Rondeau Ric

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 27, 2021. Difficult to get a clear image of this bird as it flits around never seeming to stop for longer than a second. Corthylio calendula A tiny bird seemingly overflowing with energy, the Ruby-crowned Kinglet forages almost frantically through lower branches of shrubs and trees. Its habit of constantly flicking its wings is a key identification clue. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 27, 2021. We have had ovenbirds for the last two days, not rare but not common in the yard. Seiurus aurocapilla The Ovenbird gets its name from its covered nest. The dome and side entrance make it resemble a Dutch oven.

A large raccoon plopped down at the top of the stream and looked around for about three minutes before wandering off after having a drink. Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 14, 2021. Procyon lotor Average lifetime in the wild is 2-3 years. They are not fussy eaters, if they can pick it up they will probably eat it.

Two black-throated green warblers were in the pond at the same time doing synchronized looking/bathing. Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 21, 2021. Setophaga virens One male Black-throated Green Warbler was observed singing 466 songs in one hour. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 21, 2021 Spent a hard day sitting in a chair by an open window in the living room photographing birds. 13 species of warbler, scarlet tanager and others. Somebody has to do it. Setophaga caerulescens Male and female Black-throated Blue Warblers look so different that they were originally described as two different species.

Erieau, Ontario, Canada, Sept 20, 2021. The red knot has brilliant terracotta-orange underparts and intricate gold, buff, rufous, and black upperparts in the summer. Posed so nicely that I took 250 shots. Calidris canutus When Red Knots eat mollusks, they swallow the shells whole and crush them up in the muscular part of their stomach, known as the gizzard. Recent studies indicate that knots have the largest gizzards, relatively to body mass, of any shorebird. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Red-eyed and Philadelphia right above our water feature. Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 18, 2021 Eventually they both came down and sat in the water which I haven't seen before. They are more of a dip and dash bather. Vireo olivaceus - red-eyed Vireo philadelphicus -Philadelphia

One of three vireos we had at the water feature today. Warbling vireo, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 17, 2021. The others were Philadelphia and Red-eyed. Vireo gilvus The longest-lived Warbling Vireo on record—a male that was originally banded in July 1966—was at least 13 years, 1 month old when it was recaptured and rereleased during banding operations in California. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

At the water feature in the yard, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 16, 2021. Cardellina canadensis Canada Warblers fly more than 3,000 miles from their wintering grounds in South America to their breeding grounds in the United States and Canada. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

One of 11 warbler species in the yard/pond today. Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 15, 2021. A rare one for the yard and always nice to see. We had The golden-winged, Tennessee, Magnolia, Cape May, Blackburnian, pine, Palm, Bay Breasted, Blackpoll, Black and White, and American Redstart. A bumper crop. Vermivora chrysoptera Golden-winged parents may use trickery to protect their young from predators. Adults feeding nestlings have been observed repeatedly carrying food down other plant stems away from the nest, possibly as a decoy, when they detected humans nearby. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

In our water feature, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 14, 2021. The fall migration is continuing, 6 species at the water today. Mniotilta varia As warblers go, Black-and-white Warblers are combative: they’ll attack and fight with other species that enter their territory, including Black-capped Chickadees, Red-breasted Nuthatches, and American Redstarts. This aggressive behavior extends to the wintering grounds, where they defend territories and when feeding in mixed flocks will drive other Black-and-white Warblers away. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Orwell, Ontario, Sept 12, 2021. We did a road trip, the first in over a year, to see the kite. Directions were excellent, pulled in and the bird was immediately pointed out to us. It flew around at a distance and finally perched in a tree reasonably close to the road. Elanoides forficatus Swallow-tailed Kites eat many stinging insects including wasps and fire ants. In Florida, the kites often return to their nests with whole wasp nests, eat the larvae, and add the insect’s nest into their own nest. Their stomachs are thicker and spongier than the average raptor stomach. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, canada, Sept 10, 2021. Seen whole out on the pontoon boat, first of the year. Gallinago delicata Wilson’s Snipe look so stocky thanks in part to the extra-large pectoral (breast) muscles that make up nearly a quarter of the bird’s weight—the highest percent of all shorebirds. Thanks to their massive flight muscles this chunky sandpiper can reach speeds estimated at 60 miles an hour. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

At the water feature in the yard, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 8, 2021. We had several of them today. Catharus ustulatus The Swainson’s Thrush’s whirling song has a ventriloqual quality that can make it difficult to track. This may happen as the singer moves quickly from one perch to another between songs. It may also have to do with the sounds’ reverberation in dense foliage. Swainson’s Thrushes also sometimes sing quiet songs that create the illusion that its song emanates from a more distant location. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

At the water feature in the yard, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 7, 2021. 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. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Fall plumage, enjoying a bath in the little water feature. Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 7, 2021. Piranga olivacea The response of the Scarlet Tanager to habitat fragmentation varies from place to place. Results from the Cornell Lab’s Project Tanager indicate that in the heart of the species’ range in the Northeast, it can be found in small forest patches. In the Midwest, similar sized forest patches tend to have no tanagers. source -Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Ruby-crowned kinglet at the water feature. Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 4, 2021. Lots of activity the last few days, warblers, jays, goldfinches, doves and woodpeckers s well as both species of nuthatch. Corthylio calendula The Ruby-crowned Kinglet is a tiny bird that lays a very large clutch of eggs—there can be up to 12 in a single nest. Although the eggs themselves weigh only about a fiftieth of an ounce, an entire clutch can weigh as much as the female herself. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.