a variety of birds and other wildlife.











The day was a perfect combination of sun and clouds with a slight breeze to cool us.




Let's get to the sightings!!

A great many Red winged Blackbirds were giving us
their best voice and putting on a show.

Thanks to Barbie's good eye we saw Mrs.
RW Blackbird eating on the reeds at the edge of the water
(click for closer look)
talk about camoflauge

A Canadian goose makes a nest on the grassy turf in the
middle of the water

Two male and one female Wood ducks, and a Canadian goose

A perfect Mallard Reflection

What better place to find a Swamp Sparrow singing
his little song

An Eastern Phoebe

Does anyone know what this cute little bird is? I'm guessing
Wood Peewee

Blue -gray gnatcatcher


My very first sighting of a Female Yellow-bellied
Sapsucker.

Palm Warbler was happily flitting about

Some happy yellow flowers emerging

This must be a great nesting place... a female mallard
sleeps in her hideaway

Northern water snake... nice markings on it's stomach

As we walked across the wooden boardwalk many of these
snakes were curled up sunning below us

Turtles.....

Painted Turtles

Snapping Turtles

This one looked prehistoric slowly moving through the
water...

Bull frog..

Next post you will see a series of photos of the
cutest little bird we found in the swamp.

To God be The Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done