Luria Park Sightings

We are working on compiling a list of the birds we have seen in Luria Park for a complete year. It is always exciting to us when we see a bird in our small park that we had not observed before. Recently we saw a pair of Wood Ducks in the small stream under the boardwalk where the logs and debris have made a small dam. They were skittish and flew when we approached so I didn't get a good photo for you, but here is one from an outing at Great Falls National Park earlier this spring.

The Wood Duck is incredibly colorful and unmistakable in its plumage! You can see the male in front and the female behind him. They nest in abandoned woodpecker holes, anyplace in a tree they can squeeze in!

Another bird we saw recently for the first time in Luria Park is the Great Crested Flycatcher.

This Cardinal-sized bird likes to perch in a conspicuous place and wait for insects to come by. Then he'll dart from his perch and get his meal. You can find them high in the trees, usually on a dead branch/snag. Look for the puffy crest on top of the head.