Saturday, August 02, 2003 Sycamore Shoals State Historic Area Elizabethton, TN While leading a butterfly/dragonfly walk at Sycamore Shoals today, I noticed a concentration of butterflies and beetles on bird droppings along a trail and looked up. A stick nest 30 to 40feet above the trail held three young night-herons. They were near full-sized, but still somewhat downy. I didn't observe any adults with them. The pattern of droppings indicated activity in the tree for a little distance around the nest, though whether it was the young or the parents I couldn't say. I don't know if I can distinguish between night-heron species at that age, but I assume they are Yellow-crowned, since the adults are frequently observed in the area, and Black-crowned is not. In the back of my mind, I seem to remember someone telling me that a Yellow-crowned Night Heron nest has already been found this year somewhere along the Watauga River. I don't know if this is the same or different. Anyone who can shed light on this please illuminate me. To find the nest at Sycamore Shoals State Historic Area, walk to the end of the gravel road behind the neighboring swimming pool, then turn back sharply to the left. A dirt road goes a short distance through the woods and to the riverside. About halfway to the river the dirt road bends to the right. The nest is easily visible overhead there at the bend. We will be holding the second annual Elizabethton Butterfly Count there tomorrow, Sunday August 03, and the nest will definitely be a stop along the way early in the day. Anyone who wishes to join us is welcome, even if you only want to tag along as far as the nest. We will meet at the Visitor's Center at 9 am. Even if the Butterfly Count is rained out and postponed until the next Sunday, I will be there at 9 am tomorrow, Aug 03, and will show the nest to interested birders. Don Holt Johnson City, TN =================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER===================== The TN-Bird Net requires you to sign your messages with first and last name, city (town) and state abbreviation. ----------------------------------------------------- To post to this mailing list, simply send email to: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx ----------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, send email to: tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society web site at http://www.tnbirds.org * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * TN-Bird Net Owner: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx (423) 764-3958 =========================================================