[TN-Bird] THanks & a surprise

From: Dthomp2669@xxxxxxx
To: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Mon, 13 Oct 2003 14:58:45 EDT
Hello TN Birders,

I've been busy, so I'm late in posting words of my delight in meeting several 
of you at the Fall TOS meeting in Nashville weekend-before-last.  It was such 
a thrill to match faces to names I have known from the list.  Also, it was 
wonderful to have the opportunity to attend the meeting with its very fine 
seminars and field trips.  With two poodles, it's rather difficult for me to 
get 
out of town to anything overnight.

For my money, the best birds were the adorable sedge wrens at Shelby Park on 
Saturday.  The TOS group, led by Phillip Casteel and Mary Zimmerman, had 
walked ahead of Michael Bierly's class, in which I was included, and found the 
birds.  As we approached, they let us know the birds were there.  We quietly 
joined them and saw the little fellows.  The TOS group, having all had good 
looks 
at the birds, moved on.  Michael Bierly began a program of calling the birds in 
for us to see and got them to with 6-8 feet of our party.  He had three 
(possibly more, but I saw three at one time) just literally dancing and 
flitting 
around through the grasses & sedge to the joy and amazement of everyone in the 
class.  I've seen some mighty fine sedge wrens in my life (back when they were 
short-billed marsh wrens), but I've never seen them perform a "show" so 
beautifully as this one so aptly "directed" by Michael Bierly.  Thanks for that.

Also, although all but about five or six of my tiny wild grapes have been 
devoured by the birds, a "hoped for" catbird arrived early this morning to 
inspect.  I heard it "meow" from a tree in the back just as I opened my deck 
door to 
go put food out.  I gingerly closed the door and stood vigil, but not for 
long!  The first "gray ghost" I've seen on my property flew quietly from the 
tree 
into the almost leafless grape vines seeking sustenance in the form of 
grapes.  The bird finally went down over the side of the deck to the area where 
the 
few little grapes were last night, and that is the last I saw of it.  I 
haven't been down to the carport where I can see if it found those last few 
grapes 
as a reward or not. 

Happy birding Y'all.  It was good meetin' ya.

Dee Thompson
Nashville, TN (Charlotte Park, West Nashville, near the old Cleece's Ferry 
ramp)
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[TN-Bird] THanks & a surprise

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