Tag Archives: yates mill park birdwatching trip

Field Notes, Out There with the Expert, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

A Northern Flicker at Yates Mill Park, Raleigh N.C.

Happy to have found a male Northern Flicker in the woods at Yates Mill Park in Raleigh a few days ago.
This handsome bird spent nearly 10 minutes in the same spot eating whatever insects he found in the leaf litter.


It was really interesting to watch him zone in and consume his unseen quarry and I even got a good look at that gorgeous red plumage in the back of his head.



Northern Flickers are a familiar sight in here in N.C. as well as throughout the hardwood forests throughout most of of the United States. They nest in the cavities created in dead or decaying trees and are often seen foraging for food along woodland edges, marshes, suburban parks, and gardens.



They also can be enticed to visit our backyard feeders if you’ve got suet, nuts, and black oil sunflower seeds to offer them.
Choose an upright feeder that will support these birds’ most comfortable feeding postures, and position the feeder near mature trees where they will naturally forage.
If you want to go the extra mile to attract these birds, leaving dead trees, snags, and stumps available for foraging woodpeckers will give them a good source of insects and grubs 🙂

Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc
Canon 5Ds

Birdwatching News, Field Notes, Out There with the Expert, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Cedar Waxwing sighting at Yates Mill Park, Raleigh N.C.

Not long ago, I arrived at Yates Mill Park to see what I could find. A cold front had just come in, so sometimes this mean that it’s a good opportunity to see if any new birds had arrived.

Instead of heading straight down to the water at the entrance path, I turned right and took a walk across the field.
I first saw a few of the species when expect to see during the winter time here in North Carolina. Cardinals, Chickadees, Titmice and two Downey woodpeckers.
Then, I heard the delicate warbling of a Hermit Thrush coming from the woods next to the field, so I walked inside to see if I can find it.



As soon as my feet hit the crunchy leaves of the forest floor, the Hermit Thrush song stopped. I stood there for a few minutes in silence watching and listening when something caught my eye.
Right there in front of me, were three Cedar Waxwings eating some berries off of a small tree. It was really cool to see these beautiful birds as they were my first sighting of Waxwings in many years!



Cedar Waxwings travel through N.C. in large numbers throughout the winter and early spring, searching for fruit-bearing trees and shrubs, such as Hackberry, Eastern Red Cedar, Black Cherry, and American Holly. In the summer, these nomadic birds raise their young on insects and fruit in the northern U.S. and Canada.



Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc
Canon 5Ds

Field Notes, Out There with the Expert, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Birdwatching at yates Mill Park: Canada Geese

By: Sally Siko- Admin Birdwatching NC

I set out to see if I could get some photos of a vagrant White-fronted Goose that has been reported at Mid Pines Rd. & Yates Mill Park in Raleigh this morning.
Unfortunately, he was not there but I did manage to capture some photos of some Canada Geese in flight.


Though they are considered a common bird around here, I still enjoy seeing them 🙂 Canada geese can are found in any area that hosts a wetlands habitat here in North Carolina. That being said, they spend as much time on land as they do in the water.


In the spring and summer months, the geese eat leaves, flowers, stems, roots, seeds and berries.
In the wintertime, they will consume water plants, spilled field grains and grass. This need to feed often leads them to grazing on lawns, in parks and on golf courses, sometimes much to the chagrin to the humans around them.

Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc
Canon 5Ds

Come birding with me! I’ve got a few tours scheduled for Yates Mill Park in 2020. Check out the link below for trip details and available dates.

Birding at Yates Mill Park Trips
Field Notes, Out There with the Expert, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Yates Mill Park birding: Downy woodpecker encounter

By: Sally Siko- Admin Birdwatching NC

While walking though the woods at Yates Mill Park in Raleigh N.C. last week, I happened to catch a glimpse of a female Downy Woodpecker foraging for food in the leaf litter.


I was surprised to see her rummaging about on the ground as I usually spot these energetic little birds winding their ways up and down tree trunks or hanging (upside down of course, lol!) from limbs.
She pecked away at the base of a tree searching for food for about 5 minutes before making her way up the trunk in the usual fashion.



North America’s smallest Woodpecker primarily feed on insects found in the trees. They are known to consume several pest species such as tent caterpillars, fall webworms, bark beetles, and even the invasive emerald ash borer.
Their diet also consists of plant material such as berries, acorns, and grains.
If you’d like to get a good look at a Downy Woodpecker for yourself, fill your feeder with black oil sunflower seeds and offer a suet cage.
Enjoy the show!

Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc
Canon 5Ds

Come birding with me! I’ve got a few tours scheduled for Yates Mill Park in 2020. Check out the link below for trip details and available dates.

Birding at Yates Mill Park Trips
Field Notes, Out There with the Expert, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Yates Mill Park Birdwatching : Ring necked ducks

By: Sally Siko- Admin Birdwatching NC

So happy to catch these shots of a pair of Ring necked Ducks a few days ago at Yates Mill Park in Raleigh.


I spied them near the shoreline through the trees as I was walking along the path near the visitors center. Unfortunately, as soon as the ducks spotted me, they took off paddling at full speed.
Not wanting to miss the shot, I took off at full speed down the trail to try and at least get a photo or two from the mill dock before the ducks swam out too far away.
Lol, I bet it was a sight to see. Me running like a lunatic, camera bouncing off of my side after a couple of ducks 😉
Happily I managed to grab a couple pics before they moved on.



Ring-necked Ducks are proficient divers which sometimes go to great depths to obtain food. They’ve got a compact build with legs that are positioned further toward the back of their body which enhances their diving ability.
This is in contrast to the more center-balanced leg placement of most puddle duck species which dive less, yet walk on land more frequently.
Oh and about their name…
Seriously what is up with this?
There is chestnut colored ring around the male’s neck (or so they say, haha!) which is barely discernible, even in the best of lighting conditions.
Surely we can do better. With those iridescentpurple heads and tri-colored bills, they’ve got some visually striking features in addition to their unusual leg placement.
So, does anyone out there have a better name idea for these handsome ducks?


Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc
Canon 5Ds

Come birding with me! I’ve got a few tours scheduled for Yates Mill Park in 2020. Check out the link below for trip details and available dates.

Birding at Yates Mill Park Trips
Field Notes, Out There with the Expert, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Yates Mill Park Birding : Photographing a Brown Thrasher

By: Sally Siko- Admin Birdwatching NC

Yates Mill Park in Raleigh is one of my favorite spots to visit along the North Carolina Birding Trail. Boasting at least 3 different habitats within a half mile walk, it’s the kind of place where you can see waterfowl, shore birds, raptors, and song birds all within 30 mins.
The best part is that this is truly a 4 season park which hosts a high number of varied species of birds throughout the year.
Spring, summer, autumn or winter, there is no end to the surprising diversity of bird life.

Yesterday’s trip was no exception!
I set out to go birding in the morning and was rewarded with a trip list yielding 18 species in about an hour. Some of my highlights included a Bald Eagle, Buffleheads, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Fox Sparrows and even a pair of Ring-neck Ducks.
Not bad for a quick walk!


One of my favorite encounters was seeing this lovely Brown Thrasher. Normally these secretive birds hang out in the shadowy tangles and thickets, always on the hunt for vine bearing fruits. It can be surprisingly difficult to see them, much less capture a clean photograph, as they lurk amid tangles of vegetation.
Lol, I love how intensely these birds seem to glare in my direction. Such a striking bird 🙂

Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc
Canon 5Ds

Come birding with me! I’ve got a few tours scheduled for Yates Mill Park in 2020. Check out the link below for trip details and available dates.

Birding at Yates Mill Park Trips