Lingering herps, leps and birds coming and going

 There is always lots to see at this time of year, but as the weather becomes more challenging for various things in nature, there will be a decline.

Some of the reptiles and amphibians are making use of the sunnier, slightly warmer days. Salamanders, such as this adult and juvenile Blue-spotted Salamander, shown first, will be going underground.

This Eastern Garter Snake will linger for awhile yet.

A couple of posts ago I showed an Eastern Gray Treefrog that was trying to change its colour to match the background it was on, so it would be more inconspicuous. This one was likely never going to change its colour to red, so just stayed green!

Similar to the salamander shown above, this Eastern Red-backed Salamander will be going underground very soon.

Leopard Frogs may linger a bit longer, at least on sunny days, before taking refuge at the bottom of wetlands.

A Northern Brown Snake was hanging out on a paved road, certainly a risk given the vehicles and bicycles it would have to contend with.

This Northern Watersnake was along a hiking trail, so a much lower risk for it.

And this Northern Ribbon Snake was also along a paved area. After I got its photo, I prodded it a bit but it never budged, in spite of not showing signs of any obvious injury.

Sunny days can also bring a few butterflies out. First off is a Question Mark. It is helpful to see the underside to see the white question mark, looking like a split comma....
 

...and the upper side of the same species. A little farther down these photos is an Eastern Comma, showing the more obvious white comma feature

Red Admiral

There are still a few Monarchs flitting about, trying to get enough energy to make it farther south in their migration journey.

Eastern Comma

Eastern Comma

Other lingering insects include Beech Blight Aphids which are always entertaining to watch, in spite of the fact that they are so tiny.

Yellow-legged Meadow Hawk

 Birds may be coming or going. Bald Eagles may sometimes be year round residents, but one of the local hawkwatches have already recorded almost 250 eagles that have passed by on their way south.

Waterfowl are building in numbers and will linger as long as there is open water. Canada Geese are quite plentiful.

Great Egrets persist in small numbers but most have already departed.

Of particular interest to birders was the presence of two Hudsonian Godwits in a couple of places in southern Chatham-Kent: at the Keith McLean Conservation Lands as well as the Blenheim Sewage Lagoons.

Yellow-rumped Warblers are probably the most abundant warbler around currently, and usually a few may linger all winter.
 

Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers are fairly regularly encountered, at least for now.

This Yellow-billed Cuckoo is definitely a late lingering individual.

Turkey Vultures are passing over the hawkwatch sites by the hundreds, sometime the thousands, every day depending on the wind direction.

Sandhill Cranes are still around in small, but dwindling, numbers.

Rusty Blackbirds are fairly abundant, at least for the short term, as they pass through on migration.

Pileated Woodpeckers are a year-round resident and always fun to watch.

As with the Canada Geese above, other waterfowl such as these Mallards, are quite abundant. The diversity of waterfowl species is building, although due to the hunting season, are quite leery of coming with in photo range.

Lincoln's Sparrows are one of the more common sparrows these days, but that will change over the next few weeks as they continue to migrate.

I came across this Eastern Meadow Vole quite recently. It was scampering through a grassy area, so I didn't get the photos I was hoping for, but I think this is the first time I have ever photographed even one!

I was surprised to see this Closed Bottle Gentian still in flower a week or so ago. Normally they are all finished by the end of September.

Berries are always  favoured by various birds, so they can build up their energy to continue their migration. The berries of this Winterberry Holly won't last long!

The leaves on so many trees are beginning to show their autumn colours, such as this Sassafrass cluster shown next. I'm looking forward to the next couple of weeks when they and others will be in their full autumn glory!

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Exploring woodlands, etc.

 It has been fun to get out and explore natural areas, of course, and there are so many things in local woodlands and adjacent areas to enjoy and photograph. Here are some of the recent highlights.

One of the things I don't often see is the following. From a bit of a distance, it just looks like a whitish substance on a branch of an American Beech. This first photo is actually much closer than one would normally see it, and almost everyone walks by it, ignoring it.

 

 A closer look.....

 

  ...even closer...

...and an extremely close look! It is a mass collection of a very small insect called Beech Blight Aphid! If you jiggle the branch even very slightly, they will all get up and perform a wiggly dance, complete with waving their tails. Given that each aphid is only about 2 mm in size, one has to get quite close to see this intriguing creature in action! It is quite entertaining!

A close look at a leaf reveals an Arabesque Orbweaver.

Scattered about in small clumps of the beech/maple forest are a few of this next plant, which doesn't have leaves, but gets its growth from growing off the underground parts of other plants. It is American Beech Drops.

On another leaf is a non-native creature, a Chinese Mantid.

A new species of moth for Rondeau was discovered recently. It is Cockerell's Moth, quite small but interestingly patterned.

Leopard Frogs are out to enjoy a bit of sunshine on the cooler days. 

 

A Large Tolype Moth is resting on the side of a building.

Along some trails there is a profusion of American Hog-peanut, a member of the legume family.

While walking along a trail, I came across this Gray Treefrog. It was resting on a fairly good-size patch of lichens. What makes this interesting is that the treefrog can change colours, to more or less match its background, and therefore be harder to see. Since the lichens are quite variable, the treefrog has tried to match it by mixing its green and gray colouration.

A bit later, it was perched on a branch that had quite a different background, and its colours changed slightly as well.

I know that spiders are not the favourite creatures of many folks, but they are things that I enjoy finding and taking photos of. This first one is a Marbled Orbweaver, that similarly to the Arabesque Orbweaver shown earlier, is interestingly patterned. You can sometimes find them just on a leaf....

...or busily making its web, in hopes of capturing a few tasty flying insects to feast on.

This Pale Green Assasin Bug was on a leaf, prowling about for something to eat....

...and this young Pine Tree Spurthroat Grasshopper was on a railing obliging me.

A Ruby-throated Hummingbird was feasting at some nearby sunflower for nectar.

I spent a bit of time exploring the sandy beach, partly because Marie always had a preference for the beaches and shorelines, and came across this member of the Sand Wasp family.

Nearby the Sand Wasp, were a few of this rare orchid: the Great Plain's Ladies'-tresses. It is fairly common and widely spread in suitable habitat at Rondeau, and is coming into its prime right about now. 

Back to the more wooded habitats, was this caterpillar of the Virginia Sphinx species....

...and lots of White Ratttlesnake Root is found along many trails, especially where it isn't heavily shaded. It is a member of the Composite family, and there are so many of the Compositae family in these natural areas. Note the little green spotted Cucumber Beetle on one of the flowers.

Always an abundance of things to encounter, enjoy and photograph in high quality natural areas!!

 

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