Carolina Wren at Myakka River State Park

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Carolina Wren

The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land; (Song of Solomon 2:12 KJV)

I am testing a new feature that WordPress has just made available for bloggers. We can now “embed” photos from Getty Images into articles. They have a wealth of photos, but unless embedded, can be expensive to use.

Since I chased the Carolina Wren at Myakka River SP all over the place with my camera and never got a photo, I turned on the video and recorded its sound. I have converted it to an MP3 and borrowed some of Getty’s great photos. Here is another of the neat birds that the Lord gave such a pretty song to.

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Embed from Getty Images
Carolina Wren

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Carolina Wrens belong to the Troglodytidae – Wrens Family. The Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus) is a common species of wren, resident in the eastern half of the USA, the extreme south of Ontario, Canada, and the extreme northeast of Mexico. A distinct population in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, Belize and extreme north of Guatemala is treated either as a subspecies Thryothorus ludovicianus albinucha, or as a separate species, White-browed Wren (Thryothorus albinucha) . The Carolina Wren is the state bird of South Carolina; its specific name ludovicianus means “from Louisiana”.

Embed from Getty Images
Carolina Wren

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The upperparts are rufous brown, and the underparts a strong orange-buff, usually unmarked but faintly barred on the flanks in the southwest of the range. The head has a striking pure white supercilium (eyebrow) and a whitish throat. The race albinucha is duller brown above and has additional white streaking on the head.

It is easiest to confuse with the Bewick’s Wren, a fairly close relative, which differs in being smaller but with a longer tail, grayer-brown above and whiter below. The Carolina and White-browed Wrens differ from the House Wren in being larger, with a decidedly longer bill and hind toe.

House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) by Ian

House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) by Ian (Not Getty)

The Carolina Wren is noted for its loud song, popularly rendered as “teakettle-teakettle-teakettle”. This song is rather atypical among wrens and closely resembles that of the Kentucky Warbler which shares much of its range. A given bird will typically sing several different songs. Only the male birds sing their loud song. The songs vary regionally, with birds in northern areas singing more slowly than those in southern areas.

The Carolina Wren also has a series of calls, including a rapid series of descending notes in a similar timbre to its song, functioning as an alarm call, and a very harsh and loud scolding call made to threaten intruders. (Wikipedia)

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3:16 The Numbers of Hope

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Birdwatching at Circle B Reserve – June 8

Limpkin (Aramus guarauna) Preening at Circle B

Limpkin (Aramus guarauna) Preening at Circle B

We took about an hour and a half to check out Circle B Bar Reserve again today. It was partly cloudy and around 81 degrees when we arrived. We managed to see or hear 31 species. Not bad. We had all that rain from Tropical Storm Andrea and thought maybe it would help bring in some birds. It was still pretty dry out there, but the weeds and growth sure had enjoyed all that rain we had.

Since most of our winter birds have left, we were happy with what we saw. Some of the delights and surprises were catching a video of a Carolina Wren singing right in front of us as we got out of the car. Was surprised to see 25 White Pelicans this time of the year. They went by in 3 squadrons.

By them the birds of the heavens have their home; They sing among the branches. (Psalms 104:12 NKJV)

Also, finally got a photo of the Tufted Titmouse that I have heard out there but never was able to get a glimpse of. Heading back to the car, a Swallow-tailed Kite flew over. All in all it was great. Now? It has been raining for the last 5 or 6 hours. Good thing we were there early.

Swallow-tailed Kite (Elanoides forficatus) at Circle B

Swallow-tailed Kite (Elanoides forficatus) at Circle B

Species Count
Wood Stork 4
Anhinga 1
American White Pelican 25
Great Blue Heron 2
Great Egret 3
Snowy Egret 1
Tricolored Heron 2
Cattle Egret 10
White Ibis 2
Glossy Ibis 4
Black Vulture 20
Turkey Vulture 5
Osprey 1
Swallow-tailed Kite 1
Bald Eagle 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 2
Common Gallinule 5
Limpkin 2
Sandhill Crane 2
Mourning Dove 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker 2
Downy Woodpecker 2
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Pileated Woodpecker 2
Blue Jay 3
Fish Crow 2
Tufted Titmouse 2
Carolina Wren 1
Northern Cardinal 4
Red-winged Blackbird 15
Boat-tailed Grackle 20

Update on the eye situation – I got the “All is well” for the 6-months checkup on my retina surgery and now I am scheduled June 19th to see the Eye Doctor who will do the cataract surgery. I am praying that it will be done by the end of the month. It was quite blurry out birding today.

I was using my camera as my eyes. I could tell there was something on a tree, but had no clear idea of what it was until viewed through the viewfinder and with my camera zoomed in. Hey! You do what you have to do to be able to enjoy birdwatching. And I did. The Lord let me see all of these neat birds today.

See:

Birdwatching Trips – Circle B

Wordless Birds

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