Rondeau Ric

Baltimore oriole, Rondeau Provincial Park, June 29, 2023. Removed the sculpture support in photoshop. Alternate title - Surfin' Bird Icterus galbula. Baltimore Orioles sometimes use their slender beaks to feed in an unusual way, called “gaping”: they stab the closed bill into soft fruits, then open their mouths to cut a juicy swath from which they drink with their brushy-tipped tongues. source - allaboutbirds-org.

Red admiral butterfly up close and personal. Rondeau Provincial Park, July 23, 2023 Vanessa atalanta Butterflies can commonly be seen wicking near muddy puddles of water. Red Admirals are also known to drink tree sap and even wick from dung. Butterflies that live in more northern latitudes migrate to the Southern states, like Texas, to avoid a loss of food resources in the winter.

July 24, 2023, warmer times in our little water feature, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. A few that come to our feeder still have/are getting colour. Nice to see on another dreary day  Spinus tristis.  American Goldfinches are unusual among goldfinches in molting their body feathers twice a year, once in late winter and again in late summer. The brightening yellow of male goldfinches each spring is one welcome mark of approaching warm months. source -allaboutbirds-org

  A friend told us about 2 long eared owls that could be seen from the road. Tucked away behind all sorts of twigs and branches we were able to spot both. Images taken from the car with  telephoto lens to avoid disturbing the owls. Asio otus Like other owls, the Long-eared has a body adapted for silent flight and precision hunting. Flight feathers with fringed edges and downy surfaces mute the sound of the owl’s passage through air. The owls gain incredible hearing from their asymmetrically placed ear openings and large, sound-catching facial disks.

 Fluttering after the bath, to dry off,  Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, October 2. 2023. Thryothorus ludovicianus The Carolina Wren is sensitive to cold weather, with the northern populations decreasing markedly after severe winters. The gradually increasing winter temperatures over the last century may have been responsible for the northward range expansion seen in the mid-1900s.

It is almost warm enough for me to go back out to do photography. This is from Feb 5, 2023 at Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. 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.

 Rose-breasted grosbeak enjoying a bath when the stream was open. Rondeau Provincial Park,Ontario, Canada,  June 10, 2023. Pheucticus ludovicianus.  The male Rose-breasted Grosbeak takes a turn incubating the eggs for several hours during the day, while the female incubates the rest of the day and all night long. Both sexes sing quietly to each other when they exchange places. The male sometimes sings his normal song at full volume from inside the nest. source- allaboutbirds-org

  White tailed deer, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada,Jan 15. 2023. Another yard visitor looking for water. The opening would probably be closed except Anne adds some hot water each morning.

  The opening in our little stream is getting smaller on each sub-freezing temperature day. This wild turkey came into the yard and spent time cleaning up under the feeders, before having a drink. The water feature has a heater that helps keep the water flowing. Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, January 14, 2023. Meleagris gallopavo

It has been cold the last few days resulting in the stream freezing over. Just a small opening for the birds to get their drinks.   Blue jay, Rondeau Provincial Park, January 15, 2024, Ontario, Canada. Taken through a very dirty window because I wasn't going out in the cold.   Cyanocitta cristata Tool use has never been reported for wild Blue Jays, but captive Blue Jays used strips of newspaper to rake in food pellets from outside their cages.

Northern Cardinal, February 5, 2023, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Still a small selection of birds in the yard, so panther from the archives.  Cardinalis cardinalis. The male cardinal fiercely defends its breeding territory from other males. When a male sees its reflection in glass surfaces, it frequently will spend hours fighting the imaginary intruder.

Another from the achieves. Nothing flashy, just another little brown job. Savannah sparrow, June 12, 2019, Chatham-Kent, Ontario, Canada. Passerculus sandwichensis.   Raising young is hard work: a female Savannah Sparrow must gather 10 times her weight in food to feed herself and her young during the 8 days they are in the nest. source-allaboutbirds-org

 From the archieves, a hermit thrush along one of the trails in Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, May 5, 2019. A big winter storm with rain, heavy, wet snow and high winds is forecasted over the next 2 days. Personally I'm staying in and hoping the power doesn't go out. Catharus guttatus.  Hermit Thrushes usually make their nests in and around trees and shrubs, but they can also get more creative. Nests have been found on a cemetery grave, on a golf course, and in a mine shaft.

 Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, September 23, 2016. Another one from the archives. 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.

Cattle egret. January 24, 2015, southern Florida. Bubulcus ibis The Western Cattle Egret has a broad and flexible diet that occasionally includes other birds. In the Dry Tortugas off the coast of Florida, migrating cattle egrets have been seen hunting migrating warblers. source-allabourbirds-org.

 Limpkin, Viera wetlands Florida, Jan 22, 2015. We have had a limp kin show up in Ontario, Canada at 3 different locations. I wasn't able to travel to those spots but I have a flight shot from a visit to Florida. Aramus guarauna. The Limpkin's bill is uniquely adapted to foraging on apple snails. The closed bill has a gap just before the tip that makes the bill act like tweezers. The tip itself is often curved slightly to the right so it can be slipped into the right-handed curve of the snail’s shell. source - allaboutbirds-org

A Harlequin duck was found at Erieau a few days ago, as it isn't far we went to see it. Normal range is the west coast of Canada and Northern Quebec. Very co-operative as it moved back and forth in the main channel of the marina. January 1, 2024, Erieau, Ontario, Canada. Histrionicus histrionicus   When interacting, Harlequin Ducks make distinctly unducklike squeaks, from whence comes one of its colloquial names, sea mouse. source-allaboutbirds-org