Rondeau....naturally

Befuddled as to what to get someone for Christmas? How about a calendar featuring photos of Rondeau Provincial Park?

The 2017 Rondeau....naturally calendar is still available, and contains the following photos (note: the © P. Allen Woodliffe is not shown on the actual calendar photos). The calendar measures 21.5 X 28 cm (8.5 X 11 inches), is printed on high gloss paper and is suitable for framing. It was printed locally in Chatham.

The cover photo was taken from the Erieau harbour, looking across Rondeau Bay to the sun rising over the park.

January shows a rare Giant Swallowtail feeding on a Wild Bergamot flower.

February shows a winding path along Tuliptree Trail which crosses over old beach ridges and larger sloughs into the interior of the park.

March shows the effects of a late winter storm at one of the larger sloughs.

April shows a male Leopard Frog 'in song' close by a cluster of eggs recently laid by a nearby female.

May shows an endangered female Prothonotary Warbler. This species was first discovered nesting in Canada at Rondeau in the early 1930s and has been the stronghold for them ever since. Nonetheless their numbers are perilously low here and elsewhere in Canada, with probably on average less than a dozen pairs in the entire country.

June shows a close-up of the fabulous Tuliptree flower.

July shows a striking Michigan Lily.

August shows a beautiful Great Egret, with its translucent backlit wings.

September shows a Midland Painted Turtle, the only species of turtle found in southern Ontario that isn't considered an 'At Risk' species.

October shows an eye-level view of an Eastern Chipmunk.

November features a pair of Sandhill Cranes synchronously lifting off from the Rondeau marsh.

December shows the extremely rare pale yellow colour form of a Red Trillium.

A bonus January 2018 photo is of a White-tailed Deer passing along the grassy beach dunes.

This calendar is available from the Friends Of Rondeau bookstore at the Visitor Centre of Rondeau. The Visitor Centre is open on weekends from 12-4 from now until Christmas. The cost of the calendar is $20, including taxes, with proceeds going to help support the Friend's of Rondeau educational programs.