Rondeau Ric

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, May 28, 2020. From the pontoon boat. Cistothorus palustris The secret life of the Marsh Wren plays out under the cover of reeds. Here, males routinely mate with 2 or more females and build at least 6 dummy nests for every female they mate with. One male built 22 nests on his territory. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Marsh_Wren/

White-breasted nuthatch, January 28, 2021, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. In the yard on a very crisp day. Sitta carolinensis If you see a White-breasted Nuthatch making lots of quick trips to and from your feeder – too many for it to be eating them all – it may be storing the seeds for later in the winter, by wedging them into furrows in the bark of nearby trees. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/White-breasted_Nuthatch

American goldfinch standing on the very thin ice in the stream of our water feature. Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, January 28, 2021. Spinus tristis Goldfinches move south in winter following a pattern that seems to coincide with regions where the minimum January temperature is no colder than 0 degrees Fahrenheit on average. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Goldfinch

May 5, 2019, Rondeau Provincial Park,Ontario, Canada. Normally skulking in the underbrush. Setophaga citrina Individual male Hooded Warblers each sing a slightly different song. They learn to recognize their neighbor's song based not only on the song itself, but also on where the song is coming from. Their ability to recognize their neighbor may mean that they have to spend less time on territory defense. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Hooded_Warbler

May21, 2018, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Always a spring favourite for me, I don't see many. Passerina cyanea Indigo Buntings migrate at night, using the stars for guidance. Researchers demonstrated this process in the late 1960s by studying captive Indigo Buntings in a planetarium and then under the natural night sky. The birds possess an internal clock that enables them to continually adjust their angle of orientation to a star—even as that star moves through the night sky. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Indigo_Bunting

Dec 1, 2020, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. A nuisance in large flocks, appealing one at a time in winter plumage. Sturnus vulgaris All the European Starlings in North America descended from 100 birds set loose in New York's Central Park in the early 1890s. The birds were intentionally released by a group who wanted America to have all the birds that Shakespeare ever mentioned. It took several tries, but eventually the population took off. Today, more than 200 million European Starlings range from Alaska to Mexico, and many people consider them pests. Starlings are strong fliers that can get up to speeds of 48 mph. source -  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/European_Starling

Sept 7, 2018, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Trying to see what the crazy neighbours are doing. Setophaga ruticilla Like the Painted Redstart and other “redstarts” of the Neotropics, the American Redstart flashes the bright patches in its tail and wings. This seems to startle insect prey and give the birds an opportunity to catch them. Though these birds share a common name, they are not closely related to each other. In fact, there are other unrelated birds around the world—such as the fantails of Australia and southeastern Asia, and other redstarts of Europe—that share the same foraging tricks. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Redstart

May 16, 2019, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. A wee gem of a warbler, with a mouthful of nesting material. Protonotaria citrea For Prothonotary Warblers it pays to be bright. Males that are brighter yellow gain access to better nest sites than less colorful males, according to a study conducted in Louisiana.

Rondeau Provincial Park, Jan 21, 2021. Mid/late January and the water feature is still running. What snow we had has melted and I'm still riding my bike. Not complaining but it unusual for this area of Canada in the winter. Photo taken through the wonderful wildlife window. Spinus tristis  Paired-up goldfinches make virtually identical flight calls; goldfinches may be able to distinguish members of various pairs by these calls. The oldest known American Goldfinch was 10 years 9 months old when it was recaptured and rereleased during a banding operation in Maryland. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Goldfinch

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 5, 2018. We found this one while out on the pontoon, cruising the edge of the marsh. Ixobrychus exilis Perhaps surprisingly, tiny Least Bitterns use areas with deeper water than the much larger, longer-legged American Bittern. Least Bitterns can do this because their long, agile toes and curved claws allow them to grasp reeds and hunt small prey while suspended from these precarious over-water perches. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Least_Bittern/

