Tag Archives: best life birding tours

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Riverside Creations

Ovenbirds in central North Carolina

By Sally Siko

When the summer heat rolls in, it’s nice to get out of the sunny fields and into the woods to cool off.
We aren’t the only ones who appreciate the cool shade that the trees provide, Ovenbirds are masters of the shadows and remain active throughout the day even during the hottest hours.



Ovenbirds favor mixed deciduous and coniferous forest areas which are semi open under the canopy yet still contain scrubby thickets and moderate brush.
Though they look like Thrushes, they’re actually a species of warbler and like others in that family they are voracious eaters of insects.
However like Thrushes, (and unlike most other warblers) Ovenbirds are usually spotted hunting for a meal on the ground scratching up under the leaf litter in search of beetles, worms and grubs.



These beauties are a spring and summertime resident of North Carolina and are found across the state from the mountains to the coast from April to October. That being said, a few Ovenbirds have been found to spend the winter in Buxton Woods on Cape Hatteras Island in recent years. This is an interesting trend to watch as more people get out to go bird watching during the winter in the OBX.
Pretty cool, huh?



Btw, if you’d like to buy this artwork, please check out the Riverside Creations NC shop at

https://www.etsy.com/shop/RiversideCreationsNC

to purchase one of these for your home too!

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina

American Oystercatchers in North Carolina

By Sally Siko

One of my favorite birds to see when visiting the coast of North Carolina are the American Oystercatchers.
I love that intense orange and red color in their eyes and bills! Although they are a relatively common sight, they never fail to capture my attention as they strut along the beach.

I recently photographed this lovely Oystercatcher on Wrightsville Beach while checking in on the nesting colony at the south end of the island.
Although it was super hot out there, it was well worth the time to get low on the sand to photograph these beauties.



American Oystercatchers are a year round resident of southeastern NC with several hundred of them choosing to spend the winter in the Ft.Fisher area each winter.
Each spring, they lay their eggs in shallow depressions in the sand among large nesting colonies of Terns, Skimmers and Plovers.
Unlike it’s nesting neighbors who hunt for fish above the water and dig for shellfish and marine worms on the sandy shoreline, Oystercatchers prefer to look for it’s namesake snack in exposed sand bars and mudflats during low tides. They’ll also forage on rocks, such as those found at jetties and around bridge pilings.
Aren’t they lovely?

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina

Bluebirds in central North Carolina

By Sally Siko

With so many flying around central NC, it’s admittedly easy to overlook an Eastern Bluebird when out on the hunt for something rare. That’s a shame though because these little feathered gems are just gorgeous!
Bluebirds are a staple of our suburban yards, fields and countryside and they are well worth stopping to admire for a few minutes if the opportunity presents itself.



A Bluebird perched on a fence line certainly stands out against the greys, greens and brown hues of their preferred habitats.
But, did you know that in some years their plumage appears brighter than others?
The reason for this is in their responses to weather. In fact, an Eastern Bluebird’s plumage patterns are correlated with the vibrancy of leaf pigments in autumn, and they share the same biological causes.


In the same way that an abundance of sun, rainfall, and frost-less nights bring on the most vibrant autumn leaf colors, these favorable conditions also lead to a plethora of insects and natural forest foods.
Bluebirds feast during harvest season to build the stores of energy that will carry them through the winter—and also to enrich their bodies with nutrients for building strong and healthy feathers.
So while leaves are not directly related to this late-season molt, they coincidentally are a great indicator of the amount of food available to birds from year to year.
Because bluebirds rely on insects as a main source of nourishment, years that have favorable conditions mean lots of available, nutrient-rich food. In short, more bugs can equal more colorful birds.

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my beloved full frame 50MP beast, the mighty @canonusa #5Ds

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Spending time with a Yellow-throated warbler in North Carolina

By Sally Siko

When walking through the forests here in central North Carolina, you’ll often hear the familiar calls of a Yellow-throated Warbler echoing down from the tree tops.
If your lucky, you might get a chance to see one up close as sometimes these delightful little birds can be quite curious to our presence in the woods.



