I wish I had your optimism Comettose..... It seems like all the people moving out in this direction think the countryside is a place to do all those things they weren't allowed to do in the city. (loud cars, 4wheelers, fireworks, etc.) Its getting close to impossible for people like you and me to buy country land anymore, since the farmers would rather sell it to developers. Its a real dilemma for them I suppose......sell it to another farmer for $3,000 an acre or to a developer for $20,000/ac. Then the area plan commission and the county commissioners think they are leaving a wonderful legacy by building malls and subdivisions. There is a place 8 miles south of us that was all farmland. 1,700 acres were sold to a developer who is putting in a city. The commissioners who approved this were so proud of themselves. And the people in the small town close to us are so apathetic, no one but me complained. I don't understand how people in neat little towns and rural people can only think in terms of "gee....isn't this great........a Home Depot only 5 miles away now.......and a Starbucks! .......and......." Why did they ever choose to live out here in the first place if they don't mind this "takeover"? The only terms they think of is convenience and having more and more of the same things, only closer. How do you reach those kinds of people? They are so disconnected with nature that it isn't even part of their experience anymore. Then the developers promise to make these huge parks for the masses.(after they've bulldozed the natural landscape). Developers and city officials are also trying to connect all the cities in this region with "rails to trails" paths so people can ride bikes through the countryside and see our "rural heritage". What a joke. Then they talk about building little shops all along these paths, since people "need to eat, and buy souveneirs". I really feel like an alien. No, actually.......I feel like all of them are the aliens! We have a paradise here.......and what are we doing with it?? I understand that the sole purpose of every organism on this planet is to reproduce. That's what its all about. But mankind seems to be doing it in a way that is so much more destructive than the other spieces. I'll get off my soapbox now.

Gary, common yellowthroats are exceptionally pretty, aren't they? Even if they ARE common warblers, the male yellowthroat is so bright and colorful. I'm only used to seeing them along roadside ditches, but I'm sure they show up other places, too. But I think SPF would have noticed that mask...it is SO prominent. However, I also know that yellow is one of the more common colors on warblers, and getting a quick glimpse of one makes it tricky to figure out which one it is, especially if you aren't a hardcore birder. Poor SPF. We have totally confused her now. I'm tellin' ya...birdwatching ain't for sissies! Haha. Marcia (ps...just to make it more confusing, they get ya with names, too. The Common Yellowthroat is one warbler and the Yellow-throated Warbler is another. At least those two don't look much alike, thankfully. The Yellow-throated is black & white with a bright yellow patch on his throat, where the Common Yellowthroat is mostly yellow with a black mask. Getting MORE confused yet?)

Whoa! Thanks for sharing all those wonderful photos! I would give myself points if I so much as glimpsed many of those species, much less photographing them. Now we can visit your own website (via the link in your My Page) to see all your latest captures and I wish you the best with your continuing photography ventures

Actually, I just listened to an audio of a prairie warbler, and it might be that one.