Some Birds of late May and Early June

 A few multi-purpose outings have resulted in quite a few photo ops. This post will focus mainly on birds that I have encountered.

If anyone was out along the Marsh Trail of Rondeau earlier this spring, the feature that used to be this for several years, much to the delight of those hiking the trail...

 

 ...which due to high water and ice damage, was destroyed and in its place was a structure designed to be a haven for Barn Swallows to use for nesting. It lasted for several years, but alas, the continued high water levels and ice damage resulted in it looking like this earlier this year.

I haven't been back out to this spot really recently, but the last time I got a glimpse, it looked like it had tumbled down the rest of the way. I expect the swallows gave up on it before nesting got into full gear.

I came across this Barn Swallow nesting underneath a boardwalk along the Tuliptree Trail.

This one, along with its mate, had successfully nested under the top level of the observation tower along the trail at St. Clair NWA. While this species seems to be fairly abundant at least in SW Ontario, it is considered a Species At Risk, with the ranking of Vulnerable.

Exploring the open, wetland areas along Lake St. Clair are always a highlight for me and my camera. Canada Geese are quite plentiful, with their overall numbers increasing considerably by dozens and dozens of recent additions to the flocks.

Eastern Kingbirds are scattered throughout, but in small numbers.

Great Blue Herons don't nest in the immediate vicinity, but at least a few are found feeding in the shallow water.

Great Egrets can be found, sometimes fairly abundantly. It isn't all that uncommon to see half a dozen to a dozen feeding, or flying by, as they nest at some of the nearby, offshore islands.

A much smaller member of the heron family is the Green Heron, usually quite elusive. This one was a long way off, and the photo is highly cropped.

The cattails harbour many, many individuals of the Marsh Wren. They are quite frequently heard, but seldom does one sit up so cooperatively.

Sandhill Cranes are more abundant these days, and a few days ago I saw this family of three wandering around in a field adjacent to SCNWA. It seemed rather early for this youngster, which had probably hatched at least two weeks earlier, but there it was.

Flyby cranes are always fun to try and get with the camera. 

In the wooded areas of Rondeau, there is quite a different array of birds such as this Wood Thrush, which had a nest just off the Warbler's Way trail. 

While walking along one forested trail, I was a bit startled to hear lots of thrashing going on in the thicker shrubbery right close by. It was this Turkey Vulture, which must have been feeding on something, and sat up in this tree, waiting until I left the area before it returned to continue its meal.

Rose-breasted Grosbeaks are not common, but regular.

These next two species are quite abundant, and in spite of that I always enjoy seeing them. I like the iridescence that is so well shown on the head of this Common Grackle.

Brown-headed Cowbirds are seldom the favourite of anyone, but hey....they are birds too, and I won't hesitate to aim the camera in their direction when the opportunity avails itself, (and when things are fairly quiet with not a lot of others to aim at).

Baltimore Orioles, next, are frequently heard as they are often higher up in the forest canopy, but don't often come down except to feeders.

And American Robins are abundant in many different habitats. This one was nesting on the shelf behind the sign, and was quite upset with me walking by.

Of course what is a bird themed blog in late May or early June about unless it features the iconic Prothonotary Warbler! I have had a few good encounters so far this season. On one occasion I was watching a female gathering nesting material to take to a natural cavity, and it flew in so close to me I couldn't get the entire bird in my field of view! I only got this one photo. It isn't cropped at all.

On another occasion while I was watching a male Prothonotary singing away, it actually landed on a branch right over my head, and had I a slightly longer arm, I could have reached up and touched it. However it was quite active in some of the small saplings nearby, and I got several photos, including this next one.

It doesn't get much better than that!

I will conclude this bird featured post with a highlight of a few days ago, when I encountered a flock of about 40 Whimbrel along the southeast shoreline of Rondeau.

They weren't around for long, presumably anxious to get to the breeding grounds well to the north.

 

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Late May/early June roaming at Rondeau (mostly)

 It is always inspiring to get out and roam around to see how nature is developing. Sometimes rather than focusing on any one thing in particular, it is great just to see what awaits for me. Even an overcast, somewhat rainy day, can be enjoyable. The forests look particularly green and lush in those conditions, so it is nice to have an umbrella handy and the right camera equipment for the conditions! This first one is along the South Point Trail...

...and the next one is from near the Gardiner Deer exclosure.

A couple of weeks earlier I had been out specifically looking for one of the main populations of Showy Orchis. More recently I was a little surprised to see this one still in fairly fine condition.

 

 There are lots of other attractive and colourful plants to aim the camera at:

Dame's Rocket, colourful but not native

While out one time exploring a part of Clear Creek Forest Prov Nature Reserve, I came across several individuals of Flowering Dogwood, an Endangered Species.

Along the grassy beach dunes of Rondeau is another Species At Risk, although not endangered, known as Hairy Puccoon.

Fairly abundant in rich woodlands is this next one, Mayapple.....

...and in more Pine-oak forest types where sandier soil is dominant, is Wild or Red Columbine, always a favourite to see in late spring.

In similar types of soils, and in this case along the Black Oak Trail, is Seneca Snakeroot.

White Baneberry

 Another species that I found for the first time a couple of years ago, and was added to the park's plant checklist for the first time, is this next one. It is Hairy Rockcress, and is considered Critically Imperiled in Canada. According to iNaturalist, it has only been recorded elsewhere in Canada on Pelee Island, at Point Pelee NP and near the north end of the Bruce Peninsula. It just goes to show that even after having explored Rondeau's trails for more than 50 years, there can be new things to discover! Which is part of the reason I keep exploring Rondeau, my 'home away from home' :-).

Something else on the Endangered species list is this next one, American Ginseng. I have been keeping an eye on this cluster for quite a few years, and is always fun to check up on.

This individual plant shows a very tiny flower cluster developing at the point where the three leaf stems separate.

 

 A different plant from the previous one, showing a closeup of the flower cluster. In another 2-3 weeks, the buds will open to show a few small white flowers, from which tiny red berries will eventually (hopefully) be present.

 

There are always a few other things to encounter along the way, such as the following in no particular order:

Black-shouldered Drone Fly

Common Five-lined, or Blue-tailed Skink

Hammer-jawed Jumping Spider

Hobomok Skipper

Hooded Dryomyza

Next is a member of the Large Crane Fly family, first a male........

...and next shows the female with it, and it looks like there is another generation of them to come!

Sometimes when trying to photograph a wildflower, there may be a tiny creature on it, such as this type of Flower Fly known as a Margined Calligrapher.

Certainly much larger is this Mourning Cloak....

...while a bit smaller is this Narrow-headed Marsh Fly.

On those days when it is slightly warmer, there are a few snakes out and about. Unfortunately some are just getting used to a bit of warmth, and are not able to escape the impact of the wheels of a bicycle or something that comes upon it quickly, such as this Northern Brown Snake, also called Dekay's Brown Snake.

They are relatively tolerant of human presence along the trail, if movements of humans are slow and calculated, allowing for close-up photos as these next two individuals demonstrate.

And finally for this post, a Silver-spotted Skipper.

 As mentioned and explained a bit in my previous post, I have started up another blog with a slightly different theme. I have called it Life Is A Journey, and if you are interested, you can check it out at this link. I plan to continue with Nature Nuggets as I have done over the past 11 years. It is now over 700 posts and almost 12000 photos, and is certainly fun to do.

 If you would like to subscribe, or unsubscribe, to Nature Nuggets, send an email to: prairietramper@gmail.com