June 15, 2003 Champy Pocket Reelfoot Lake, Lake Co. TN The third great adventure of the weekend, was courtesy of a Loggerhead Shrike feeding young. I had seen this bird go into the same brush pile in this tree line twice and come out and fly up into a Hackberry. I could not see what it was carrying but I finally could make out two youngsters in the tree. When she returned for the third time to the brush pile I decided to see how close I could get. When the bird went back up, I slid in beside another Hackberry that was on one side of the brush pile and waited, camera in hand. The bird dropped down again in the pile and started searching. I never saw what the bird was taking back up to the babies but I have never seen a bird so intent. It never even noticed me sitting there. My camera makes a tone when I'm shooting and some noise and this would attract the birds attention and it would look straight at me hiding behind the lens. The shots I got are really unusual as some are full frame just head shots and the one of the bird head on really gets me. When I get them together tomorrow (heck it already is tomorrow), I'll try to post a few. I really think you will enjoy them but not nearly as much as I did with my eye to eye encounter with this bird. Has anyone every been able to approach these birds like that? I usually find them pretty skittish. At times, the bird got to within 3 or 4 feet of me at eye level as I hunkered against the tree. Good Birding!!! Jeff R. Wilson OL' COOT / TLBA Bartlett Tenn. =================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER===================== The TN-Bird Net requires you to sign your messages with first and last name, city (town) and state abbreviation. ----------------------------------------------------- To post to this mailing list, simply send email to: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx ----------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, send email to: tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society web site at http://www.tnbirds.org * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * TN-Bird Net Owner: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx (423) 764-3958 =========================================================