Yesterday afternoon, we launched our canoe at the TWRA boat ramp by the
Rankin Bridge in Cocke county and paddled downstream and into the wetlands
between Holt Town Rd. and the riverbank. This locale is privately owned and
a boat is essential for access. TVA has lowered Douglas Lake more than 2
feet to 991.5, exposing about 1/2 acre of mudflat, the first to appear in
the Rankin area. A variety of shorebirds were present in low numbers; great
egrets waded in the extensive shallows.
Most notable birds: Wild turkey (5; 2 adults, 3 young) Wood duck (5) Double-crested cormorant (8) Great egret (22) Green heron (8; 4 immature) Black-crowned night heron (4; 2 immature) Osprey (5) Semipalmated plover Killdeer (24) Solitary sandpiper (8) Semipalm. sandpiper (3) Western sandpiper Least sandpiper (6) Pectoral sandpiper (3) Yellow-billed cuckoo (4) Belted kingfisher (3) Red-headed woodpecker Eastern kingbird Warbling vireo Tree, barn, and cliff swallows Common yellowthroat
Michael Sledjeski & Leslie Gibbens Cocke County TN
=================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER=====================
Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society
web site at http://www.tnbirds.org
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Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp
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