Rondeau Ric

Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Sept 29, 2022. Out on the pontoon boat cruising the marsh edge, didn't see any soras or bitterns but had several great blues. Really like the eye focus abilities of Canons R7. Ardea herodias Great Blue Herons congregate at fish hatcheries, creating potential problems for the fish farmers. A study found that herons ate mostly diseased fish that would have died shortly anyway. Sick fish spent more time near the surface of the water where they were more vulnerable to the herons. source - allaboutbirds - org

Rondeau Provincial Park, Aug 31, 2022. In the shadows, waiting for an opening in the pond for its splash and dash bath. Vireo gilvus 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 - allaboutbirds-org.

I didn't see it at first as I thought it was a broken branch stub. A young yellow bellied sapsucker drilling holes in an ash tree. One of 6 woodpecker species we had in the yard on Sept 24, 2022. Rondeau Provincial Park. Sphyrapicus varius The sapwells made by Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers attract hummingbirds, which also feed off the sap flowing from the tree. In some parts of Canada, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds rely so much on sapwells that they time their spring migration with the arrival of sapsuckers. Other birds as well as bats and porcupines also visit sapsucker sapwells. source allaboutbirds -org

A northern parula was one of the pond visitors we had the other day. Even in the fall the have cheerful colours. Rondeau Provincial Park, Sept 21, 2022. Setophaga americana Before this species received the name Northern Parula (a diminutive form of parus, meaning little titmouse), Mark Catesby, an English naturalist, called it a "finch creeper" and John James Audubon and Alexander Wilson called it a "blue yellow-backed warbler." source - allaboutbirds-org.

Rondeau Provincial Park, Sept 21, 2022. One of the fall warblers migrating south through our yard. Setophaga pensylvanica. The Chestnut-sided Warbler sings two basic songs: one is accented at the end (the pleased-to-meetcha song), and the other is not. Males sing the accented songs primarily to attract a female; once nesting is well underway they switch over to the unaccented songs, which are used mostly in territory defense and aggressive encounters with other males. Some males sing only unaccented songs, and they are less successful at securing mates than males that sing both songs. source - allaboutbirds.

We have had regular visits from flickers dropping into to our little stream. We had four at one time today and I managed to get an image of three at the water. Rondeau Provincial Park, Sept 20, 2022. Colaptes auratus. Northern Flickers generally nest in holes in trees like other woodpeckers. Occasionally, they’ve been found nesting in old, earthen burrows vacated by Belted Kingfishers or Bank Swallows.

Rondeau Provincial Park, Sept 18, 2022. I guess it didn't like the running water in or little stream. He seemed to like the bird bath but I don't think it is going to fit. Meleagris gallopavo. When they need to, Turkeys can swim by tucking their wings in close, spreading their tails, and kicking. source - allaboutbirds

Recently got a Canon R7 mirrorless camera. Really impressed with the auto focus. It reached into he bush found the eye and focused with not problem. ISO 1000, 263mm, f6.3, 1/200 sec. Rondeau Provincial Park, Sept 16, 2022 Colaptes auratus Although it can climb up the trunks of trees and hammer on wood like other woodpeckers, the Northern Flicker prefers to find food on the ground. Ants are its main food, and the flicker digs in the dirt to find them. It uses its long barbed tongue to lap up the ants. source - allaboutbirds

Spotted this bird while out on the pontoon boat. Lots of activity along the marsh edge this time of year. Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, Sept 10, 2022. The latin name makes me think the grebe is doing podcasts. Podilymbus podiceps Pied-billed Grebes can trap water in their feathers, giving them great control over their buoyancy. They can sink deeply or stay just at or below the surface, exposing as much or as little of the body as they wish. The water-trapping ability may also aid in the pursuit of prey by reducing drag in turbulent water. source - allaboutbirds.org

Oz is smaller than Crash but he intimidates the larger cat to get what he wants. Usually Oz wants whichever box Crash is in, so he sits on top of Crash until he gets his way. Crash was named due to his habit on running around and crashing into things, knocking things off shelves and, in one case knocking a shelf right out of the wall. They are indoor cats.

If you have running water. Always a different mixture of birds at the water feature, right now we are inundated with goldfinches. Rondeau Provincial Park, Sept 10, 2022.

When we were out on the pontoon boat Friday we came across 10 soras in a small area. This one was bathing enthusiastically, which is something we hadn't seen before. Usually, in my experience, they are in the reeds and don't come way out into the open like this. Porzana carolina Soras have earned several nicknames including Carolina rail, soree, meadow chicken, and ortolan. The name ortolan was probably given to them by hunters keen on eating the small bird, much like the actual ortolan, which is a bunting from Europe that is a delicacy in France, although an illegal one. source - allaboutbirds.org

Eastern chipmunk chilling beside the water feature. Tamias striatus. The chipmunk is mainly active during the day, spending most of its day foraging. It prefers bulbs, seeds, fruits, nuts, green plants, mushrooms, insects, worms, and bird eggs. It commonly transports food in pouches in its cheeks.

Juvenile cardinal, Rondeau Provincial Park, Sept 7, 2022. It seems that this young cardinal has a feather problem today. Cardinalis cardinalis Both parents feed nestlings. Young leave nest about 9-11 days after hatching. Male may feed fledglings while female begins next nesting attempt. 2-3 broods per year, rarely 4. source - https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/northern-cardinal

Rondeau Provincial Park, Sept 4, 2022. Great day at the water feature, 15 species of warbler, all were photographed, 3 vireos, plus woodpeckers, nuthatches, thrushes and orioles. Vireo philadelphicus Philadelphia Vireo was named in 1851 by American ornithologist John Cassin, who described the species based on a specimen of a migrant in Philadelphia. A local name for the species in that city was once “Brotherly-love Vireo.” source - allaboutbirds@org

American avocet, Blenheim sewage lagoons, Sept 3, 2022. Good day at the lagoons, 3 American avocets, 2 Wilson's phalaropes, 1 red knot and lots of swallows and ducks. Recurvirostra americana American Avocet chicks leave the nest within 24 hours of hatching. Day-old avocets can walk, swim, and even dive to escape predators. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Avocet