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Birding Guide for White Pines PreserveWhite Pines Preserve is the first nature preserve established by Triangle Land Conservancy (TLC). This mountainlike sliver of the Piedmont provides a refuge for a curious collection of mountain, piedmont and coastal plain flora and fauna. Located on a promontory bounded by the Rocky and Deep rivers, the preserve is renowned for its isolated stand of white pines (Pinus strobus). As you hike these steep slopes and wander among towering white pines and 200-year-old beech trees you may feel like you’ve been transported to the mountains. During the last Ice Age some 10,000 years ago, the Piedmont’s climate was much cooler than it is today and the region was forested in species now associated with the mountains, such as spruce, fir, hemlock and white pine. When temperatures warmed at the end of the Ice Age, most cold-adapted plants and animals retreated from the Piedmont, but a few populations lingered in pockets where favorable topography and climate created a cool, moist refuge. White Pines Preserve is such a place. Over time, the Deep and Rocky Rivers carved 100-foot-high, rocky bluffs at this promontory. The steep, north-facing slopes and the rivers’ influence maintain a moist microclimate where the average temperature can be as much as 10 degrees cooler than nearby urban areas. These conditions enable mountainous species such as white pines to persist here. Most of the forest is a mixture of oak-hickory woodland and mixed pines and hardwoods, but white pines of various ages are scattered throughout the preserve and are reproducing and spreading. White Pines Trail System The preserve’s interconnected trail system takes hikers through a variety of habitats. The moderately strenuous trails are well-maintained and well-marked. Please note that trail distances are approximate.
You can take two different trail options from the parking area: You can take the White Pines Trail, which starts to the left of the kiosk and takes you around a gate and downhill, or the Gilbert Yager trail, which is to the right of the main trail and the kiosk. (The trailhead is marked by a sign that points to the River Trail.) Birding tips for White Pines The wildlife corridors along the rivers provide an unfragmented forested area for wide-ranging birds such as wild turkey, broad-winged hawk and pileated woodpecker. The preserve offers great birding in the spring and summer: 55 bird species nest here. Starting at the White Pines Trail: If you walk down the main White Pines trail, listen for the sounds of Carolina wren, pine warbler, and red-eyed vireo. There is often a great amount of activity as you reach the fork in the road. During winter look for hermit thrush, dark-eyed junco, and both ruby-crowned and golden-crowned kinglets. In the summer you can see or hear Acadian and great crested flycatchers, and Eastern wood-pewee. At the fork in the trail, you have the option of continuing straight to the Overlook Trail toward the bluffs overlooking the confluence of the rivers, or turning left to follow the trail down to the River Trail. Wood thrush, ovenbird, and yellow-throated warbler are often heard singing on the trail to the river in the spring. Just before you reach the Rocky River, you can take the School Kids Trail on the left, which makes a short loop to the river and hooks back up with the River Trail. Be careful as you hike over fallen trees and tree roots, and watch for poison ivy along the edges of the trail. Look and listen for belted kingfisher along the river and watch for great blue and green herons patiently searching for food. Yellow-billed cuckoo and scarlet and summer tanagers are possible in this area. Be sure to watch the sky for possible soaring red-shouldered and Cooper’s hawks and turkey vulture. Continue past the Comet Trail sign (that leads you back up to the main trail again) for a wonderful view of the confluence of the Deep and Rocky Rivers. Now the trail turns to the right, where you’ll work your way back up to the main road and trail again. Starting at Gilbert Yager Trail The Gilbert Yager trail goes through several different forest types (see above) and offers many of the same birding possibilities as listed above, except for the water and wading birds. Recent sightings on this trail (June 2007) included a male hooded warbler.
Rocky River at White Pines Preserve. Photo by Sonke Johnsen. Notable Birds by Season Year-round Tufted titmouse White-breasted nuthatch Pileated woodpecker Downy woodpecker Red-bellied woodpecker Carolina wren Barred owl Red-shouldered hawk
Migration and Spring/Summer Louisiana waterthrush Ovenbird Wood thrush Yellow-billed cuckoo White-eyed vireo Red-eyed vireo Northern parula Prothonotary warbler Summer tanager Gray catbird Acadian flycatcher Blue-gray gnatcatcher
Winter Hermit thrush Brown creeper Yellow-bellied sapsucker Winter wren kinglets White-throated sparrow Song sparrow
Click here to visit the White Pines Preserve homepage, with links to directions and trail map.
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