Watching the baby birds grow up and other flapping things;)
Where does the Summer go? Lost in a cloud of mosquitos and deer flies! Ha! When did the baby Loon get so big? I haven’t had as much canoe time this year as I’ve wanted, circumstances do that so I have been watching the Loons from the dock and up higher. There was a lot of Loon yelling and screeching this last weekend, hard on them, boats, jets skis, people fishing getting too close and it appeared her/his mate disappeared for two days, but then came back. Only one chick now as well 🙁 At least quieter during the week for them. Hoping this little tyke makes it! It’s the most vocal pair of parents I’ve heard in the last four years! Heron flies over…yodel, seagull flies over, yodel, Osprey flies over, yodel…a lot of yodeling!
The Red-Bellies have moved the juveniles back into the bush, time to teach them about bugs and grubs and poking at trees, enough free suet and oranges I think! The Hairy’s and Downy’s are the same. Time for some real life learning! I do miss them. I see them from time to time but not waiting on me for the orange to arrive nattering. It was exciting to see not just one, but later two juvenile Red-Bellied Woodpeckers! Yeah! Successful year! Big brother was showing his sibling the ropes last week! You sit here…eat here…Now to get a photo of both juveniles together!
So far, no baby hummingbirds. I am wondering if the nesting didn’t go well. The male was doing a mating fly dance to a female yesterday. They fly up and down as if on a swing. It seems quiet here without all the youngsters. We’ll wait and see. Down at the barn the Robin is on her 2nd set of babies, almost ready to fledge, she will be relieved when they do! So many mouths to feed!
On our the lawn here a Robin was “anting”. Anting is a maintenance behavior during which birds rub insects, usually ants, on their feathers and skin. The bird may pick up the insects in its bill and rub them on the body (active anting), or the bird may lie in an area of high density of the insects and perform dust bathing-like movements (passive anting). The insects secrete liquids containing chemicals such as formic acid, which can act as an insecticide, miticide, fungicide, or bactericide. Alternatively, anting could make the insects edible by removing the distasteful acid, or possibly supplement the bird’s own preen oil. Instead of ants, birds can also use millipedes. More than 200 species of bird are known to ant!
The bird may lie in an area of high density of the insects and perform dust bathing-like movements (passive anting). Learn something new every day!
I got to see my first ever Ovenbird down at the barn. Spied him in a pile of brush as we sat and had coffee! The Ovenbird gets its name from its covered nest. The dome and side entrance make it resemble a Dutch oven. Will look in the pile of brush next week for a nest! Very cool! Also saw a black and white warbler and some pale yellow warbler type as well! I need to sit awhile on Jennifer’s porch by the lilac bush! There are always the Grackles…I know some folks don’t like them much but I don’t mind them. They are loud and somewhat comical! Still making them work for peanuts! Ha!
On our way down to barn a family of Wild Turkeys were making there way across the Narrows Lock Road. We stopped and let them pass. The juveniles were trying out their wings, Ma and Pa just sauntered along…:)
So much to see if you stop, look and listen, or actually with birds it’s often listen…then look! What is that song I asked myself as I stood checking the mailbox one afternoon. It looked like a Northern Mockingbird from afar and was singing up a song but no, A Gray cat bird! What a voice!
Further down the road…a Juvenile Red-Eyed Vireo was being fed y a parent, and a Scarlett Tanager belted out a few notes before disappearing into the leaves above…so bright!
We rarely see the Jays at the house except when they stop by for a few sunflower seeds. They are also back in the woods yelling at me as I walk by, I don’t deliver I told them! The juvenile Rose Breasted Grosbeaks are as big as the parents and hard to tell apart! The Orioles have gone quiet as well, back in the woods I guess, teaching the kids the ropes:) “Where to find grubs and other tasty treats 101” a necessary course for young birds;)
I have put the jam away as the young Gray squirrels really don’t need their teeth rotted out;) A Eastern Kingbird posed on the tree out by the lake, scratching and preening. Sometimes you see yellow on their undersides, sometimes not, beautiful birds! Go get those deer flies guys!
Sometimes you are just in the right place at the right time. Driving past the mailboxes this week past I asked Mike to stop! Quick, turn off the truck, I jumped out:) This Great Blue Heron had secured his lunch by not biting the catfish, but actually spearing it, right through the upper body! He then flew away with it:) That was quite the spear job! I told him I was not interested in the fish but hey, better safe than sorry he said.
I check the swan Cygnet every time we drive by. Sometimes they are on top of their muskrat den nest, sometimes swimming further away, out of sight at the larger back swamp. He was still there this morning. Always makes me smile. Hoping they will be wandering/eating/swimming closer so I can get a few more shots before he/she learns to fly!
I was surprised to see a Cedar waxwing pair in front. I wandered out, was losing the light but managed a few shots. They are so beautiful! That mask and crest. They were still here this morning but I was looking into the light.
I had a great macro workshop with members of the Lanark County Camera Club this week. Bruce and Kit opened their beautiful house to us on Otty Lake and showed us some macro equipment, let us practice with it and demonstrated editing techniques as well. A lovely group of people. I was mesmerized by their garden full of dragonflies and hummingbirds and a Downy mother going to the suet to feed her son, who was as big as she was! Quite the treat to see!
I wish I had planted more flowers, sigh, next year! My bulbs didn’t Winter well, too warm in the basement so I will have to store them down at the barn this coming Winter! I’ll have some flowers, in September if I’m lucky! A juvenile hummingbird (I think) was feeding at their cardinal and evening primrose flowers! I loved their wild and natural yard! Beautiful!
The female here at the Lake has been very wary. The male Ruby-throated goes about protecting his territory flying from the front to the back of the house. Hard to watch both feeders…I do that on purpose. Give the passers by a chance at a sip! I’ll leave you for now with him! Stay tuned for cats, bats and other flying bugs to go with the beautiful dragonflies from our macro meeting! Saludos amigos!
