By: Sally Siko- Admin BWNC
A couple days ago, I went out into the rain to go birding at the Cape Fear Shiners park in Lillington, NC.
This is a relatively new birding hot spot designated by eBird and I was eager to explore the woods, fields and marsh to see what I could find.
One of the first birds spotted was this Hermit Thrush perched on a branch just off the trail.
I was thrilled to be able to snap off a few photos of this feathered gem from a relatively close vantage point.
The cloudy diffused lighting, misting rain and those lovely golden leaves provided (IMO) a superb backdrop for these portraits.
Just gorgeous!
As a few of you know, winter is my favorite season to go birding in NC and species like the Hermit Thrush are the reason why.
These pretty thrushes breed in the conifer forests in the mountains of the western part of the state but only show up in central & eastern North Carolina in October-early April.
They are best found in open coniferous and mixed deciduous forests, near berry and fern thickets and along pasture edges. Their habitats preferences are led by their diet which includes insects, spiders, snails, and earthworms, plus considerable amounts of berries during the fall and winter.
Look for Hermit Thrushes foraging for insects on the ground and munching on berries in the shrubs and low canopies of trees in central NC from now until early April.
Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on my beloved beast of a DSLR the @canonusa #5Ds