Rondeau Ric

This young raccoon came close to falling into the small pond of our water feature after pawing around the edge. A mother and three kits regularly visit the yard looking to raid the bird feeders. Rondeau Provincial Park, July 30, 2022.

Immature Virginia rail at the marsh edge, Rondeau Provincial Park, July 27, 2022. While out on the pontoon I spotted this Virginia rail in the shadows of the cattails. Some days you have sharp eyes, other days you walk into doors. Rallus limicola The forehead feathers of Virginia Rails are adapted to withstand wear and tear that results from pushing through dense and often sharp marsh vegetation. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Virginia_Rail

We were going out on the pontoon to look for marsh birds, herons, rails, bitterns etc. As I started to untie the lines at the front of the boat I looked down and there was a least bittern standing on the deck about 2 feet away. It ignored us and hopped onto the dock and slowly strolled away. Sometimes you chase a bird and don't see it, but once in a long while they come to you. Erieau, Ontario. Ixobrychus exilis. Researchers tracked breeding Least Bitterns in western New York and found the birds used about 24 acres while feeding themselves and their offspring—about the area of 10 city blocks. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Least_Bittern/

It isn't just the large birds that like to splash water everywhere. American goldfinch, at our water feature. Rondeau Provincial Park, July 25, 2022. Spinus tristis When Brown-headed Cowbirds lay eggs in an American Goldfinch nest, the cowbird egg may hatch but the nestling seldom survives longer than three days. The cowbird chick simply can’t survive on the all-seed diet that goldfinches feed their young. source - Cornell lab of Ornithology.

Gray catbird frolicking in the water. Rondeau Provincial Park, July 23, 2022. Another of the birds that take enthusiastic baths. Dumetella carolinensis The Gray Catbird’s long song may last for up to 10 minutes. source - Cornell Lab of Ornithology. 

Tried to get an image of a warbling vireo doing its splash and dash bath. 1/500 sec at 12 frames a second and it is badly blurred. Talk about a fast bath. Vireo gilvus Warbling Vireos have a good name—the males sing a fast, up-and-down, rollicking song that suits the word “warbling.” The early twentieth century ornithologist William Dawson described the song this way: “fresh as apples and as sweet as apple blossoms comes that dear, homely song from the willows.” The highly variable song usually ends on a high note, leading the birder Pete Dunne to describe it as sounding “like a happy drunk making a conversational point at a party.” source - Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Ruby-throated hummingbird at the window feeder with the house siding as the background. Lots of hummingbirds around. The weather has been very dry and our wildflower garden doesn't have many blooms. Rondeau Provincial Park, July 16, 2022. Archilochus colubris Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are eastern North America’s only breeding hummingbird. But in terms of area, this species occupies the largest breeding range of any North American hummingbird. source - Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Dinner. We saw a least bittern while out on the pontoon boat. While we were watching he grabbed a bite to eat. Taken at 1/800 of a second. This bird is fast. The hunt. The strike. The catch. Flossing after the meal. Rondeau Provincial Park, July 15, 2022 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- Cornell Lab of Ornothology.

The water feature has been getting a lot of action with the dry hot weather. This handful is 1 chipping sparrow, 2 cedar waxwings, 3 goldfinches. Over the last 15 to 20 years we have had at least 102 species in, at, or within a few feet of the water. Rondeau Provincial Park, July 12, 2022.

Lots of birds like the suet including red-bellied, hairy, downy, and red-headed woodpeckers. Bluejays, grackles, red-winged blackbirds, and house sparrows. When you are small, you wait. Rondeau Provincial Park, July 10, 2022. Sitta carolinensis The White-breasted Nuthatch is normally territorial throughout the year, with pairs staying together. The male has to spend more time looking out for predators when he’s alone than while he’s with his mate. That’s the pattern for most birds, and one reason why birds spend so much time in flocks. But the female nuthatch has to put up with the male pushing her aside from foraging sites, so she spends more time looking around (for him) when he’s around than when she is alone. source- Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Grey catbird, Rondeau Provincial Park, July 10, 2022. With the dry weather we are getting more birds in for a bath. Robins try to empty the water feature but the catbird is slightly less enthusiastic in its splashing. Dumetella carolinensis The Gray Catbird belongs to the genus Dumetella, which means “small thicket.” And that’s exactly where you should go look for this little skulker. source - Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Rondeau Provincial Park, July 5, 2022. The elusive house wren, heard starting at 5.00 a.m. but not seen for most of the day. Troglodytes aedon The House Wren has one of the largest ranges of any songbird in the New World. It breeds from Canada through the West Indies and Central America, southward to the southernmost point of South America. source - allaboutbirds.org

Disputed territory apparently. They were near the suet feeder and carried on displaying for about three minutes before one left. Dryobates pubescens The oldest known Downy Woodpecker was a male and at least 11 years, 11 months old when he was recaptured and rereleased in 1996 during banding operations in California. He had been banded in the same state in 1985. source - Cornell Lab of Ornotholigy.

Not fast and doesn't do the best job but, boy is he quiet. Rabbit, Rondeau Provincial Park, July 6, 2022.

Rondeau Provincial Park, July 2022. Not a crisp looking bird, believed to be a juvenile, not into wearing adult clothes. We are getting a number of young birds in the yard, most still being feed by adults. Setophaga petechia Life can be dangerous for a small bird. Yellow Warblers have occasionally been found caught in the strands of an orb weaver spider’s web. source - Cornell Lab ot Ornithology.

Rondeau Provincial Park, July 5, 2022. We don't get many bluebirds in the yard but we have had one for the last 2 days. It's very dry and I think our water is bringing it in. Sialia sialis Eastern Bluebirds eat mostly insects, wild fruit and berries. Occasionally, Eastern Bluebirds have also been observed capturing and eating larger prey items such as shrews, salamanders, snakes, lizards and tree frogs. source - Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Rondeau Provincial Park, July 3, 2022. The wire cage around the butterfly weed is necessary as the deer seem to think they are a treat. No cage, no blooms, no butterflies. Papilio Canadensis These butterflies are one of the more common species that are found mud puddling (drinking in minerals from damp ground). It is thought that only males lose sodium and need to replenish. Osmeteria, found only in swallowtails, is a fleshy part that protrudes when disturbed and has a bad smell, likely a defence against ants and other predators. They drink with their proboscises—long, thin, coiled mouthparts common to butterflies and moths. It is coiled up between feedings. source - Canadian Wildlife Federation.

Mourning doves build flimsy nests that look like they will fall apart in a gentle breeze. This dove came to our water feature carrying a stick which it left behind after having a drink. Rondeau Provincial Park, July 1, 2022. Zenaida macroura. Mourning Doves eat roughly 12 to 20 percent of their body weight per day, or 71 calories on average. source - Cornell Lab of Ornithology.