Rondeau Ric

So the Tennessee (and The Monkees) say. The yellow seemed to be very deliberate in landing on the Tennessee as if to say, get out of my pond. Rondeau Provincial Park, Aug 12, 2023. Leiothlypis peregrina- Tennessee warbler Setophaga petechia - Yellow warbler.

Sora, Rondeau Provincial Park, Aug 11, 2023. First sora of the year, they've been hiding from us. 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. source -Cornell Lab of Ornithology

See I do post things other than birds. A snake at the pond this afternoon. Rondeau Provincial Park, Aug 10, 2023. Eastern garter snake .

Black and white warbler, Rondeau Provincial Park, August 9, 2023. Grooming after a enthusiastic bath. Mniotilta varia. Black-and-white Warblers have an extra-long hind claw and heavier legs than other wood-warblers, which help them hold onto and move around on bark. source -Cornell Lab of Ornithology (Fandango is a lively partner dance originating in Portugal and Spain, usually in triple meter, traditionally accompanied by guitars, castanets)

Prairie warbler, Rondeau Provincial Park, August 7, 2023. We have had one in the lot next to us that we watched from the yard but the is the first time one has come to the water. Setophaga discolor. Like most warblers, Prairie Warbler sings two similar, but distinct, song types. The faster “A Song” is directed at the female for courtship and the “B Song” is sung at territorial boundaries to deter other males. source -Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Blue-gray gnatcatcher taking food out of a spider's web. Rondeau Provincial Park, Aug 5, 2023. Polioptila caerulea The nesting range of Blue-gray Gnatcatchers has been shifting northward since the early twentieth century. Over the last quarter of that century, the shift was about 200 miles, in concert with increasing average temperatures source -Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Blackburnian warbler, Rondeau Provincial Park, August 5, 2023. Another fall migrant in the yard Setophaga fusca In springtime, rival male Blackburnian Warblers perform remarkable territorial conflicts that recall an aerial ballet. They chase one another through and around the treetops, flying in loops, plummeting downward through the branches in a whirling pattern, gliding with tail raised and spread, or slowly flapping in exaggerated “moth flight,” as researchers call it. Once territories are established, the aerobatics die down. source -Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Milkweed tussock moth, Rondeau Provincial Park, August 2, 2023. Evidently a swarm of caterpillars is unusual for this species. Leave it to Anne to find something like this. Euchaetes egle, the milkweed tiger moth or milkweed tussock moth, is a moth in the family Erebidae and the tribe Arctiini, the tiger moths.

Another migrant, Bay-breasted warbler, Rondeau Provincial Park, Aug 2,2023. Don't recall having a bay-breasted at this time of year, particularly one with such good colour. Setophaga castanea. Bay-breasted Warblers are voracious predators of spruce budworms. One study concluded that they consumed over 13,000 budworms per hectare (about 2.5 acres) in just 41 days. source -Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Yellow-rumped warbler, Rondeau Provincial Park, August 1, 2023. This is the earliest we recall having a yellow-rump at the water. Setophaga coronata. When Yellow-rumped Warblers find themselves foraging with other warbler species, they typically let Palm, Magnolia and Black-throated Green warblers do as they wish, but they assert themselves over Pine and Blackburnian warblers. source -Cornell Lab of Ornithology