Spring Visits to Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- Part One

           Back in April, I wrote the post, Magnolia Plantation and Gardens and the Audubon Swamp in January, and I promised to write more as one post simply does not do the this place justice.  Each season brings delightful wildlife observation opportunities and a different variety of fabulous blooms.  As I stated in my previous post, Magnolia Plantation and Gardens is indeed one of our all-time favorite Lowcountry places to visit!   The history, the horticulture, the wildlife, the fabulous vistas over the river, the swamp and the impoundments are some of the aspects that draw us in as rather regular, repeat visitors.  This year, Carl and I took advantage of a Magnolia Gardens photo contest photography fee to obtain passes that allowed unlimited visits to the gardens during the Spring.   This post will reveal the photos that I took on our first visit this Spring on March 18, 2012.

         You may remember my saying that this is one of the birdiest locales in the Lowcountry.  At this time of year, many of our winter residents have not yet left and, in the early morning Spring light, the air is full of song of returning migrants seeking a mate and beginning to defend territories.  Since the hardwoods have not completed budding out in their full Springtime regalia, the birds are also rather easy to see.   Some of our first birds that morning -- Northern Parulas and Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers -- were easily spotted but less easily photographed.  We were excited to recognize their songs though and happily chased the busy birds through bare branches and budding leaves with our long lenses in our attempts to capture them.  Thankfully, this sleepy Yellow-Shafted Northern Flicker and bold Northern Cardinal were much more accommodating.

Northern Flicker -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

Northern Cardinal -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

               Though the romantic gardens are quite beautiful with their blooms, Carl and I find it hard to resist the call of the Audubon Swamp and the heron and egret rookery.   The Great Blue Herons had begun their nesting attempts in January and some already had young nestlings high up in the cypresses. 

Great Blue Heron and chicks -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

 
The Great Egrets were just beginning their courtship and nest-building.  I love to see these elegant white birds in breeding plumage with bright green lores against a backdrop of the red buds of the maples! 

Great Egret -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012
 

Great Egret -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012
 

I also love to watch their sensual courtship displays!  Next year, I will video tape it to show you! 

Great Egret in courtship display -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012
 

Great Egret in breeding plumage -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012
 

             The  Marsh Rabbit, which I affectionately call the "Swamp Bunny" (but which should not be confused with the Swamp Rabbit -- an inhabitant of Gulf Coast wetlands), is also one of my all-time favorite critters! 

Marsh Rabbit ("Swamp Bunny") -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

Marsh Rabbit ("Swamp Bunny") washing his face -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

            I concentrated on photographing the animal life more than the plant life on all of my visits to  Magnolia Gardens this Spring.  However, I did occasionally focus on a few blooms from time to time.  The Cherokee Rose, state flower of Georgia -- but native to southern China, Laos, Taiwan and Vietnam, blooms prolifically in the swamp at this time of year.  It's simple, creamy white petals surrounding an intricate ring of multiple, short, yellow stamens always catch my eye (and thus, the camera lens as well!).

Cherokee Rose -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

 The bees appreciated what these flowers offered, too!

Bee on Cherokee Rose -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

And I always enjoy the challenge of capturing the insect life in action! 

Bee life -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

            The texture of this dew-laden swamp grass also appealed to my photographic eye!  Perhaps some of my plant life experts and bug expert friends will help me out with appropriate IDs on this plant and on the bee! 

A swamp plant  -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

          With it still being March, many of the ducks over-wintering at Magnolia Gardens were still present, including these Gadwalls ....

Gadwall -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

.... a very few Green-Winged Teal.....

A lingering Green-Winged Teal -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012 

 

Green-Winged Teal -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

 ..... and the far more abundant, longer lingering, and less bashful Blue-Winged Teal!

Blue-Winged Teal -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

Blue-Winged Teal -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

Shot after shot, this pair of Blue-Winged Teals "posed" so nicely for the camera! 

Blue-Winged Teal -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

Blue-Winged Teal -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

Female Blue-Winged Teal -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

Blue-Winged Teal -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

   
             When Carl and I visit some of our birding destinations, we bird together for awhile and then we split up, keeping in touch by cell phone, in the event that either of us finds something that merits sharing!  We cover more ground this way and we can also concentrate a bit better on our photographic efforts.  We also have to establish a departure time prior to splitting off to go our separate ways.  If we do not set the departure time, we can and sometimes do become totally lost in the "nature moment."  We find ourselves frequently amazed that it is already fill-in-the blank o'clock!  Just before our pre-arranged departure time on this particular visit, Carl called me to say that he had found a pair of Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers building a nest.  Well, I had to see THAT!  So he gave me directions to his location and ta DA, here it is!

Male Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher -- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens -- March 18, 2012

          Until this visit, I was unaware of the black connecting eyebrow on the breeding plumage of the male Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher.  So this guy, busy building his nest, provided us with a learning moment, showing very clearly his black eyebrow!  After a little research, we learned that the female has no eyebrow ever and the male only has it in breeding plumage!  Cool!  We also learned a bit about their well-camouflaged nest building.  The cup, being well-decorated with much lichen appears to be just a part of the branch.  Without a bird on it, would you recognize a nest in that photo?  Then, as the branches on the trees leaf out, it disappears into the new foliage.  Though Carl and I searched for this nest 2 weeks later, we could not find it!  

        And yes, we did return a few more times this past Spring to Magnolia Gardens.  Certainly the photo pass motivated us to return and try to capture the award-winning image!  But the big draws are always the wildlife and the blooms.  Spring at Magnolia Gardens should not be missed.  In fact, the Spring season at Magnolia Gardens warrants several visits to experience the growth and changes in the rookery as well as throughout other areas of the gardens.  Thus, hopefully, my readers will have enjoyed this post -- Part One -- because you can expect a Part Two in which the gators and the waders steal the show!  Who knows, there may be a Part Three forthcoming as well!