IBWOH's: Brian Carlisle, Chris Carlisle.
Summary: After two failed attempts at setting up a game camera on an intriguing pair of cavities in a large tupelo in Elephant Man Swamp, in the Hutson Lake sector of the Pascagoula Wildlife Management Area (WMA), Brian and I once again made the effort. It was very warm for this time of year, even in south Mississippi, with temperatures hovering in the 70-80 degree range (Fahrenheit) throughout the day. Heavy rains over the past week have the Pascagoula River and its parents, the Leaf and Chickasawhay -- as well as tributary streams like Black Creek and Red Creek -- swollen to overflow. Driving along the Wade-Vancleave Road in the dawn hour on December 26, we saw that the bottomlands were nearly all covered by water, and most roads into our usual haunts were now impassable. Nevertheless, we saw that many hunters were out braving the flood.
From there we drove north on Mississippi Highway 63, then bore westward into the WMA. Brian parked his truck, then we hauled our kayaks the hundred yards or so to Elephant Man Swamp, named after the wizened old cypress deep in its southerly reaches. What is normally walkable swamp forest in the late summer and early fall was now filled with slow-moving black water. We paddled along with the current until we found the cavities in question, and between the two of us we managed to mount the camera on a smaller tree nearby. We plan to retrieve it in a month's time.
From there we turned around, and paddled against the gentle current, first past where we had launched the kayaks, then past the giant cypress Lord God Tree; then we continued northward along the slough complex for about 3/4 of a mile through intermittent rain. Several times, my kayak got stuck on submerged timber or cypress knees, and I required help from my brother to get dislodged. At length the slough narrowed to a slim channel thronged with blackberry briars, obliging us to turn around.
Woodpecker activity was high, though I only saw red-headed and red-bellied woodpeckers; we heard flickers and pileated woodpeckers as well. The tupelos of Elephant Man Swamp, especially the dead ones, are heavily worked by woodpeckers.
A mass of robins moved in as we made our exit. We attempted to check water levels at Hutson Lake and the lakes north of Highway 26, but the swamp had surged over the small WMA roads into the bottomland. We made our way to the Benndale Super Stop for lunch, then headed home.
Conclusions: We heard no kents or double-knocks, and saw no scaling that I would consider to be diagnostic of Ivorybill feeding methods. More rain is on the way as I type these words, so the next month could prove problematic for accessing habitat in the Pascagoula River Basin.
I hope to make a blog entry soon to wrap up our 2015 Ivorybill Year.
Summary: After two failed attempts at setting up a game camera on an intriguing pair of cavities in a large tupelo in Elephant Man Swamp, in the Hutson Lake sector of the Pascagoula Wildlife Management Area (WMA), Brian and I once again made the effort. It was very warm for this time of year, even in south Mississippi, with temperatures hovering in the 70-80 degree range (Fahrenheit) throughout the day. Heavy rains over the past week have the Pascagoula River and its parents, the Leaf and Chickasawhay -- as well as tributary streams like Black Creek and Red Creek -- swollen to overflow. Driving along the Wade-Vancleave Road in the dawn hour on December 26, we saw that the bottomlands were nearly all covered by water, and most roads into our usual haunts were now impassable. Nevertheless, we saw that many hunters were out braving the flood.
From there we drove north on Mississippi Highway 63, then bore westward into the WMA. Brian parked his truck, then we hauled our kayaks the hundred yards or so to Elephant Man Swamp, named after the wizened old cypress deep in its southerly reaches. What is normally walkable swamp forest in the late summer and early fall was now filled with slow-moving black water. We paddled along with the current until we found the cavities in question, and between the two of us we managed to mount the camera on a smaller tree nearby. We plan to retrieve it in a month's time.
Flooded forest. Photo: Brian Carlisle.
Photo: Brian Carlisle.
Photo: Brian Carlisle.
Photo: Brian Carlisle.
Numerous woodpeckers and wood ducks were very vocal.
Lord God Tree. Photo: Brian Carlisle.
Woodpecker activity was high, though I only saw red-headed and red-bellied woodpeckers; we heard flickers and pileated woodpeckers as well. The tupelos of Elephant Man Swamp, especially the dead ones, are heavily worked by woodpeckers.
Photo: Brian Carlisle.
Photo: Brian Carlisle.
Conclusions: We heard no kents or double-knocks, and saw no scaling that I would consider to be diagnostic of Ivorybill feeding methods. More rain is on the way as I type these words, so the next month could prove problematic for accessing habitat in the Pascagoula River Basin.
I hope to make a blog entry soon to wrap up our 2015 Ivorybill Year.
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