Yellow-throated Warblers are gorgeous creatures IMO! Breeding males are particularly striking with that bold black and white plumage set off against a bright yellow patch of feathers on their throats.
I spotted this one singing his heart out while leading a birding tour at Cape Fear Shiners Park in Lillington NC a couple weeks ago.
It was so cool to be able to share this bird with my guests and to see how happy everyone was with their own photos!

Known as “Southern” warbler, Yellow-throated’s breed in the eastern United States but only north to southern New York and (in smaller numbers) west into Iowa yet they are much more commonly found in the Deep South rather than in the mountain regions.
Here in North Carolina you can find the nesting in our coastal and Piedmont counties throughout the summer.



The best places to find these beauties is from mid March - mid October in moist woods and edges, whether in swamps, bottomlands, forests along a lakeshore, streamside groves, or in pinelands; forests with scattered tall pines containing Spanish moss.
Though they are a rare sight in the winter months, Yellow-throated Warblers may also be found mainly in North Carolina’s coastal counties in maritime forests, or in mature pine-hardwood stands, especially where the hardwoods are broadleaf evergreens once the weather turns cold.
Aren’t they lovely?

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my beloved full frame 50MP beast, the mighty @canonusa #5Ds

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Field Notes

Northern Parula summertime sighting in North Carolina

By Sally Siko

Here’s are a couple close up looks of one of my favorite birds, the Northern Parula.
These little ones seem to be everywhere this time of year here in North Carolina.
Aren’t they beautiful?



Though they are tiny (only about 4.5in long!) their relatively easy to find by listening for their high pitched buzzy zeee-zip calls in the mid to high canopies of the trees.
They also respond well to pishing and will sometimes swoop in down low so that they can get a better look at who’s making all that swoooshing noise.
These lovely feathered gems nest over nearly all of the eastern United States and Canada, and not surprisingly it nests in all parts of North Carolina.
Parulas are most commonly spotted in swamps and bottomlands, especially where growths of Spanish moss are found hanging from the trees (their favorite nesting material).
As for the rest of the state, Parulas favor other moist forests and woodlands, such as cove forests; occasionally it does nest in drier forests too.



Leaving in mid October, most Northern Parulas will spend the winter south of the United States. That being said there are a handful of them which will stick around the Tarheel state through early winter so you still have plenty of time to get out there and enjoy them this year!

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my beloved full frame 50MP beast, the mighty @canonusa #5Ds

Field Notes, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Rare Bird Alert NC- Egyptian Geese at Lake Julian Park in Asheville NC

By: Sally Siko

One of the best parts about the pursuit of birding is the potential to see something new or unexpected.
Rare birds can turn up anywhere at anytime so there is always a chance to be surprised and delighted which is pretty darn cool!



Case in point, this pair of Egyptian Geese that showed up a few months ago at Lake Julian Park near Asheville, North Carolina.
They’ve been hanging out at this park for quite a while and I finally got around to looking for them last month.
When I arrived at the lake, I was a little worried that I wouldn’t be able to find them but that was not a problem at all.
Not only are they still there (yes according to eBird, rn!), but the birds are well acclimated to humans and as demonstrated by Isaac @isaacmcshanephoto , will even walk right up to you while looking for snack lol!



Egyptian Geese are normally found in South Africa and in European countries however, with their introduction to the domestic (ornamental) flocks of private collectors, small populations of these beautiful birds have spread throughout the United States. The highest concentrations of them are found in south Florida, California and southeastern Texas.
Though it’s likely that this pair are escapees from a yard or farm somewhere, they are still a countable species in the ABA area so I was stoked to add these feathered gems to my life list.

In addition to showing up in places far from home, Egyptian Geese hold another surprise.
Despite their name, Egyptian Geese are actually in the shelduck family which means that genetically speaking, they are a cross between a goose and a duck.
Pretty neat huh?

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my beloved full frame 50MP beast, the mighty @canonusa #5Ds

Field Notes, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

White eyed Vireo nesting information for NC

By: Sally Siko

I always enjoy spending time with fledgling birds like this White-eyed Vireo when exploring the outdoors here in central NC.
It was so neat to spend a few minutes watching the little guy being fed by it’s parents. I first located the young one by hearing it’s chirps echoing in the trees as it was calling out for a meal.
After spotting him perched on a low branch, I sat very still on the ground on the ground to await the return of it’s parent.
Happily that did not take very long and I was rewarded with the opportunity to grab a few photos of the encounter!



