A wildlife-rich trip to Tennessee!
I just returned two days ago from nearly a week in the Cherokee Nation Forest in extreme southeastern Tennessee. And what have I to report? Some neat birds, along with alot of other wildlife, of course! Unfortunately nearly, no, all of the neat birds that I sw or photographed were confined in the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga. But I will take you on a photographic journey along with me in just a moment. First, I will give a quick run-down of all the wildlife that I saw, many of which you will see in my photographs: Two species of snails, numerous five-lined skinks, a broad-headed skink, a millipede, crawdads (aka crayfish), box turtles, salamanders, a walking stick, some sort of frog, a fawn and some adult deer, and so many more species that I can't even remember them. So shall we begin with the photos?
The cabin at which I stayed had multiple bird feeders up, and were visited by American goldfinches (pictures), Carolina chickadees, tufted titmice, house wrens, downy woodpeckers, white-breasted nuthatchs, among others.
The first full day in Tennessee was spent at the Tennessee aquarium:
And now for the part most of you will care about- native birds!
A female Tennessee warbler poses on a branch for me.
Most of you will recognize this vivid bird as a male rose-breasted grosbeak.
A gray catbird suspiciously scans the landscape below.
That ends the aquarium...
This snail hung around most of the day on a downspout at the cabin.
And the highlight find of the trip-
The rather common eastern box turtle. Multiple specimens were found crossing the road, all of which (except one due to heavy traffic) were removed from the dangerous crossing.
