Nature Notes

You don’t need a calendar to know Fall has arrived. The season for sleeping with the windows open and walking the dog in shorts and a tang top is rapidly coming to a close, with hooded sweatshirts, thick socks and knit caps coming to the front of the wardrobe closet.

Here at the park, the Paddy’s Creek Area swim beach has closed for the year, marking the end of the busy Summer and beginning of the most-anticipated season for wildlife-watchers.

Fall is the time many species of birds migrate South to spend the winter. Lake James is strategically located near the Eastern Continental Divide so that many birds following the front range of the Blue Ridge Mountains find their way here, where they can rest and refuel before taking up their journey once again.

During October, a wide variety of migrants are apt to stop in. Swainson’s thrushes, red-headed woodpeckers, Tennessee warblers and sharp-shinned hawks are but a tiny sample of the diversity. It’s not unusual for experienced birdwatchers to tally more than 50 species in a morning’s hike around the park. The fact that this mass-movement of feathered travelers is taking place during the peak foliage season just makes it all the more wonderous.

Birds will continue to migrate through the end of November, though the cast of characters will change. Late season migrants include red-tailed hawks, gray catbirds, yellow-rumped warblers and a variety of ducks.

The peak of the breeding season for white-tailed deer also occurs this month. The antlered males will be on the prowl during all periods of the day and night in search of receptive does. The most visible activity happens during the final week of November.

This is the time of year when food is in its greatest abundance for many animals. Hard and soft mass producing trees and shrubs will provide the sustenance for critters like black bears, gray squirrels, cottontail rabbits and deer to survive the scarcity of Winter.

It’s a perfect time to be outside and enjoy Nature, whether you’re a seasoned naturalist or a first-time hiker. Hope to see you on the trail.