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, May 14, 2019. One of the many colourful spring migrants that come through the park. Setophaga fusca Tiny Blackburnian Warblers are strong fliers that travel between North and South America twice each year, so perhaps it isn’t surprising that they’re occasionally found very far off course. At times, “vagrants” have been recorded in Greenland, Iceland, Scotland, and the Azores off western Africa. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Blackburnian_Warbler/

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, July 5, 2018. One of the many species of flowers and grasses that make up our front yard. Not a fan of the auburn lawn look. Erigeron annuus

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, July 5 2018. Our yard. Does anyone know what the eggs(?) along the body are. Is it a parasite? I know dragonflies lay their eggs in water. Sympetrum rubicundulum

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, May 15, 2018. A touch of colour on a grey, wet day. At least it isn't snowing. Setophaga tigrina The tongue of the Cape May Warbler is unique among warblers. It is curled and semitubular, used to collect nectar. The common name of the species comes from Cape May, New Jersey, where Alexander Wilson first described it. After that first time, Cape May Warblers were not recorded in Cape May for more than 100 years. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Cape_May_Warbler/

May 10, 2020, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. We have them nesting in our yard and they are frequent visitors to our peanut, suet and black oil sunflower feeders. Thryothorus ludovicianus A pair bond may form between a male and a female at any time of the year, and the pair will stay together for life. Members of a pair stay together on their territory year-round, and forage and move around the territory together. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Carolina_Wren/

Blue-headed vireo, Sept 30, 2020, Rondeau Provincial Pak, Ontario, Canada. Vireo solitarius During summer, Blue-headed Vireos forage in the canopy of mature forests. They sing frequently, but it helps to learn how to distinguish their songs from Yellow-throated, Red-eyed, and Philadelphia Vireos. The oldest recorded Blue-headed Vireo was at least 6 years, 5 months old. It was banded in Ontario and found in Guatemala. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Blue-headed_Vireo/

Early January and the pond is still open but it is slowly falling under winter's grip. Birds and mammals are still getting drinks. Rondeau Provincial Pak, Ontario, Canada, Jan 9, 2021

Sora, Sept 17, 2019, near Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Porzana carolina It may not seem like it, because seeing a Sora takes some effort, but the Sora is the most abundant and widespread rail in North America.

Belted kingfisher on a fishing boat in the marina. He was catching bait fish while the boat was unoccupied. Megaceryle alcyon As nestlings, Belted Kingfishers have acidic stomachs that help them digest bones, fish scales, and arthropod shells. But by the time they leave the nest, their stomach chemistry apparently changes, and they begin regurgitating pellets which accumulate on the ground around fishing and roosting perches. Scientists can dissect these pellets to learn about the kingfisher’s diet without harming or even observing any wild birds. The oldest known fossil in the kingfisher genus is 2 million years old, found in Alachua County, Florida. https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Belted_Kingfisher/

Levitation (from Latin levitas "lightness") is the process by which an object is held aloft, without mechanical support, in a stable position. Not sure what type of caterpillar this is, but it appeared to be hanging in mid-air. It was depending on a thin strand of silk(?) Aur 27, 2017, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada.

May 10, 2017, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. One from the archives, one of my favourite warblers. Geothlypis trichas Adult Common Yellowthroats sometimes fall prey to carnivorous birds such as Merlins and Loggerhead Shrikes. Occasionally they have more unexpected predators: one migrating yellowthroat was eaten by a Chuck-will's-widow, while another was found in the stomach of a largemouth bass. The oldest Common Yellowthroat on record was at least 11 years, 6 months old. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Yellowthroat

May 8, 2017, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. They don't usually sit in the open, at least for me. Euphagus carolinus The Rusty Blackbird feeds mostly on insects and plant matter, but it sometimes attacks and eats other birds. It has been documented feeding on sparrows, robins, and snipe, among others. The oldest recorded Rusty Blackbird was at least 8 years, 7 months old. It was banded in Arkansas in 1931, and shot in 1939 in Mississippi. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Rusty_Blackbird/