A White eyed Vireos nest is a marvel of the delicacy of bird brained engineering.
They collect soft strips of bark and grass which is woven into a sturdy hanging basket, fastened to a branch with spiderwebs. It’s actually quite deep relative to the size of its occupants and the mother bird can disappear into the triangular shaped cup simply by ducking her head down.



Incubation of the eggs takes around 15 days and the young will typically stay in the nest for 11 days before fledging. The work is not over for the parents though since the little ones will still be taken care of up to 20 days after fledging before becoming independent.
Interestingly, fledgeling male White-eyed Vireos learn their father’s song very early in life, and may begin mimicking his call as early as one month after leaving the nest.
Young White-eyed Vireos like this little one may even develop some elements of their songs by sampling the song tracks of their avian neighbors.
Pretty cool, huh?

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my beloved full frame 50MP beast, the mighty @canonusa #5Ds

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

A field Sparrow encounter in the Sandhills Gameland preserve North Carolina

By: Sally Siko

Though they aren’t the most colorful bird around, I’m always delighted to encounter Field Sparrows when birding throughout the year in North Carolina.
I spotted this little one snacking on some grass seeds near the Sandhills Campground in Hoffman NC.



Unlike other species of sparrows which can be tough to identify, Field Sparrows are relatively easy to ID by that white eye ring, orange feet, orange legs and orange beak. They’ve also got a light tannish-orange patch of color behind their eyes and a clear un-spotted grey belly.



Field Sparrows are best found in overgrown fields, clearcuts, maritime thickets, and woodland borders, always where there is a thick grass and scattered shrubs and saplings.
Their proclivity to spend most of their time in open areas and curious disposition makes them an effortless bird to photograph as I was able to get within just a few feet of this bird without it’s concern.

These lovely feathered gems spend the entire year throughout the state of North Carolina but are generally more commonly found in the spring and summer months.
Aren’t they lovely?

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my beloved full frame 50MP beast, the mighty @canonusa #5Ds

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Out There with the Expert

Orchard Orioles in central NC

By: Sally Siko

One of the joys of summertime birding is to find a family of Orchard Orioles hunting for insects and berries in the field.
I’ve had the pleasure of seeing several this year while leading tours. It’s always a thrill to show off these beauties to my guests!



Measuring around 6.5 inches long the Orchard Oriole is the smallest species of oriole in North America. Although they look somewhat similar to their brightly colored cousin the Baltimore Oriole, male Orchard Orioles are more chestnut-reddish toned than the familiar bright orange of the Baltimore.
The female Orchards are equally stunning dressed in their yellow and tan plumage.



Look for Orchards foraging low to the ground along the tree lines near and in open tall grass fields containing scrub brush.
They one of the earliest-departing species after nesting as their departure for winter migration takes place in late July and August here in central North Carolina.
You’ve still got a couple of months left to see them so get out there while you can!

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my beloved full frame 50MP beast, the mighty @canonusa #5Ds

Out There with the Expert

Ring necked Pheasants in North Carolina

By: Sally Siko

North Carolina is home to hundreds of species of amazing birds but few match the stunning beauty of the Ring necked Pheasant.
These rare gems are truly a spectacular sight to behold, especially when engaged in a courtship display as seen in this series of photos that I captured at Sylvan Heights in Scotland Neck, NC.



Ring necked Pheasants were introduced into NC from Asia around 100 years ago.
Though they were once a (relatively) common sight in the fields of our coastal areas, today that is not the case.
Unfortunately due to predation and habit loss, they are a scarce find with only very small population of these birds residing on a small strip of land of the Core Banks and Portsmouth Island within the Cape Lookout National Seashore.



If you’re up to undergo a search for the Ring necked Pheasant, look for them feeding in open grasslands containing scrubby thicket areas.

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding on my beloved full frame 50MP beast, the mighty @canonusa #5ds