I was supposed to meet a friend for bird-watching in Bond Swamp National Wildlife Refuge near Macon last weekend, but he canceled. I decided to go by myself.
I'm glad I did, because I was treated to grand views of a male prothonotary warbler, whose bright orange-yellow head and underparts make it one of Georgia‘s most striking songbirds. Seeing one for the first time is unforgettable. It's named for high-ranking Catholic clergy called prothonotaries, who wear bright yellow robes.
The prothonotary warbler, though, is seldom seen because its habitat is confined almost exclusively to deep cypress swamps and river bottoms like Bond Swamp along the Ocmulgee River. Such places are often remote and nearly impenetrable.
Indeed, I accidentally wandered off the the Beaver Swamp Trail and found myself lost in the midst of the 6,500-acre refuge on a hot June morning without a GPS unit. For more than an hour, I tromped through the woods, clambered over fallen trees and negotiated jungle-like growth to regain my bearings.
I knew the trail followed Stone Creek through the refuge. If I could find the stream, I could follow it out of the swamp. Just when I started to think I might have to call for help, I saw a clearing -- the creek. Within a few minutes I was on its bank and back on the trail.
Seeing the prothonotary warbler was worth the trouble. The little bird darted about in low shrubs along the creek. I was able to get several glimpses -- bright flashes of yellow against the gray water and dark green foliage. Many rural Georgians call it the “swamp canary.” Its flight and song even resembles a canary’s.
The prothonotary is unique among the more than 25 warbler species in Georgia in that it nests in cavities in standing dead trees and stumps close to stagnant, swampy water. The male builds a cup-shaped nest of grasses, moss, twigs, dried leaves and other material.
There is much concern among conservationists, though, that prothonotary warbler numbers are declining because of the loss of breeding habitat to logging and conversion of bottomland swamps to agriculture and pine plantations.
This time of year, the female is incubating her typical clutch of four or five eggs or tending hatchlings. Both parents feed the babies. The male vigorously defends against intruders. After the nesting season wraps up in late summer, the prothonotaries will head back to winter grounds in Central America and northwestern South America.
IN THE SKY: The moon will be new on Friday. Venus, Mars and Jupiter are low in the east about an hour before sunrise, said David Dundee, astronomer at Tellus Science Museum. Jupiter will appear close to the moon on Sunday morning. Mars will appear close to the moon on Tuesday morning. Saturn is high in the east at dark and is visible most of the night.
Bond Swamp National Wildlife Refuge
If you go:
Open year-round during daylight hours. Located six miles south of Macon. In Macon, take I-75 to I-16 east to Exit 6, Route 23/129 south. Go 4.2 miles to Bond Swamp NWR sign at Stone Creek entrance on right. Visitor center: 718 Juliette Road, Round Oak, GA 31038. 478-986-5441. fws.gov/bondswamp/
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